With summer in full swing, this town has sprouted poolside parties from Hollywood to the 90210. Water babies seeking pools further West now have reason to rejoice at the Custom Hotel’s Hopscotch Pool Bar & Grill.

Created by real estate mavens at the Palisades Development Group, the Custom opened in January as a hyper design-conscious boutique hotel a hop, skip, and a jump from LAX.  Though the hotel and bar crowd is typically tourists and business travelers, locals have begun eschewing typical L.A. summer club fare (think the hotter-than-thou scene at the Roosevelt’s Tropicana bar) for Hopscotch’s weekly Sundaze blowout.  On Sundays (hence the party name) the bi-level outdoor spot hosts a constantly changing roster of international DJs, spinning everything from electro-jazz to future-bossa.  The bikini-clad crowds, sometimes swelling to over 300, loll in private cabanas or atop the cushy stadium seating. 

Happy 9-5ers feast on complimentary hors d’oeuvres until 8pm at The Hours, a mingle-friendly Friday night fête.  Weekday nights host LMU coeds (the campus is literally down the street) sipping alcoholic smoothies around the fire pit while the business bunch relaxes in the balmy night air.  Though Hopscotch’s actual pool remained deserted on a recent Saturday night, a foosball table, classic arcade games and even a literal hopscotch board easily amused guests.  In an effort to reaffirm the kiddy motif, the bar menu offers up corn dogs and sliders.  So much for maintaining our bikini bod.

Luckily, bathing suits are not de rigueur.  Instead guests opt for club-worthy short shorts and gauzy tops at night, and breezy clothing by day.  While Hopscotch may lack celeb sightings and the street life of the Cahuenga Corridor, it is also free of velvet ropes and Hollywood ‘tude.  We say, hop to it.—Heather Rabkin