Atop the bustling slope of Manhattan Beach Boulevard, the seafoam-colored but sand-free Shade Hotel's lobby lounge draws sexy yuppies desperate for an alternative to the casual beach spots catering to beer-pounding post-collegiates who can't get past their glory years.

Almost instantly after the grand opening, management was scrambling for a doorman and a velvet rope to wrangle the weekend crowd. On a Sunday afternoon, the stools and modular seating beckon guests and drop-ins thirsty for an early key-lime martini with, say, a trio of haute sliders (one beef, one chicken, one ahi) served by a staff that's uniformly easy on the eyes. But of course you only have eyes for your beloved (or belusted, as the case may be). Shade’s Weekender package includes breakfast and lunch vouchers, martinis and small plates in the restaurant, and, courtesy of Coldstone, two enormous servings of ice cream, plus a spa kit in the room for indulgence of another kind. Among the more surreal elements in the room design are sink faucets resembling saucers and shoji screens that slide around a large central tub, which is situated under a row of lights whose color can be changed from red to green to blue.—Lonny Pugh