Entertaining a new client has its own challenges, but at least you have a lot of open road as you get to know each other and brave some awkward conversational pauses. 

Another challenge is the client you’ve worked with for years and feel like you’re either stuck in a stale routine or have done all the hits (the dinners, games, concerts). 

I think that’s actually where client entertainment gets more interesting.

The goal isn’t necessarily to keep orchestrating one mountaintop experience after another. It’s finding something that feels thoughtful, a little different, and gives you something new to connect on.

I know that’s easy to say and hard to do. It feels awkward to throw out something new to an old client if you’re used to doing the same type of thing. I’ve 100% felt this myself, but I’ve also found that it usually lands better than I anticipate. Even if they don’t actually bite on doing it, the thought and intention go a long way.

Here’s a few curveball entertaining ideas on the East side with that challenge in mind.

— Robbie

Rockii Studios runs private beaded jewelry workshops out of a cozy, wood-lined greenhouse in Silver Lake.

After a quick intro from your instructor, Rockii, you’ll comb through her collection of freshwater pearls, glass and ceramic beads, charms, and pendants, then start working on your design. You’ll put everything together and Rockii will assist with the trickier finishing touches.

A lot of the charm is in the greenhouse setting itself. It’s a little dreamy and fits the hipstery Silver Lake crafting vibe. Here’s an IG video for a visual overview of the space, class, and types of jewelry you can create.

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Added value: If a loud-ass football game or concert sits on one end of the client-entertaining spectrum, a cozy crafting experience like this sits on the other. It’s social and a little meditative, but there’s still plenty to fiddle with, which takes some pressure off the conversation. Great option for a client (and seller!) who’d rather wind down after work than gear up for a big night out. 

For the first weekend in December (12/4-12/6), Upper Deck Golf is turning Dodger Stadium, excuse me, Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium, into a giant Topgolf-like experience.

You’ll play a nine-hole course set up throughout the stadium as you hook and slice to your heart’s content from different levels of the stands down onto custom greens on the field. The holes range from 75 to 150 yards, and a full round takes about 90 minutes. There’s also a clubhouse area with food, drinks, and golf challenges before and after your round.

I’m flagging this two months early because the presale starts this Thursday, September 24th at 11am. Judging by the number of exclamation points Upper Deck Golf uses to tell you “LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE! WILL SELL OUT!”, you may actually want to jump on it.

Friday 12/4 is likely the best option for client entertainment. Tee times run from 7am to 9pm, so if your client can ditch work for a long lunch or early afternoon, this is a one-of-a-kind Friday experience.

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Added value: I loved doing this a few years ago. Everything about it seemed unreal. From driving into the vast, empty parking lot that feels like a zombie movie to wandering through the stands to smack your next shot down into the infield, it’s a truly unique LA experience. It’s worth considering for clients who play golf, but also for anyone who’d get a kick out of doing something at Dodger Stadium you’d normally never get to do.

Sous Sous is one of LA’s newest restaurants located inside Hotel Lucile, a restored 1931 church in Silver Lake.

The restaurant leans into French-American flavors from the team behind the Arts District pizza spot De La Nonna. The dining room is the former chapel, with the original stained glass and vaulted ceilings. This TikTok walkthrough comes with some groovy background beats and gives you a feel for the space and the food.

The menu isn't posted yet, but the framing is Southern France meets the American South, with a raw bar and a lot of seafood options. 

Since Sous Sous literally just opened, this is less about going somewhere with hundreds of five-star reviews and more about riding the early hype and looking like the seller who knows what’s going on in the LA dining scene.

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Added value: The wild Katy Perry Connection

Hotel Lucile took a very long road to opening, including a bizarre and expensive detour involving Katy Perry, two nuns, and a completely different property in Los Feliz.

Local developer Dana Hollister held a long-term lease on the former Silver Lake church and was working to turn it into a hotel.

Separately, she struck the art of the deal with two nuns to buy their former convent in Los Feliz. At the same time, the Archdiocese of LA, the Catholic Church authority that actually had the right to sell the Los Feliz convent, was trying to sell the same property to Katy Perry.

That second deal turned into a legal fiasco. A jury found that Hollister had intentionally interfered with Perry’s deal, and she was hit with millions in damages.

Hollister eventually filed for bankruptcy, putting the Silver Lake hotel project in jeopardy before she sold her interest in 2020.

But, “like a plastic bag floating in the wind, wanting to start again,” the project survived, changed hands, and eventually became Hotel Lucile.

Ever been hanging with a client and conversation just runs dry? Whether it’s recent and topical, or general and evergreen, the Oasis is about giving you one idea for helping in that moment.

Why has LA been so damn humid?

Here’s an interesting fact you can use if you get stuck in another titillating weather conversation with a client.

LA has been humid af lately, but despite what I assumed, it’s not just El Niño.

The weather nerd influencers on X informed me that the main culprit was Tropical Storm Marie, which sent a huge amount of warm, tropical moisture into Southern California. That combined with our usual late-summer monsoonal moisture and produced some of the highest humidity levels ever seen in LA.

At one point, Long Beach had roughly the same dew point as Orlando and New Orleans.

El Niño is happening, and it may have added to the humidity, but what really made you look for the Gold Bond under the bathroom sink was basically the remnants of a tropical storm.

Now that you’ve checked the weather box with that fascinating tidbit, you can seamlessly transition onto your next awkward conversation topic.

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