103. One of our absolute favorite places to hang out in all of Los Angeles is beautiful downtown Manhattan Beach. Our guest on this episode is Jill Lamkin - Executive Director for Manhattan Beach Downtown Business and Professional Association. She lives and works in Manhattan Beach and because of her role, knows what's going on with pretty much every business that's in the downtown area. Jill shares why she loves Manhattan Beach and why she considers herself very lucky to live there. She also sh...
Feb 09, 2022•42 min•Season 1Ep. 103
102. We have some incredible entertainment in Los Angeles but some things take it to a whole other level and when you experience them, you realize again, just how lucky we are to live in this city. Made up of 5 massive geo dome bubbles in the Arts District, the Wisdome is a huge and immersive art and music park. Combining art, music, technology, spirituality and much more, Wisdome transports you to another time and place and feels like the bridge between todays reality and tomorrows promised met...
Jan 26, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 102
101. Ok we are not even done with the first month of they year yet and for some of us we are already struggling with our 2022 health resolutions. Why is it so tough to stick with it? In this episode we talk to elite trainer Quan Bailey who shares some of his best tips to planning and sticking to a healthy lifestyle. He also shares his story of recently moving to LA and how it helped reinvigorate his passion for the health and fitness industry. He also talks about living in Santa Monica, what he ...
Jan 19, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 101
100. Wow! We did it! We are 100 episodes in. Want to thank you so much for joining us so far on this exploration of the city we both love; Los Angeles! To celebrate this milestone episode we had on 5 of our favorite past guests to share what they enjoyed most in LA in 2021 and what they are most looking forward to in 2022! Get some great ideas for putting together your own LA Hackers Bucket List for 2022. Guests: Josh @abovelosangeles Leslie @my_adorkable_adventures Lena @lenazilla Alyssa @alyss...
Jan 05, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 100
99. Winter in Los Angeles. Yes we don't exactly have blizzards or snowstorms to deal with like much of the country but we do have our version of Winter here in Southern California. While we are known for sunshine and the Summer we make the best of this time of year and its actually one of the best seasons to be in LA. There is so much to do and people go all out to try and recreate similar Winter experiences that our friends to the North and East have. At least the fun experiences anyway. In thi...
Dec 22, 2021•27 min•Season 1Ep. 99
98. David Minkin is an American magician and an International Champion of Close-Up Magic who has appeared in numerous movies, television shows and live productions. David also happens to be from right here in Los Angeles, where he is able to stand out in a city where the best magicians from all over the world come to show their craft. In this interview David reveals how he started as a magician, some of his most memorable encounters with celebrities, what its like to perform at the iconic Magic ...
Dec 08, 2021•31 min•Season 1Ep. 98
97. Steve Harris has been devoted to sneakers and hip hop since their inceptions as culture movements out of NYC where he is originally from. And after carving out a successful career here in Los Angeles as filmmaker and a producer, that includes winning an Emmy, he has returned to that passion. Along with his co-founder Steve Brown, he opened Sneakertopia, a Los Angeles based interactive art museum dedicated to the culture of everything sneakers, including music, fashion, film and art. In this ...
Nov 24, 2021•22 min•Season 1Ep. 97
96. Scott Cooper has owned a few popular restaurants in the South Bay over the years but his latest opening, the Nomad Eatery in el Segundo, might just be his true love. Scott carefully crafted his menu and the welcoming intimate vibes of the restaurant based on his cherished memories backpacking across the globe and experiencing different foods, people and culture, hence the name Nomad Eatery. But the opening of the Nomad has come with many challenges because of the pandemic. In this interview ...
Nov 10, 2021•39 min•Season 1Ep. 96
95. Josh Furman has one of the coolest LA based accounts on Instagram. Its called Above Los Angeles and as you can tell by the name it gives us a birds eye view of the city we all love. If you follow his account you will see some of LAs most incredible landmarks from high in the sky with his amazing aerial video and photography. In this interview Josh shares why he started his account, some of his video and photography tips, his best suggestions in LA and much more. You can find out more about J...
Oct 27, 2021•48 min•Season 1Ep. 95
94. What do most people think of when they picture Los Angeles? Well warm weather and beaches of course. But those of us who live in LA know that people here love when October comes around and the Fall season arrives. Yes, believe it or not the place best known for Summer, actually also loves Autumn. And we have so many fun activities for the season, the month and Halloween. In this episode we reveal the best things to do in LA for the month of October. You can find out more about everything tha...
Oct 13, 2021•31 min•Season 1Ep. 94
93. Paul Haddad is a Los Angeles based author who typically writes books about LA or at least set in this city. He is back on the podcast again to talk about his latest work: Freewaytopia: How Freeways Shaped Los Angeles. If you ever wondered about the history of these miles and miles of winding highways most of us spend endless hours of our life on, you will enjoy this conversation. Find out how the freeways came about, how they impacted the National interstate system, what ambitious plans neve...
Sep 29, 2021•50 min•Season 1Ep. 93
92. We love old school arcade games and one of the best is the Neon Retro Arcade in Old Pasadena. In this episode of the LifeHacksLA podcast we talk to the owners of Neon Retro, Mia and Mark. They share the history of how and why they started this beloved small business, how their community rallied around them for support during the pandemic, and some of their personal favorite LA tips and hacks. You can find out more about the Neon Retro Arcade on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/neonret...
Sep 22, 2021•37 min•Season 1Ep. 92
91. When it comes to going out for cocktails in Los Angeles its no longer just about having a casual drink. People now expect an all out experience. Well at least if its being done right, according to Matt Landes the founder of the Cocktail Academy. Cocktail Academy was founded in the Arts District in Downtown LA in 2014 by a team of hospitality forward-thinkers who wanted to help shape cocktail culture for tomorrow’s consumer through engaging education and the most artistic, personalized, cockt...
Sep 08, 2021•41 min•Season 1Ep. 91
90. Our guest today spent years in Santa Barbara exploring this amazing city and experiencing things only locals would know about. Most of us who live in Los Angeles have made a day or weekend trip to Santa Barbara but Andrew Reyes is going to tell us about many fun things to do and see that don't typically show up on the tourist guides. In other words, things only a local would know! If you like Santa Barbara you will love this conversation where we talk about some incredible places you may not...
Sep 01, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 90
89. Have you noticed that lots more attention has been put on appreciating high quality tequila and mezcal lately? Yup. From the Rock to George Clooney we are seeing a recent push for premium tequila that should be savored slowly instead of gulped down. That is one of the reasons why we now have LA Tequila Fest. They are putting together a festival of 40 award winning tequila and mezcal brands at LA State Historic Park September 25th 2021 those of us who appreciate a great tasting tequila. Our g...
Aug 25, 2021•32 min•Season 1Ep. 89
88. There are so many amazing hidden gems in Los Angeles. So how do you learn about (or get reminded) about all of them? Well one of the best ways is to follow the right Instagram accounts. And my guest today definitely has one of the best of the best accounts for under the radar but beautiful places to explore in L.A. Paola from Paospostcards shares her adventures around the world with a mission to inspire others to travel. But since the pandemic she has stayed grounded and focused her adventur...
Aug 11, 2021•48 min•Season 1Ep. 88
87. One of the best things about living in Los Angeles is easy access to so many other amazing cities. And that is why we love taking road trips. Drive 2 hours in any direction and you will likely end up somewhere pretty awesome. On this episode we focus on one of our favorite road trips and that's heading up North to the beautiful central coast. We recently spent a few days in Pismo Beach and made plenty of stops along the way there and back to experience some of the best of what the central co...
Jul 28, 2021•25 min•Season 1Ep. 87
86. Some of the largest annual events we missed out on 2020 are coming back in 2021. One of those events is the amazing OC Fair. The crazy popular carnival in Costa Mesa is bigger and better than ever this year! We went recently so in this episode we break down exactly what you can expect with a day at the Fair and some special tips and hacks to make it the best day possible. The OC Fair runs from July 16th - August 15th and you must reserve your tickets online. You can find more information her...
Jul 21, 2021•28 min•Season 1Ep. 86
85. Los Angeles and the OC are home to some of the most unique and innovative restaurant and eatery concepts in the world. And entrepreneur Andy Nguyen is the co-founder of some of our favorites. From After's Ice Cream, Portside Fish Co, Dough and Arrow, Matte Black Coffee and many more, if you’re a foodie you have likely tried a dish and shared it on Instagram that originated in Andy's imagination. And now he and his team have stepped it up even more with their opening of an entire upscale food...
Jun 23, 2021•35 min•Season 1Ep. 85
84. Los Angeles and California overall, is all set to completely open up on June 15th 2021. After a year and a half of lockdowns, restrictions and limited openings, we will be able to get back to doing so many things we have been missing. In this episode we share more details on the reopening's, what we are looking forward to most and why this will be an LA Hacker Summer! You can find more LifeHacksLA at: www.lifehacksla.com www.instagram.com/lifehacksla www.lifehacksla.com/lahackersclub...
May 26, 2021•27 min•Season 1Ep. 84
83. April from SoCal Fun Family has plenty to keep her busy with a bustling household of six, including four very active kids. But a busy schedule does not stop them from going out as much as possible to explore Southern California activities that are fun for the whole family. She shares these family fun adventures on her popular Instagram account and blog. In this interview she explains how she finds all this fun stuff to do, her favorite weekend getaways, her best tips to save money going out ...
May 05, 2021•54 min•Season 1Ep. 83
82. Shantelle from Disneylandtourguide.com is back with us to give all the updates, tips and hacks we need to know for Disneyland's reopening in April 2021 for California residents. Shantelle should be your go to resource if you need any information on Disneyland because for any question you could possibly she probably already has a detailed story, post or article covering it. In this interview she shares some great tips on the Disney reopening including how to get tickets. We also take question...
Apr 21, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 82
81. Justin "JustRoc" Rimon has always believed in going all in when it comes to embracing your passions. And for years he did just that as a competitive B-Boy (aka breakdancer) and event producer active in the street dance community for several years. But after retiring from competitions he discovered a brand new passion in "trekking". A life changing sunset hike up to the top of Sandstone Peak gave him the clarity to go all in on his new found mission to try to explore all of what the great Los...
Apr 14, 2021•53 min•Season 1Ep. 81
80. Katherine Spiers is a passionate LA foodie but for her its not just a hobby, she does it for a living! As the former food editor at LA Weekly, Katherine has a long term relationship with the Los Angeles food scene. She also co created the famous Rogue99 list which lays out LAs most essential eateries and won an award in AFJ's food writing contest. Now Katherine is the host of the awesome Smart Mouth Podcast which covers.. you guessed it LA food topics! She recently joined me on an Instagram ...
Mar 31, 2021•52 min•Season 1Ep. 80
79. Mayly Tao is the owner of one of the most popular donut shops in LA, DK's Donuts in Santa Monica. But there is way more to her story than just being a young successful local business owner. She was born and raised in Los Angeles but her parents came to California as Cambodian refugees and were part of the surge of Cambodian donut shop owners in the 80s and 90s led by the Donut King Ted Ngoy who is also Mayly's great uncle. While many old school Cambodian shops are now struggling to strive in...
Mar 17, 2021•54 min•Season 1Ep. 79
78. Jamie Alimorad is an award winning singer songwriter who moved to Los Angeles as part of his pursuit of a career in music. But the music industry has had some seismic upheavals over the past 10 years especially here in LA. Jamie shares with us in this interview his personal journey to a career in the modern music industry and lots of tips about how someone who is pursuing that path for themselves should go about it. He also shares how the events of the past year have impacted the music busin...
Mar 10, 2021•46 min•Season 1Ep. 78
77. Los Angeles has with out a doubt one of the best restaurant scenes in the world and we are finally starting to get our deserved recognition globally. A big part of the story of how L.A. has finally started to get its due respect when it comes to dining is from the amazing work of dineL.A. This 2 week event started way back in 2008 and happens twice a year featuring hundreds of participating local restaurants. Its impact on generating excitement for local eateries and supporting our cities re...
Mar 03, 2021•32 min•Season 1Ep. 77
76. Our guest in this episode is John Maceri the CEO of the People Concern. John has dedicated most of his career to non profit organizations helping those who are struggling most in our communities. The People Concern takes on one of the most challenging and persistent problem for Los Angeles, the issue of pervasive homelessness. In our conversation John shares what he has learned over his 30 year career, some simple solutions we can put in place now to help reduce homelessness and why he think...
Feb 24, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 76
75. Ok like most of you I'm very anxious for life to get back to where it was in 2019. Y'know State fairs, amusement parks, movie theaters, concerts and the list goes on. But even with us continuing to live this restricted existence I've found places to go to keep us entertained. In fact some of these places I may not have even gone to if it wasn't for our options being limited as they are now. There are many reasons to stay optimistic and believe there is a light at the end of the tunnel. But a...
Feb 10, 2021•28 min•Season 1Ep. 75
74. No matter what neighborhood you live in Los Angeles you likely don't have to go far to find a locally owned donut shop. In fact Los Angeles is known as the donut capital of the United States. But did you know that 70% to 80% of independently run donut shops in LA are owned by Cambodians? Yes those ubiquitous pink donut boxes you see all over our city came from the Cambodian American community. And the story about how all this came about can be traced back to the fascinating true life story o...
Jan 27, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 74
