Watching the OSCARS at West Hollywood's HAMBURGER MARY's Restaurant

http://photos2.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/a/f/a/2/event_207284962.jpegIMPORTANT UPDATE: We have moved our Academy Award viewing party to Hamburger Mary's restaurant in West Hollywood which is only a half block south of our original restaurant location--at the corner of Santa Monica Blvd. & Sweetzer Avenue. (It had been recently learned from the manager of our original restaurant location that 2 of their temporary flat screen, special event TV monitors had broken and that their restaurant owner did not wish to incur the expense of replacing them for the Academy Award event when they are already anticipating losing revenue--though one TV remained, it was not really adequate enough for the seating area we were going to be located in).

http://photos4.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/d/8/b/0/event_207295472.jpegHamburger Mary's, by comparison, has one extra large main room flat screen TV monitor with numerous small and medium sized monitors scattered throughout their entire dining room so the show can be viewed from various parts of the restaurant. Their manager is reserving table space for 15 of our members for a 2:45pm arrival and they are going to offer drink specials and have special prize giveaways during commercial breaks. They are excited to have us as their guests.

Though Hamburger Mary's has a very relaxed & casual atmosphere and is not "highbrow," it would still be nice if we can get into the "red carpet" mood by wearing black or semi-dressy attire (though this is only a suggestion, not a demand and whatever you wear should be comfortable for an extended evening).

http://photos4.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/d/9/8/c/event_207295692.jpegThis year the Academy Awards show is being produced by movie & TV producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron and, in addition to popular, modern day performers such as Adele, will also include a nod to legends from its past and feature performances by Barbara Streisand and Shirley Bassey (who performed theme songs for the first two Bond films).

PARKING: There are a number of parking options available, but the best FREE options are more limited and on a first-come, first served basis including a lot just east of the restaurant that is marked Mary's parking. There are also a few FREE spaces at the Weho City Hall parking lot across Sweetzer, but carefully read the signs to note those particular spaces which are marked " no parking" and enforced 24 hours a day. Sweetzer Avenue also has some un-permitted FREE street parking spaces within walking distance of the restaurant.

http://photos1.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/c/1/0/4/event_207289412.jpegIf all else fails, there is also a nearby city operated pay parking structure about 2 1/2 blocks west at 8383 Santa Monica Blvd. where all day Sunday parking is $8 (though not free is a lot cheaper than getting a parking ticket).

This should be a very fun and special event for us. Jono opted not to host a more regular type viewing party at his home for the Oscars since it is such a special occasion. We can resume with our group's more traditional viewing parties any other time of the year.