Westwood

The Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center treats children and adolescents, focusing on weight restoration, eating behaviors, self-perception, psychosocial issues, and emotional well-being. The program is small—about seven to twelve patients at a time—and highly monitored. In addition to individual, group, and family therapy, patients attend group sessions on cognitive assertion, body image, and meditation.

Diddy Riese is right in the middle of Westwood near the UCLA campus, and while you’ll have to battle a block-long line of college kids to get in, their famous ice cream sandwiches are more than worth it. The ice cream they use is standard Dreyers, but the cookies are made in-house with family recipes. The employees make the sandwiches on-site, so you can pick your own flavor combinations (kids will be psyched that they can actually use two different cookie flavors if they want), and the portions are very generous. Probably the best part of the entire operation is the college-approved prices: Sandwiches are $2 each.

Because of its proximity to UCLA, this East Coast-style sandwich shack caters predominantly to the college crowd, and it shows. Everything is unapologetically glutinous, and stuffed with fries, mozzarella sticks, or onion rings; for tri-state area transplants, the sausage and pepper hero is an authentic taste of home. There's also something called the Big Fat Fatty (chicken fingers, marinara sauce, fries, mozzarella sticks, burger patties, bacon…) on the menu—if you finish it in 40 minutes, the fatty is free and you get a sandwich named after you. Many have tried but none have succeeded. There's a second location in Hollywood.

Sculptural works from the likes of Alexander Calder, Barbara Hepworth, Henri Mattisse, Isamu Noguchi, and others, sprawl across five acres of UCLA’s campus. You can wander around yourself, or arrange a tour though they book up far in advance.

There’s always something excellent on display at this UCLA museum—it’s also nicely manageable, making it the perfect way to spend a few idle hours. The adjacent museum store is one of the best in the city: The bookstore is gigantic, and they have some great gifts from L.A.-based designers, but they win the biggest points for their kids room in the back, where you’ll find art and design-specific tomes for little ones, along with a handful of well-conceived toys.

Dr. Gary Lask knows lasers. As a clinical professor of dermatology and director of dermatologic surgery and the Dermatology Laser Center at UCLA, he's spent much of his career harnessing their power, whether it's to remove a scar, a tattoo, or to treat skin cancer.

From their yummy fried chicken sandwich to the delicious salted caramel 'cutie' pies, this is the place to indulge. There's soda floats, beer, and wine to boot. (Simplethings also has locations in West Hollywood and Burbank.)

This Bay Area export definitely knows its customer—hungry and/or hungover college kids and serious sandwich junkies. They’re famous for their sauces and outrageous sandwich mash-ups: we like the Tony Soprano (an extra saucy Italian sub) and Menage A Trois (crazy cheesy BBQ chicken). Make sure to get yours on crispy Dutch bread—you're going to need it since they tend to overstuff.