Los Angeles is a city built on the bones of dead malls. You see them everywhere—hollowed-out husks like the old Westside Pavilion or the eerie, quiet corridors of smaller neighborhood spots that haven't seen a renovation since the Reagan administration. But then there’s the Los Angeles mall Westfield Century City. It’s different. Honestly, it shouldn't work. In an era where everyone is buying their socks on Amazon and watching movies in bed, this $1 billion open-air experiment has somehow become the de facto town square for the Westside. It’s huge. It’s expensive. It’s perpetually sunny. And if you’ve spent any time there on a Saturday afternoon, you know it’s basically a high-end ecosystem that feels less like a shopping center and more like a curated neighborhood where everyone happens to be wearing very expensive athleisure.
The billion-dollar gamble on the Los Angeles mall Westfield experience
Most people don't realize how close the traditional mall came to extinction in LA. When Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) decided to sink a billion dollars into the Century City location a few years back, the industry thought they were nuts. They stripped the roof off. They ripped out the dingy food courts. They replaced them with Eataly. That was the turning point. By leaning into the "outdoor lifestyle" trope that Southern California is famous for, they stopped being a place where you just go to buy a pair of jeans and became a place where you go to exist.
The layout is a bit of a maze, which is intentional. You’ve got the heavy hitters like Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom anchoring the corners, but the space in between is where the magic happens. It’s designed for "dwell time." That’s a corporate term for making you stay long enough to buy a $9 latte. It works. You walk past the wooden slat architecture, the mid-century modern seating pods, and the fire pits, and suddenly you’ve spent four hours just wandering.
Why Eataly changed the game
If you want to understand why this specific Los Angeles mall Westfield succeeded while others failed, look at the third floor. Eataly Los Angeles isn't just a grocery store; it’s a 67,000-square-foot Italian temple. Bringing in a massive, multi-level culinary experience was a massive risk. Most malls were still relying on Sbarro and Panda Express. By pivoting to high-end, experiential dining, Westfield Century City signaled that they weren't competing with other malls—they were competing with Abbot Kinney and Melrose.
The numbers back it up. We aren't just talking about foot traffic. We’re talking about sales per square foot that consistently rank among the highest in the country. It’s a mix of ultra-luxury—think Rolex and Lucid Motors—and the stuff people actually use, like Amazon Style and Tesla. It’s weird seeing a car dealership next to a place that sells $200 candles, but in the weird logic of LA retail, it makes perfect sense.
The "secret" layout and how to actually navigate it
Let’s be real: parking here is a nightmare if you don't know the tricks. The underground labyrinth is massive. It uses those little green and red lights to tell you if a spot is open, which feels like living in the future until you realize everyone else is chasing the same green light. Pro tip: Use the Santa Monica Blvd entrance and head straight for the P2 level near the Gelson’s. It’s usually quieter than the main drag.
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The mall is roughly divided into zones. The "Luxury Collection" is where you find the heavy hitters. Then you have the more accessible corridors with Zara and H&M. But the real soul of the place is the central plaza. This is where the events happen. During the holidays, there’s an ice rink. In the summer, it’s live music. It’s the only place in LA where you might see a celebrity trying to be incognito in a baseball cap while standing in line for a Shake Shack burger.
- The Terrace: Great for people-watching, terrible for your wallet.
- The Dining Deck: Way better than any mall food court has a right to be. Din Tai Fung is the star here, but the wait times are legendary. Use the Yelp app to join the waitlist before you even leave your house.
- The Health Wellness Zone: This is a newer addition. You’ve got Next Health for cryotherapy and Equinox. It’s the ultimate "peak LA" experience to get a vitamin IV drip and then go buy a Louis Vuitton bag.
Addressing the "dead mall" myth
You hear it all the time: "Retail is dead." If that’s true, nobody told Westfield. While other locations like Westfield Promenade in Woodland Hills were slated for demolition or massive redevelopment into sports complexes, the Century City site doubled down. They realized that people still want to touch things. They want to try on the sneakers. They want to smell the perfume.
But there’s a nuance here. The Los Angeles mall Westfield model only works in high-income pockets. You can’t replicate this in every suburb. It requires a specific density of wealth and a lack of other "walkable" options. Century City is basically a cluster of office towers and high-rise condos. For the people living in those $5 million penthouses next door, this isn't a mall—it’s their backyard.
The technology of shopping
One thing that often goes unnoticed is how much tech is baked into the walls. The "smart" parking I mentioned? That’s just the start. The mall uses sophisticated data tracking to see how people move through the space. They know which windows people stop at and how long they stay in certain zones. It’s a little Big Brother-ish, but it results in a mall that feels remarkably responsive. If a corner feels dead, they’ll put a pop-up shop there within a month.
They also leaned hard into the "buy online, pick up in-store" (BOPIS) trend. During the pandemic, they set up massive curbside pickup zones that were so efficient they actually kept the mall afloat when the doors were technically locked. Now, those zones are permanent fixtures. It’s about removing friction.
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What most people get wrong about the "Westfield" brand
There’s a bit of a misconception that all Westfield malls are the same. They aren't. In fact, URW has been trying to sell off many of its US assets to focus more on European markets. However, they’ve held onto their "flagship" properties. Century City is the crown jewel. It’s the prototype for what they call the "destination of the future."
If you go to the Westfield Topanga in Canoga Park, you get a totally different vibe. It’s more enclosed, more traditional, though it recently added "The Topanga Social," a massive food hall, to mimic the Century City success. The Los Angeles mall Westfield ecosystem is essentially a tiered system. You have the flagships, and then you have the neighborhood spots. If you want the full experience—the one you see on Instagram—you have to go to Century City.
Survival of the fittest in the retail jungle
The competition is fierce. You’ve got The Grove, which is basically a Disney version of a shopping street. You’ve got the Beverly Center, which is a monolithic fashion fortress. Westfield Century City beats them by being... comfortable? That sounds like a weird word for a mall, but it’s true. It’s easy to spend a whole day there because it doesn't feel like a cage. There are plenty of places to sit that don't require you to buy anything. There’s shade. There are clean bathrooms (and honestly, the bathrooms at Westfield Century City are probably nicer than most people's apartments).
A note on the AMC Century City 15
You can't talk about this place without mentioning the cinema. It’s one of the highest-grossing theaters in the country. It’s where studios host screenings because they know the demographic is exactly who they want to reach. The Dolby Cinema there is top-tier. If you’re a film nerd, this is often the only place in the city showing certain limited releases in a premium format. It’s a huge anchor that keeps the mall busy until midnight, long after the stores have closed.
Practical steps for your next visit
If you're planning to head out to the Los Angeles mall Westfield Century City, don't just wing it. You'll end up frustrated and broke.
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First, download the Westfield app. I know, nobody wants another app. But it gives you discounted parking rates and tells you exactly which stores are having sales. More importantly, it has a map that actually works.
Second, timing is everything. If you show up at 1:00 PM on a Saturday, you’re going to spend 20 minutes looking for parking. Aim for 10:30 AM. The stores are fresh, the coffee lines at Blue Bottle are short, and you can get a table at Javier’s without a two-hour wait.
Third, check the event calendar. They do a lot of "fan experiences." I’ve seen everything from Netflix pop-ups for Stranger Things to secret concerts in the atrium. These events are usually free but require a reservation.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Validation is key: Gelson's validates. If you're just popping in, buy a pack of gum at the grocery store on the bottom level to save a few bucks on parking.
- Dog friendly: This is one of the most dog-friendly spots in LA. Most stores allow well-behaved pups, and there’s even a "dog park" area on the top level.
- The Hidden Food: Everyone goes to Eataly, but the food court (Dining Deck) has a Chick-fil-A that is surprisingly fast, and a Ramen Nagi that rivals anything in Little Tokyo.
- Concierge Services: They have a literal concierge desk. They can hold your bags while you keep shopping or help you call an Uber to the correct designated pickup zone (which is tucked away and hard to find otherwise).
The reality is that the mall isn't dead—it just evolved. The Los Angeles mall Westfield in Century City is the final form of that evolution. It’s a weird, sunny, expensive, delicious slice of Southern California life that managed to survive the internet. Whether you’re there for a new iPhone or just a really good bowl of pasta, it’s a masterclass in how to keep a physical space relevant in a digital world. Just remember where you parked. Seriously. Take a photo of the pillar. You’ll thank me later.
Next Steps for Your Visit
- Check the movie times: The AMC Century City often has Q&As with directors that aren't widely advertised.
- Join the Waitlists Early: Use the Yelp or OpenTable apps for Din Tai Fung or Javier's the moment you park your car.
- Visit the VR/Tech Hubs: Check out the latest at the Lucid or Tesla showrooms; they often allow walk-ins for a quick look at the tech without a hard sell.