Valet L.A.: Putting it in park

Every day thousands of Southern Californians take part in a common yet incredible act of blind faith: They hand over the keys to one of their most expensive possessions -- their cars -- to a total stranger and take in return an innocuous slip of paper. Said paper is then quickly stuffed into a pocket or purse, rarely rated even a second glance. But the transaction carries with it the assumption that in a few hours, for a few dollars, they’ll see their cars again. The same people who will avoid at all costs letting friend, spouse or even Mom behind the wheel will let a stranger standing in front of a valet booth slide into the driver’s seat, simply because he’s wearing a red vest.

In certain parts of Los Angeles today, valets are not just available, they’re overwhelming. Businesses from the Sunset Strip to strip malls, from high-end hotels to hospitals employ them. There are valets at real estate offices, hair salons, grocery stores, gyms -- and not just the upscale Sports Club L.A. models anymore. They range from the “I can’t believe it’s a valet” variety, where you pay someone to move your car 3 feet, to the “gourmet valet,” where they’ll wash and detail your car while you shop. Increasingly, almost any place where you might spend money also gives you the option of spending a few dollars more so you have to walk only a few steps to the door. Depending on the spot, a valet can still cost as little as $1 (rare), average around $4 to $5 (more typical), and in some cases, reach $30, even $40 -- all excluding tip.

But in a city where you are what you drive, valet parking is also the great equalizer. No matter where you live or whether you earn $15,000 or $300,000, if you own a car, you’ve probably had to valet park at least once. Circle the block a hundred times, but in residential permit-parking meccas such as West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, valet can be the only option. Slip on a pair of 5-inch Jimmy Choos, and few women would trade a five-block blister-fest through the rougher sections of Hollywood for the $10 or even $20 valet fee. In Santa Monica, where meter maids hover like vultures, $5 for a valet is a small price to pay to avoid a nearly inevitable $40 parking ticket.

The business is dominated by about a dozen companies, with untold smaller independent operations. Oversight rests with the Los Angeles Police Department, which concedes it has little in the way of resources to monitor such a fragmented and far-flung industry. Although there’s no data on how many people the business employs, it’s clear from conversations with many valets around town that the ranks are largely draw from the immigrants who flow into the city from Mexico and Central America. And while there are problems -- lawsuits, with claims of damage and theft, abound -- people for the most part continue to entrust their cars to valets, and for the most part they continue to get their cars returned in the same condition.

Valet parking is one of those things everyone loves to complain about. We’ve all heard the gripes: “They moved my seat, they damaged my car, I had to wait 20 minutes, they changed my radio station, they took something, they were rude.” And then there’s the tip: What, if anything, is appropriate? Sometimes, it seems like the car jockey’s sense of entitlement is so great, he “forgets” to give you change. Is there a standard?

Oscar Moreno owns Academy Parking, one of the larger valet companies, and he says valet parking attendants expect at least $2. “If you’re in Beverly Hills and driving a Rolls-Royce and have just spent $200 on dinner, that’s what they expect,” he says. “In other not-so-high-class areas where you might have paid $20 for dinner, they expect $1.”

A dollar doesn’t sound unreasonable -- except in some cases. The valets might not keep their tips, depending on which company they work for. “Valets either make minimum wage plus tips or they earn a higher hourly rate, like $9 to $10, and management keeps the tips,” Moreno says. “It varies from job to job.”

The job itself can mean hours of standing and waiting, or waves of cars arriving and departing. For valets working the city’s hot spots, it can mean a night spent mostly on the run. On a recent Tuesday at Falcon in Hollywood, Edgar del Valle, a weary-looking fortysomething man in a red waistcoat, juggles several sets of car keys and parking stubs, quickly exchanging one for the other without breaking a sweat. He’s worked for Parking Management Services, another major valet company, for 19 years and says his attendants earn minimum wage and can keep their tips.

“On Friday and Saturday nights, we have five guys working and we’ll park about 100 cars. So our guys make about $25 to $35 in tips, or a little more if someone gives you $20 to park their car out front,” he says. Del Valle says that from his experience, men are much more generous tippers than women, and gay men are the most generous. His least favorite customers are the impatient ones.

“People always say, ‘I want my car now,’ but we have to run two or three blocks to get the car ... If people wait more than 10 minutes, they get really upset.” He’s had his share of abuse hurled at him over the years. One recent night, only a handful of patrons said thank you -- most hand him their keys without even glancing at him. He says quietly, “Some people treat us like we’re animals, like we’re not even human. “I probably make more money than some of the people who come to the restaurant,” he adds. Still, like everyone he works with now, valeting is just one of his jobs. Del Valle’s Falcon shift ends at 2:30 a.m. He wakes again at 6:30 a.m. for his day job as a photo technician.

Although Del Valle prides himself on being polite, not all valets do. Many patrons have felt the sting of reverse car snobbery, facing down valet parkers who seemingly rate car owners based on what kind of car they drive. Recent case in point: Bastide, the chichi new French restaurant on the edge of West Hollywood. A few weeks ago, after driving up to the valet stand in a 1991 Ford Escort, a few of us waited for the nice-looking man in the bow tie to open our doors. He ignored us, then asked if we were lost. “Um, I’m going there,” I said, pointing to the embossed B on the restaurant’s door. Visibly shocked, he grudgingly parked the car.

Two hours of incredible food and impeccable service later, the Escort was retrieved from the valet, who said there was no service charge. I gave him $1. As he sneered, the good feelings about the lunch disappeared.

The valet is likely the first and last person you see when you go to a bar or restaurant. The way you’re treated can shade your impression of an entire experience, even though most valets are outside contractors.

Rusty Updegraff has been co-owner of 360 Hollywood restaurant on Sunset for seven years and says, “Bad valet service reflects on the restaurant, not the valet company.”

Restaurants and bars can choose which company they use, so if you feel mistreated, your best recourse is to complain to the restaurant manager -- after a few complaints, the eatery is likely to look elsewhere for parking assistance, as Bastide’s manager said he intended to do. In this highly competitive business, switching valet companies isn’t that difficult.

To some, valet parking is an affordable luxury, a little treat, like getting a pedicure. For a mere $5, a great valet will leave you feeling like a first-class citizen, even if you’re driving a secondhand car. There’s no better place to be treated like royalty than the Beverly Hills Hotel.

“Welcome to the Beverly Hills Hotel,” the handsome guys in the pink Polo shirts purr. “Will you be staying with us today?”

The man responsible for this red-carpet treatment is valet parking owner Chris Dunn, who has worked at the Beverly Hills Hotel for 36 years. He says, “The first time I went to the Beverly Hills Hotel, I was intimidated too. We know a lot of people feel that way, so we try to be as welcoming as possible.”

Dunn has valets who have worked for him for 10 or 20 years; he also gets college kids and aspiring actors who like the flexible hours. Bill Paxton and Aaron Eckhart parked cars there before they were famous.

“The young guys really love it because they get to see the first editions of the new Bentleys, the newest Ferraris and Maseratis. We’ve had a few female employees, but at night, especially when there’s alcohol involved, it can be a tough job for women,” he says.

Handing the keys over to someone who’s had one too many is a dicey situation for valets. “If we notice someone’s been drinking too much, we offer them a ride home if they don’t live too far away, and we’ll at least call them a cab and keep their car overnight at no charge.” When all else fails, Dunn tells them, “There’s a Beverly Hills police officer on the way, and if you pass the sobriety test, fine.”

Whether the issue is drinking and driving or damage to a car, Dunn thinks the valet parking industry has become a lot more litigious in the 36 years he’s been working. “Someone can get out of their car, slip on an oil spot and sue.”

Whether lawsuits are driving it, the cost of valeting your car is going up. Rates at the Beverly Hills Hotel are now $5, up from $3 (with restaurant validation). At the Standard hotel on Sunset, even with restaurant validation, weekends rates can quickly climb to $21 and reach $40 without validation. Skybar has a $15 flat fee. At White Lotus and the Sunset Room, it’s $20 if you want to park “close” and $10 if you want to wait 20 minutes for your car.

If the price doesn’t get to you, the distance sometimes does. Consider the Sonora Cafe on La Brea Avenue, where you pay someone to move your car into a parking space just a few feet away, or Belly on Santa Monica Boulevard, where it’s $10 for that same privilege.

Sometimes, you’ll find valet parking at the most unexpected places, like beauty parlors. This might seem lavish for a haircut, but as Andy Steloff, manager at the high-end hair salon John Frieda in West Hollywood says, clients “could be in the salon for three hours or more, and the parking meters in this area only let you park for two hours.” Then there’s the Coldwell Banker real estate office on Hillhurst Avenue in Los Feliz. It offers valet service, because “when clients go to look at properties, the agent often drives, and it saves them from getting a parking ticket,” receptionist Lynnie Cannon says. Or Disneyland -- where for $6 you can avoid the massive lots.

At Sports Club LA, members don’t even need to think about walking, at least not until they hit the treadmills inside. Valet parking costs $3.50; for an extra fee, they’ll get your car washed, the oil changed, even do your smog check. For a mere $12, the Beverly Center valets will wash your car while you shop. That way, you’re also spared the embarrassing “find the Honda in a haystack” car routine at the end of a shopping trip. At Westfield Shopping Town Century City, you can avoid the massive underground lot. The mall’s valet service ranges from $6 to $18, or spend $25 at the adjacent Gelson’s supermarket and valet parking is free.

One of vagaries of valet parking is where they park your car when you’ve scoured the same block and haven’t found a spot. Most firms rent lots from area businesses for the evening hours.

In Beverly Hills, it’s illegal for valets to park on residential streets unless they have specific permits. Los Angeles is more lenient, but with residential areas that mix seamlessly with bars and restaurants, most companies still secure lots in the area.

Academy Parking’s Moreno says, “If we valet a restaurant that sits in a residential area, like E.M. on Beverly Boulevard, we’ll rent parking lots one or two blocks away. There’s always a person left in the lot to watch out for the cars.” At the moment, Moreno has only two restaurants in his stable. The rest of his business comes from offices and medical buildings. “The restaurant business is a roller coaster,” he says. “One day you might have 10, 20, 30 restaurants and the next day you could have five.”

As a result, says Falcon manager John Dycus, competition among valet companies can be cutthroat. “In certain areas, like along Beverly Boulevard or restaurant row on La Cienega, the same valet company will park cars for three or four restaurants, and they’ll lock down a couple of lots in that area. Then, another valet company will come to you and try and poach your business.”

For business owners, staying with a trusted valet company, one that doesn’t repeatedly damage vehicles or bring numerous complaints of theft, is usually preferable to a cut in cost. But not always. And the results can be disastrous.

Last year, there were a spate of TV exposes, including on KCBS news, with headlines that screamed “Valets Stealing From Our Cars.” Hidden cameras showed valets lifting wallets, CDs, $100 bills -- even mints -- from cars’ consoles and glove compartments. Most valet parking stubs you’ll find a warning that the valet company is not responsible for articles left in the car. What valets are responsible for is the vehicle itself, and that’s where that little piece of paper you scrunched into your pocket comes in. “Don’t lose that,” LAPD Det. Mike Fesperman says. “You know how busy a valet stand in L.A. can get. Someone says, ‘That’s my car,’ and even though you don’t have the ticket, if they’re busy, some places will still give you the car.”

And a word about about damage liability. Note any damage before you leave or there’s little chance you can recover the costs of your loss. Once you leave the lot, generally the valet company is no longer liable. Still, Fesperman suggests you call the company you’re doing business with and complain. “They want their customers to come back,” he says. “They’ll fire a valet company if there are too many suspicious incidents, so even if you can’t retrieve what was stolen, you should report the incident so, hopefully, it won’t happen again.”

That, or you could just walk the two blocks.

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As you leave the car...

To make sure you don’t get burned by the valet, LAPD Det. Mike Fesperman offers some common-sense tips:

1. Give only one key.

“If you’ve got a valet key, or a key which works only in the ignition, not the trunk, use it. And don’t give your house, office keys away either, so there’s less to lose.”

2. Don’t leave anything valuable in the car.

If you must, leave valuables locked in the trunk or glove compartment. The valet is not responsible for anything left in the car.

3. Look before leaving.

Make sure you and the valet thoroughly inspect your car before and after you leave, so you’re both aware of any damage. Remember, the valet company isn’t liable for any damage once you’ve left its lot.

4. Don’t lose your ticket.

Valets aren’t liable for anything that’s left in the car, but they are liable for the car itself. If you lose your ticket, anyone could collect your car.

5. Alert the business.

If anything does occur -- theft, damage, rudeness -- notify the bar, restaurant or club owner immediately. Even if you aren’t compensated for your troubles, they want their customers to return, and with enough complaints they’ll have incentive to change valet companies.

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Parking smart: Do’s and don’ts at the valet stand

Park it yourself

Like the convenience but hate handing over your keys? Most valet firms will let you self-park, although they don’t waive the fee and you might have to walk several blocks too.

Don’t touch that dial

Academy Parking owner Oscar Moreno trains his drivers never to touch the radio, but the best way to avoid the valet changing stations is to turn the radio off before you leave the car.

Sitting pretty

Valets change the position of the seat and mirrors not to annoy you, but to adjust for any height difference that would hamper driving. Think of it this way, you don’t want the valet driving a car he can’t maneuver easily -- at least not when it’s yours.

Silent running

In busy retail areas, many companies rent multiple lots several blocks from restaurants or clubs, so the valets run from one to another, sometimes causing bottlenecks that can leave you standing a few minutes longer than you’d like.

Lost ticket

Can’t find that parking stub? Most companies will ask you to identify your keys, describe the car and give them your license plate number. If you can’t do all three, expect to show them your license.

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The price of service

Disneyland, 1313 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim, from 5 p.m.-2 a.m. only, $6.

Fairplex Exposition Complex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona, $15 during county fair.

Queen Mary, 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach, Friday-Sunday, $12 for parking less than three hours; $14 for more than three hours.

Universal Studios, Universal City, $7.50 first half-hour, $2.50 each half-hour after, to a maximum of $17.50; with restaurant validation, $5 for first two hours, $2.50 for each additional half-hour, max $17.50. Lunch special: free for first two hours, $7.50 for next half-hour, $2.50 for each half-hour after, max $17.50.

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 8700 Beverly Blvd., L.A., valet same as standard parking, $1.25 for each 20 minutes, with a maximum of $10, only from 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

UCLA Media Center, 10833 Le Conte Ave., L.A., valet same as $8 standard parking fee, but limited to those needing assistance.

South Coast Plaza, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa, $6, and the valets will deliver packages to your car at any point during your shopping trip.

Beverly Center, 8500 Beverly Blvd., L.A., use the parking entrance on Beverly Boulevard for the carwash. For $12, your car will be washed while you shop.

Westfield Shopping Town Century City, 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., L.A., purchase $25 in groceries at Gelson’s and valet is free.

Bastide, 8475 Melrose Place, West Hollywood, the service is free, but it might come with a side dish of attitude.

El Cholo Restaurant, 958 S. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena, $4.50.

El Cholo Restaurant, 1221 S. Western Ave., L.A., free until 3 p.m., $3.50 after.

Taix French Restaurant, 1911 Sunset Blvd., L.A., $1.50.

House of Blues, 8430 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, $15.

The Sunset Room, 1405 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood, $20 if you want to park “close”; $10 if you don’t mind waiting.

Four Seasons Hotel, 300 S. Doheny Drive, L.A., $8 day; $23 overnight.

Mondrian Hotel, 8440 W. Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, $15 flat rate.

Raffles L’Ermitage, 9291 Burton Way, Beverly Hills, free valet parking to anyone stopping into the hotel.

Shutters Hotel on the Beach, 1 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, $6 with restaurant validation; $7 without, for first three hours, $1 every half-hour after, $24 max; $5 with lobby lunch validation for first hour, $1 for each hour after, $24 max.

Standard hotel, 8300 Sunset Blvd., L.A., three hours of parking can set you back $40 without validation, $21 with.

Standard Downtown, 550 S. Flower St., L.A., $15 valet.