Sunset Social Club Ushers in a New Era of Cannabis Hospitality on the Sunset Strip

29 June 2025

An interior view of Sunset Social Club in Los Angeles. Jessie Alcheh/SFGATE

In the heart of West Hollywood, exactly across from the iconic Chateau Marmont, a bold new venture is rewriting the script on cannabis culture. Sunset Social Club a members-only cannabis consumption lounge opened its doors in June 2025 and is being likened to a hybrid of Soho House and WeWork, but with cannabis at its core.

Membership comes at a premium $420 per month or $4,200 annually but with that comes access to a 5,500 square foot space steeped in vintage Hollywood flair, communal utility, and a forward-thinking lifestyle. It is a calculated gamble, but one that taps directly into evolving consumer desires and California’s shifting regulations on cannabis hospitality.

Step inside this lounge and the atmosphere feels deliberate and intimate yet effortlessly lush. Mismatched velvet chairs, antique wooden tables, and carefully curated board games and art books evoke the feeling of a plush, bohemian-style boutique hotel lobby. As late afternoon light filters through, the space transforms into a quiet haven. Electronic and downtempo music plays softly, vintage decor surrounds you, and the space becomes a canvas for social interaction and personal expression. Crucially, cannabis exists here as both ritual and recreation and never illicit.

The club’s vision, articulated by co-owner Sarah Uphoff a veteran of LA nightlife is to offer a place where members might write the next great screenplay during the day and gather for lively poker or gallery nights by night. That sense of intentional duality a workday coffee vibe that seamlessly transitions into after-hours indulgence is its unique selling point. The analogy to a “WeWork with marijuana” is apt: it blends professionalism and leisure, meeting and mingling, in an atmosphere that encourages creativity while offering comfort and luxury.

Legally, the timing could not be more opportune. California’s legislative updates in early 2025 now permit cannabis lounges to serve hot food and nonalcoholic drinks, a game-changer for venues like Sunset Social Club. Gone are the days of prepackaged snacks. Now, you can sip a mocktail or espresso while partaking, and soon, pizzas are expected to grace the menu.

The club stocked its shelves with major-tier cannabis brands 710 Labs, Alien Labs, Khalifa Kush, Camino among others and integrates a mixology-forward approach with infused cocktails and cannabis mocktails. Monthly “toke dollars” credits support member purchases of cannabis, food, drinks and even exclusive merchandise. Members also enjoy secure lockers for storage, guest passes, and access to events, including comedy nights and gallery exhibits.

Yet the lounge is more than a consumptive space; it is about creating a community ethos. Valued membership transforms access into experience. Each member gets a sense of belonging, a curated circle of like-minded individuals. The décor evokes an “old Hollywood vibe,” and Uphoff highlights how discretion and comfort encourage people to let their guard down. It’s the same strategy that has coaxed generations of artists, celebrities, and creatives to gather across the street at the Chateau Marmont.

There is clear market strategy behind this luxurious gamble. The model is akin to other high-end membership clubs think Jonathan Club or upscale wellness spaces in L.A. but with a modern twist for cannabis culture. By limiting access and focusing on experience, Sunset Social Club hopes to thrive where other consumption lounges like a Las Vegas counterpart have failed due to financial unsustainability.

Ambitions extend beyond West Hollywood. The team plans to replicate the concept in cannabis-friendly cities such as Denver and Portland, offering reciprocal member access and anchoring a nationwide network that could rival hospitality brands in other sectors.

Still, the club rides on regulatory shifts and consumer trends. California’s newly relaxed law opens menus to espresso, mocktails, and soon gourmet small dishes. These offerings, created by a Michelin-trained chef and delivered with flair, reshape the traditional image of cannabis spaces. If executed well, the club could outpace older models that skirted food laws by outsourcing or limiting offerings.

The Sunset Social Club’s success will hinge on perfecting the balance between premium experience and accessible intimacy. The price point $420 a month limits membership to those seeking lifestyle affiliation and exclusivity. But for remote workers, creatives, and those craving community, the tangible and intangible benefits may prove worth it.

As cannabis casual more widely accepted, Sunset Social Club positions itself at the crossroads of lifestyle, luxury, and legality. It speaks to the emergence of upscale active consumption spaces that go beyond quick dispensary visits into realms of leisure, work, and culture. For a city like Los Angeles, where the cannabis narrative has long been nascent, this concept is a bold step in fully embracing 420 culture.

Certainly, challenges will arise public perception, regulation, economics but the club's foundation seems rooted in community and culture rather than pure commerce. And as more states follow California’s path of liberalizing cannabis hospitality, Sunset Social Club could serve as a prototype: a stylish, curated ecosystem that elevates experience and underlines how cannabis is weaving into lifestyle infrastructure not just vice.

In the full spectrum of cannabis evolution, this lounge illuminates a cultural frontier. It mirrors how societal norms adjust cannabis spaces transform from shadowy dispensaries to sanctuaries of social and creative life. And in that progression, the Sunset Social Club plays a starring role, hosting an intimate revolution under the soft glow of old Hollywood and modern luxury.