The last 18 months have been a rough ride for New York City hotels. More than 30 percent of the city’s 705 properties shut down during the pandemic. And while dozens have reopened, it’s still anybody’s guess how many will ultimately return. What we do know is that at least 30 won’t be coming back, according to the Hotel Association of New York.
The hotels that checked out are a mixed bag of properties large and small, independents and chains, places you’ve never heard of and hotels so famous, so entrenched in New York City culture, that they seemed almost immortal. Not every shuttered hotel was a gem. But each provided employment for dozens of workers, paid taxes that supported the city, enlivened the neighborhood and extended hospitality, whether exemplary or less so, to some of the 66 million visitors who descend upon New York in a good year. And that doesn’t include the many locals checking in during a renovation, an altercation, a staycation or just after a long night.
With that, we offer our first batch of NYC hotel obituaries — six Covid casualties we couldn’t let disappear without a few words of appreciation. It won’t be our last. Read more
Farewell! Six Memorable NYC Hotels Closed Permanently By The Pandemic
/in Hotel History, Hotel Openings and Closings, Hotels in the News/by Terry TruccoThe last 18 months have been a rough ride for New York City hotels. More than 30 percent of the city’s 705 properties shut down during the pandemic. And while dozens have reopened, it’s still anybody’s guess how many will ultimately return. What we do know is that at least 30 won’t be coming back, according to the Hotel Association of New York.
The hotels that checked out are a mixed bag of properties large and small, independents and chains, places you’ve never heard of and hotels so famous, so entrenched in New York City culture, that they seemed almost immortal. Not every shuttered hotel was a gem. But each provided employment for dozens of workers, paid taxes that supported the city, enlivened the neighborhood and extended hospitality, whether exemplary or less so, to some of the 66 million visitors who descend upon New York in a good year. And that doesn’t include the many locals checking in during a renovation, an altercation, a staycation or just after a long night.
With that, we offer our first batch of NYC hotel obituaries — six Covid casualties we couldn’t let disappear without a few words of appreciation. It won’t be our last. Read more
Which Hotel Restaurants Are On Board for NYC Restaurant Week 2021, Summer Edition?
/in Hotel Food and Drink, Hotels in the News/by Terry TruccoNYC Restaurant Week returns July 19 to August 22. And like the city itself, RW Summer Edition is in far better shape than RWWinter Edition, which saw a sharp drop in participants and was limited to takeout and delivery meals. Read more
How Did NYC Hotel Restaurants Rate In the 2021 Michelin Restaurant Guide?
/in Hotel Food and Drink, News/by Terry TruccoOnly one previously starred hotel restaurant is missing from this year’s list — the NoMad at the NoMad Hotel, which achieved one-star status in 2019. Read more
An Under-The-Radar Supporting Role For The Mark Hotel In “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”
/in Hotels and the Arts, Hotels in the News, News, Notable Check-ins/by Terry TruccoConsider 2013, when NYC hotels had close-ups in three movies chasing Oscars –Best Picture contenders The Great Gatsby and American Hustle which showcased extravagant, if wildly different, interiors at The Plaza, and Blue Jasmine (Best Actress, Cate Blanchett), which features a contentious argument shot near the big clock in front of the erstwhile Tribeca Grand (now the Roxy Hotel Tribeca).
Only one New York City hotel is in the running for reflected glory when the 93rd Academy Awards air on Sunday, April 25, and it’s on screen for less than five minutes. But the scene filmed in a suite at The Mark won instant notoriety when Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Sacha Baron Cohen’s cheeky mockumentary, debuted in October. It wasn’t for the interior design. Read more
Get Delivery Or Takeout From A Hotel Restaurant During NYC Restaurant Week 2021
/in Hotel Food and Drink, Hotels in the News/by Terry TruccoCall it the next best thing to room service.
NYC Restaurant Week, Winter Edition, the annual January blizzard of prix fixe lunches and dinners, has morphed into takeout and delivery meals through February 28, agreeably priced at $20.21. Read more
The Merriest New York City Hotel Decorations of 2020 — Holiday Cheer in a Challenging Year
/in Hotel design, Hotels and Holidays/by Terry TruccoBy Terry Trucco
It’s the holiday season, albeit a weird one.
Hotels, we’re happy to say, have kept up their end of the holiday bargain, adorning their lobbies, festooning their walls and lighting up their buildings inside and out. Unfortunately, there are fewer hotel halls — and walls and bannisters and lobbies — to deck this season. Among the super-decorators missing-in-action for Holidays 2020 are The Plaza, Four Seasons New York, St. Regis New York, Loews Regency and Dream Downtown, all closed temporarily due to Covid-19. Read more
The Famous Waldorf Astoria Lobby Clock, Now Marking Time At The New-York Historical Society
/in Hotel History, Hotel Renovations, Hotels and the Arts/by Terry TruccoOn March 1, 2017, the Waldorf Astoria — the fabled “Host to the World” where room service, Eggs Benedict and Waldorf Salad were invented and where every president from Hoover to Obama spent the night — shut its massive doors for a gut renovation that was supposed to take two to three years.
We’re still awaiting the hotel’s reopening — and not holding our breath, because who wants to unveil a billion dollar renovation during a pandemic?
But for Waldorf aficionados starved for a glimpse of Park Avenue’s Art Deco beauty, the New-York Historical Society offers a tantalizing teaser. Standing just past the check-in desk in an arched alcove is the Waldorf Astoria Lobby Clock, the 19th-century tour-de-force feast of walnut, mahogany, marble and copper that greeted hotel guests for over 85 years and was renowned as a popular interior landmark as in “Meet me by the clock.” Read more
The Met Museum Returns With New Shows, A Fresh Look And A Friendly Attitude
/in Hotel Food and Drink, Hotels and the Arts/by Terry TruccoI missed the Metropolitan Museum of Art a lot during the nearly six months it was shuttered due to Covid 19. Turns out the Met missed me right back, along with the 7.36 million guests who visit annually.
As I reached the entrance for a preview last week, fresh from my temperature check, I was greeted by Met Director Max Hollein, who was handing out wrapped Water Lilies masks to visitors. The love continued as I entered the Great Hall. “Welcome back!” exclaimed staffers everywhere I looked. “Enjoy your visit!” I heard as I was clicked through. It took every ounce of restraint not to yell Yippee! Read more
Closed Permanently — Covid Kills Off Three High Profile New York Hotel Restaurants
/in Hotel Food and Drink, Hotel Openings and Closings/by Terry TruccoIt’s not just hotels. Covid 19 has shuttered dozens of restaurants and bars situated in hotels. We don’t know which ones will reopen, but here are three, all notable, that will not. They won’t be the last. Read more
What Is the Top New York City Hotel in 2020 According to Tripadvisor Reviewers?
/in Hotels in the News/by Terry TruccoNew York hotels haven’t had much luck scoring a spot on Tripadvisor’s best in the world list, and this year was no exception. As for best in the U.S., just one New Yorker made the grade — Hotel Giraffe, an airy, NoMad boutique hotel that was 16th on the list. (It was 12th last year, but hey, still good.) Read more