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| Dec 10 2006, 10:16 PM EST (current) | Patty | 2 photos added |
| Dec 3 2006, 6:03 PM EST | Patty |
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Long gone are the days when business travelers had to endure a bland meal at a staid hotel restaurant, just because it happened to be conveniently located downstairs from their room. Nowadays, most hotels wouldn’t dream of opening their doors without a glamorous restaurant attached—usually helmed by a celebrity chef. In the last few years, hotel restaurants have gotten even more hip, but without sacrificing service or food, making the dining experience (business-related or after a day of meetings) a lot more interesting. Here are exciting spots at some recently opened hotels around the country.
Country Restaurant and Café at the Carlton Hotel
New York, New York90 Madison Avenue; 212-889-7100
One of the city’s hottest new restaurants is Country, located at the Carlton, a formerly dilapidated hotel on lower Madison Avenue that was recently overhauled by celebrated architect David Rockwell. Country is the brainchild of Geoffrey Zakarian, who also owns Town restaurant at the Chambers Hotel in Manhattan. The café and the bar (which does a bustling after-work business) are on the ground floor, where diners can have an informal meal, perhaps organic chicken or roasted sea scallops. On the second level are the formal dining room and champagne bar, both situated beneath a stunning 1911 Tiffany stained-glass skylight dome discovered during the renovation. Meals begin with a glass of champagne and amuses-bouche, and the menu consists of a fixed four-course seasonal menu for $85. Expect such sublime dishes as vegetable fricassee, herb-crusted salmon with crisp onions, and warm apple and spiced prune strudel for dessert.
David Burke’s Primehouse at the James Chicago
Chicago, Illinois616 North Rush Street; 312-660-6000
A second branch of the luxury boutique James Hotel (the first is in Scottsdale, Ariz.) has opened in Chicago, just steps from the Magnificent Mile. The restaurant, called Primehouse, is decorated with mother-of-pearl wall accents, blackened nickel chandeliers and red leather-upholstered tabletops. The chef is David Burke, who owns several restaurants in Manhattan, including davidburke&donatella. As its name suggests, Primehouse specializes in steaks—the beef is all-natural and hand-picked from 1,200-acre Creekstone Farms in Kentucky, then dry-aged for a month in a salt-tiled aging room on the restaurant premises. Some top-sellers include the 14-oz. New York sirloin, filet mignon with arugula and tomatoes, and the Kentucky ribeye. Those who want a true chophouse experience can request tableside carving. Other menu items include a pork shank with a crispy skin and applesauce, and sea bass with lobster dumplings and chop suey.
Hotel restaurants have gotten even more hip, but without sacrificing service or food.
BED at the Glenn Hotel
Atlanta, Georgia110 Marietta Street; 404-222-7992
At BED, the restaurant located in the stylish Glenn Hotel in downtown Atlanta near CNN headquarters and the Georgia Dome, you can take off your shoes, put on a pair of slippers and jump into bed—literally. BED, which stands for Beverage, Entertainment and Dining (there are also locations in New York and Miami), has plush mattresses topped with 400-thread-count sheets, silk throw pillows and some feature canopies. Each mattress, which can accommodate six to eight people, lets you stretch out and get comfortable. It could make for an interesting business dinner! But don’t worry, they also have traditional table seating. Their signature cocktails have bedroom names like Pillow Talk and Satin Sheets, and menu items include baked brie and pan-seared mahi mahi and, in a nod to the venue’s southern locale, smoked shrimp and cheddar grits. After dinner, be sure to check out BED’s rooftop bar, also done up with daybeds. The skyline view is stellar.
Trina at the Atlantic Hotel
Fort Lauderdale, Florida601 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard; 954-567-8070
Fort Lauderdale is back in a big way, and one of the hotels playing a role in this southern Florida city’s rejuvenation is the Atlantic. This Mediterranean-style beachfront property consists of 124 modern rooms, a 5th-floor pool area where you can relax on a chaise and enjoy the cool ocean breezes, and a spa where you can indulge in a Cubatini treatment (a lime-and-mint scrub). But one of the hotel’s sexiest spots to show off that newly acquired golden glow is the Trina restaurant and cocktail lounge, owned by Don Pintabona and Nick Mautone of New York’s Tribeca Grill and Gramercy Tavern, respectively. Order a specialty vodka-based Trinatini at the see-and-be-seen bar, then head to a table on the spacious outdoor patio to savor dishes like tagine-baked Florida grouper, citrus-marinated baby chicken and pan-seared snapper. The cinnamon-scented apple cobbler is a delicious dessert, and the restaurant offers a full list of dessert wines, sherries and ports.
17 at the Alden-Houston Hotel
Houston, Texas1117 Prairie Street; 832-200-8888
Houston’s downtown is buzzing with new restaurants, shops and nightclubs. There are also several recently opened boutique hotels, including the design-conscious Alden-Houston (formerly the Sam Houston), which offers 97 contemporary rooms outfitted with leather headboards, Egyptian cotton linens and flat-screen TVs. The hotel’s a+ cocktail lounge attracts city trendsetters, and its award-winning 17 restaurant is one of Houston’s premier dining rooms. The sleek space has a red-and-chocolate-brown scheme, and the cuisine, under the direction of executive chef Ryan Pera, is modern American. Top appetizers include Gulf Coast lump crab salad and seared foie gras, while braised short ribs with sweet chili and Gulf shrimp curry are standout entrées—and be sure to save room for the ultra-rich black truffle mac ’n’ cheese side dish. The wine list features both domestic and international labels, including bottles from Chile, Australia and Spain.
West at the Hotel Angeleno
Los Angeles, California170 North Church Lane; 310-481-7878
The new Hotel Angeleno, located in the prestigious Brentwood/Bel-Air area, is sure to make its mark on the L.A. hotel scene. The dramatic 17-story circular building features a penthouse-level restaurant and cocktail lounge, as well as a heated pool with an outdoor fireplace and 209 contemporary rooms with a chocolate-brown-and-tangerine color scheme and decorated with wall-mounted flat-screen TVs and Italian cotton sheets on the beds. Take the elevator to the top floor to enjoy spectacular city views from West, an Italian steakhouse featuring white Carrera marble-topped tables, a cherry wood ceiling and plush banquettes. The menu features items such as homemade pastas (porcini gnocchi, short rib ravioli), spicy sausage risotto and signatures dishes, including a 24- or 48-ounce grilled Florentine T-bone steak drizzled with rosemary olive oil and seared filet mignon with a black peppercorn crust. The wine list features bottles from around the world, including many Italian and California labels.
