Historic? No, dated
We stayed for a night to sightsee and shop. This is a grand old building with a great location. Aside from the bellmen and the extremely miserable people who work in the Starbucks outlet in the lobby, the welcome was consistently warm and friendly.
We were allocated a very small room on the 15th floor. This was reasonably well-fitted in a very old-fashioned style but was also quite worn in parts. While we could cope with the small bedroom, the boxlike size of the bathroom was much more of a challenge. There really was no room in there at all and, for this standard of property,and given our gold Hilton Hhonors status, we'd have hoped for much better. 
This hotel trades on its name and its history but for the most part the place just felt dated and in need of a refresh. We moved on to the Conrad at Battery Park which, for the same price, provided a far better experience and a real taste of luxury. Waldorf Astoria next time? No thanks.