The good, the bad, and the weird.
Combination of very bad, very good and then there was just weird. The lobby has a cool, swanky vibe as one can see from the pics and website. The hotel restaurant, Ed's Chowder House, is good and convenient. The staff, friendly and for the most part very accommodating. The bed... ridiculously comfortable! That's really all the good. Now for the bad: our first room was so small we could barely move around with our bags in it. Annette,the front desk agent kindly found us a larger "superior king" room on the first floor, insisting "no extra charge", even when I said I was willing to pay for the upgrade. Should have smelled something funny then but it wasn't until we entered the other room that the extremely strong smell of mustiness hit us. The smell of mold in the bathroom was strong we tried to keep that door open as much as possible to "air it out". And it was so small there was no counter space and not even a towel ring to hang your hand towel. Clearly this was a room given out as a last resort; room 115. We decided to stay put as they had tried to accommodate us and we really do dislike complaining. I have to say, when in the room for a while, we got used to the smells and the bed (in the top 2 of most comfortable beds I've ever slept in) assuaged my ire. But I must say that the hallways, the elevators, even the rooftop, all, didn't smell nice but maybe in less than 90 degree weather it wouldn't be as noticeable. Maybe it's just NYC. But the first floor is definitely not well-loved. There was a room we passed every time we left or entered our room that was a strange sight in a supposed fine hotel. The door was perpetually propped open with a chair and you could see a small stove just inside the door and a table and chairs just beyond that. One day there was even a rag on the chair. Maybe a room the cleaning staff uses? Why didn't it have AC and have to have the door propped open? Weird. Also, room service glasses were left out in hallway entirely too long. They were at full capacity so maybe a busy weekend but they should have been staffed for all the patronage. I could go on with a list of details that did not impress or flat out upset me. But really, you get the gist. My review is that if you need to stay uptown, this is a convenient location; you'll get a great night's sleep and the staff are for the most part, cool. But also know: everything is small (including rooftop pool), smelly and to avoid the first floor. Or take a scented candle with you.