Solid hotel choice in River North area
I booked the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza for 5 nights while attending a recent health information conference.
The hotel is located adjacent to the Chicago River in the River North area of Chicago, across the street from the Merchandise Mart and just north of the Loop. 
Finding the actual lobby of the hotel can be a bit tricky. When you enter the building at street level, you have to take the elevator to the 15th floor to access the Holiday Inn lobby, which is spacious and attractive with a generous seating area. The front desk and concierge staff were all quite friendly and attentive. Once you complete the check-in process, you take a different set of elevators to get to the hotel rooms on the upper floors.
As to the rooms themselves, mine was a decent sized studio room with a king-size bed, a chest-of-drawers, two night stands, flat screen TV, office desk and chair, an upholstered chair with burgundy-colored fabric and matching Ottoman, and two attractive decorative prints with a garden motif. The highlight of the room was its glorious view of the river and the downtown skyline, one that is unmatched even by the more expensive places in town. The bathroom was also a decent size with a shower-tub combo, toilet, and sink. Everything appeared clean and very well-maintained, though the furniture had a few minor nicks here and there. Throughout my stay, I found the quality of the housekeeping to be excellent.
I would have liked to have had a mini-fridge and microwave, as the suite hotels typically do, but most of the basic rooms in Holiday Inns I've stayed at don't have these amenities. I think they should reconsider this policy.
I had one dinner at the hotel's fairly new restaurant, ItaliAsia, located in the lobby. I had the Chicken Vesuvio, which I thought was very good, and Spumoni for dessert, which was even better. For cocktails, there is the Cityscape Bar, which has, as the name would imply, a wonderfully expansive view of the city. Also located in the lobby, is a small business center with computer stations and a printer where you can print your return flight boarding passes at no charge. 
There are plenty of good places to eat within walking distance. Nick's Fishmarket Grill and Bar at the Merchandise Mart features maybe the best fish and chips I've ever had. If you're a barbeque lover, try Carson's at the corner of Wells and Ontario. For excellent steaks and pasta, there's the Kinzie Chophouse at the corner of Wells and Kinzie. 
All in all, I would highly recommend the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza to anyone planning a trip to Chicago and would definitely stay there again