Not a pleasant stay
This is a beautiful old hotel - the lobby is gorgeous. The location is great, very close to Grand Central Station. The room was tiny and uncomfortable although it was clean. What made the experience truly awful was the attitude of the staff. I have never encountered such rude and unhelpful people anywhere in the world. The front desk staff (not just one of them, all of them) seemed especially good at making guests feel unwanted and unwelcome. They made me wait while they gossipped with each other, made rude remarks about hotel guests within my hearing (and probably within the hearing of the people they were talking about) and either offered no help at all when asked for assistance or made completely nonsensical suggestions. Truly the most negative hotel experence I have ever had. I expected rude behavior from some people in New York - hey, that's the reputation the city has - but honestly the staff at the Roosevelt were the only unpleasant people I encountered in the Big Apple.