Stunning room, youth hostel service
Let's start with the positives, location is excellent and the room we have is stunningly modern with high ceilings and a view looking over 5th Ave across the library. In all honestly this could be an amazing, world class hotel. However, the service culture is just fundamentally wrong. Check-in is disconcerting, you can't tell who the staff are as they are informal and there isn't a name tag in sight let alone a desk or a uniform. It's a shocking experience when you arrive in a foreign country and your first experience in the hotel is a complete stranger walking off with your credit card to another room. When you figure out who the staff are they are too informal; whether poorly dressed, just picking at their finger nails in the lift or unable to blend cocktail, it's more youth hostel than five star. When discussing the check-in experience with one of the "front desk" staff, he acknowledged it is polarizing but "they are happy not to win over everyone" - smacks of arrogance. I worked for the Hyatt for years and this is just not up to standard. This hotel needs a change in culture and leadership and some serious performance management.
Fundamentally a hotel is all about feeling comfortable, welcome and safe. While the rooms are amazing, you feel isolated and disengaged in this hotel and definately not taken care of or secure. Don't stay here unless you're 24 years old or younger. So disappointing as it could be an impressive hotel.