Decent hotels stay
We stayed at the Congress Plaza Hotel this past weekend. I was not sure what to expect given some of the poor reviews I had read, but we decided to give the hotel a try. (We had gotten a great rate compared to other hotels).
The hotel is not luxurious by any means but we found it to be an acceptable choice for the price. Our room was fairly large, the bathroom neat and clean, both bed and bathroom linens were fine. The hotel staff were accommodating and friendly both in the reception area and the lounge. The elevators worked well and we had no long waits (one of my pet peeves). 
The location was the major negative for us. It was okay; 
The Positive- we were just a couple of blocks from the Institute of Art/Millennium Park and also near the "Married with Children" fountain. There was an el line about 2-3 blocks away - convenient. 
The Negative - It is a fairly long walk from the hotel to the Navy Pier and the Miracle Mile area. The hotel bar tends to be quite noisy - not a relaxing spot. Restaurant seemed sad (we did not eat there, however).
All in all we found the hotel average; we would have preferred to stay closer to the river/Miracle Mile and we also prefer a more upscale area and hotel; but for the price, the Hotel Congress was adequate