Back at the Lorien in Alexandria During No Fly July
July 12, 2018
We’ve made quite the habit out of holding an annual data crunching summit at the Lorien. Third year in a row. And third time’s a charm.
Helped out by Kimpton/IHG big shot Steph Vogel, we secured a great working space and a bunch of rooms. My room was 611, the presidential suite. Thanks Steph!
Sparse but interesting porch 611
611 is nicely appointed, with almost too much room to spread out. The decor has been updated and is very nice.
611
An amenity was very nice (needed some crackers and silverware tho). The personal note was a great touch too. Nice to be back.
yup. thanks Lorien peeps.
611 includes a separate bedroom with a closet and many windows.
The bathroom is pretty far away from the bedroom, but it has a two-headed shower that is huge with a bench at the end and room for ten.
Looking in
Looking out
One of the highlights of our trip was a meal specially made for us by chef Sebastien Rondier. Chef Sabastien is from southern France, and his cooking reflects that. Absolutely delicious. Best duck a l’orange I have ever eaten. Thanks chef, for the fantastic meal. And thanks Steph for the great idea.
Chef Sebastien presents his fantastic duck
The menu, designed exclusively for us
Fois gras
Delicious Vichyssoise, very thick and served Dutch style over caviar
Peaches, goat cheese, and pine nuts
Here’s that duck again
The servings were generous, to say the least
Though we were full and very happy, dessert was incredible. The cherry tart was out of this world. But so many other delicious things.
That tart back there looks simple and is just fantastic
caffeine cake, LOL
If you get a chance to have Chef Sebastien create a meal for you, take it. A great evening.
Then there was work.
Everyone loves work
On our second evening we headed into the city, mostly targeting the Columbia Room for another visit. Somewhat by accident, we ended up dining and Kinship, which was world class and excellent. Impeccable design. Great service. Tasty food. Great Wine. Boy was that a good find!
Roast chicken (give it 70 minutes…worth every second)
Pork and beans
Caviar and potato chips
The two block walk to Columbia Room was easy. Shaw is so hopping. Though we had a great time at Columbia Room in the usual booth, we were not blown away by the summer cocktail menu. Much fun was had.
Summer menu.
pretend funnel cakes
Though served in a plastic cup (a keepsake), this cocktail is delicious
the pearl
Maybe we were so blown away by Kinship that we were not properly prepared for the Columbia Room. Love that place, but this visit was not as stellar as usual.
In any case, for a week in “no fly July” this visit to DC/Alexanria was pretty not bad. Five showerheads and 10,000 compliments to chef Sebastien at the Lorien.
After a seriously turbulent night flight across the pond, a bus ride over the Frankfurt tarmac, a multiply-delayed ICE train and a missed local connection, it was nice to arrive at the Nestor Hotel and have a room ready to go. Walking over from the train station is very easy indeed, and helps you stay awake. Check in was easy even in zombie mode.
Sadly, the Nestor chain appears to be set up to accommodate conferences and large groups more than anything else. This is a four star in Germany, which puts it right smack in JW Marriott territory. Everything looks pretty good on the surface, but it is really cheap veneer with thin carpet allowing lots of noise between rooms. A business class hotel. Not NPS’s cup of tea.
The little NPS cubicle (replete with tiny bed) is 308.
Lil teeny bed in 308
The sitting area and desk are all within 15 feet of the bed
Fortunately, Ludwigsburg is resplendent today.
View from 308
The bathroom is likewise “cozy” and very Euro.
Not plastic unless you count the tub, which is plastic
Sink stand
There is a big pipe in the bathroom. That is just weird.
After a much-needed invigorating shower, it was off into town for lunch. Greek food at Die Griechin is very homey. Great people. Authentic, if not uninspired fare.
Breakfast at the hotel is very nice, and the restaurant serves a decent lunch as well. Service is friendly even if the kitchen is slow.
On a more upbeat note, the Black and White Cocktail Bar just a few short blocks away is cozy and excellent. We were among the only patrons on a Tuesday night.
Amer Picon in the house means a Liberal or two.
La Barrosa Cocktail (by Mario Wirth)
50 ml carlos I brandy
10 ml Strega
.5 ml Balsamico creme (can sub px Sherry)
Amaretto spray on top
Stir. Serve on one big rock.
Make sure to visit the Black and White Bar if you are in Ludwigsburg.
Dinner at the very friendly Zum Urigen was authentic and about as German as you can get. The owners are from Vietnam, but have lived in Germany for 30 years. This place has a very local feel with lots of patrons who know each other.
A very low three showerheads for the Nestor, where function overrides style, and things feel fairly fake.
Residence Inn Ann Arbor: Suburban “Style”
May 7, 2018
Here we are again in a university town, this time Ann Arbor. This town is great. Books, coffee, food, cocktails. Almost everything you need, but still no good hotel.
The Residence Inn is a Marriott property, and it is brand new. It’s pretty much what you would expect of a mid-tier mid-market Marriott hotel. Shiny suburban fake is the style. NPS has different style.
When the reservation was made, we requested a high floor and a Panoramic City View Suite. The first room we were assigned was 414 which is ADA formatted. When asking for a non-ADA configured room instead were assigned down to 214. The rooms are almost exactly identical. Moving down was a big mistake because traffic noise starts at 5am. Alas.
So much for the high floor request.
The manager, having heard tell of checkin problems, was very gracious. We had a nice chat. His valet staff is super.
The view from 214 says it all
The room is filled with lots of shiny new veneer cheap furniture that looks better than it feels when you use it. The suite includes a kitchenette.
Entry hallway kitchenette
desk room
desk room couch
View from the bed to a nice bank of windows
large (impersonal) bathroom
The real problem is the shower, which is partially glass and partially plastic. It is open to the huge bathroom without a glass door. Cold air makes for a less than stellar shower experience.
shower. not approved
Anyway, we knew what we were getting into when we agreed to come to Ann Arbor. Apparently, there is a copy of The Graduate here too BTW. Sure wish university towns had better hotel kung fu!
Dinner at Mikette was delicious. Great service.
The cocktail scene in Ann Arbor remains vibrant. A Sunday night visit to Nightcap was optimal in all respects. Andy was a blast behind the bar.
Because there was Handy in the house, we present, The Handy Handy
1.75 Thomas Handy Rye
.3 oz Del’erborista ultra-bitters
.3 carpano antica
2 dashes scrappy aromatic
Stir. Strain. Express orange peel and drop in.
Three showerheads for the Residence Inn in Ann Arbor. Dang university towns.
All is Well in Boston at Hotel Marlowe
February 21, 2018
Well, Cambridge actually. But close enough. NPS has not been here in many months (since October 2016), and apparently we missed it.
The Hotel Marlowe reminds us of everything we like about Kimpton:
- a great property with our kind of showers
- a gracious and welcoming staff (especially the great valets)
- a welcome cocktail
- a beautiful room(s)
- GMs who care
It’s all good. Sure is nice to be back.
Thanks to Joe Capalbo for alerting the troops, and to the troops for giving a damn. Lets spread this goodness to the rest of the IHG universe, shall we?
This time we’re in 825 (tantalizingly close to the Presidential suite). This exec class room is perfect, with plenty of room to exist, a comfortable bed, and a real shower.
825 sitting room
825
825 bedroom
We were welcomed with a note, water (almost sparkling, and promptly swapped out), a nice snack including fresh fruit, and a cocktail ready to mix put together by Patrick. Speaking of which, we visited with Patrick for a drink, and he is still at his professional best.
English cup
The shower in here has a new showerhead. NPS approves.
yes please
There is also a huge tub that once again remains completely unused. Alas.
big giant tub 825
On the first night in town, we took a cadre of business colleagues to Craigie on Main. This is one of our favorite Boston restaurants, and it is still super fantastic. Pork plate. Pork plate. Pork plate.
On the second night, after a cocktail with Joe, we headed to a new restaurant called Row 34. The staff at the Marlowe figured this all out somehow and called ahead to order an appetizer for me. It was delivered by the gracious Row 34 manager. Row 34 is very good indeed. Recommended.
The it was off to Drink for the usual shenanigans. Pretty sure the late night tequila shots were a bad idea. Ezra Star is now the manager of the bar. Sadly she was in Japan when we visited. Eric the barman, though fairly new, was an ample substitute for fun.
Here is the Meal Worm, which is apparently verboten to make unless Ezra is in Japan
2 oz ancho reyes
.5 oz demerara
.5 oz lime
(4 dashes of tobasco+mezcal rinse)
rise highball. Shake. Strain. Serve neat.
Five showerheads and wishing that somehow the future involved slightly more Boston and slightly less Germany. These things happen.
Hotel Kabuki San Francisco: So Close and Yet So Far Away
February 15, 2018
If anything is true, this is: NPS votes with its money. Sure, we pile on the praise (and the snark) as necessary. We even take on hotel chains that think they have us irreversibly trapped in their loyalty program. (See, for example, this fun entry out of Los Angeles.) Well, the time has come to do some fund re-allocation.
You see, the Buchanan Hotel in San Francisco (a Kimpton) has been our San Francisco home for a couple of years. Sadly, due to too much demand, we are unable to get the room we want when we stay there. So how do we solve that problem? We remove demand. Last time we were in San Francisco we walked across the street to the Hotel Kabuki to check it out. As a result, we’re staying at Kabuki this time.
The lobby, common areas, and bar are all very upscale, nicely designed, and worth a visit. On our arrival, we dropped off the bag upstairs and headed straight to the bar. Sazarac? Yes please (with a little help from our friends).
We requested and were happy to occupy a corner room up high. Room 1402 is most likely indicative of the best room category on the property.
design sensibility 1402
The bedroom sector is the most up to date, with interesting design.
bedroom sector 1402
1402 offers a very good view of Japantown and even the Golden Gate in the distance. Two banks of windows provide a very wide view. Mornings were beautiful this week.
Luggage pod is exposed in the hallway to the door.
Luggage and refrigerator
An amenity (!!) on our first stay was very much welcome. Thanks Kabuki!! Champagne and fruit is very nice indeed.
wow, a welcome amenity and they barely know us
the window bank
Then there is the bathroom. Number one, the open design is a bit chilly. A door instead of a doorway would help. That bank of windows in 1402 (including two sliding doors installed in the ’70s) can keep things pretty chilly in February, even with two sets of curtains. Updating the glass would probably help too.
bathroom sector 1402
The shower area is huge. Too huge, as it turns out, mostly because the glass door (approved) does not shut tight and chilly air comes in to make a great shower less than great. Looks like nobody actually took a shower to test this design before implementing it.
glass shower…huge
The shower has both a drench head and a handheld shower head. But that cold air.
shower head 2
So, all is not yet well at the Hotel Kabuki, where some attention to detail is in order.
Did housekeeping remove your not quite empty bottle of sparkling water? Try calling down to get some more. No dice. And no creativity from the front desk. High end hotels solve problems.
Want espresso for breakfast in the morning? Nope.
Want to adjust the temperature? Good luck figuring out how the thermostat works (it appears not to do anything at all).
Did you open the sliding glass door to access the balcony? Getting it closed again may be an issue.
On the positive side again, Japantown is a great base of operations in San Francisco. There are exceptional restaurants and cocktail locations within striking distance, and the Filmore corridor up the hill is hopping.
We schlepped out to Haight-Ashbury for dinner at Black Sand. This local bistrot has great food and good cocktails.
We taught the bartenders how to make Bill’s Big Birthday Beverage:
1 oz Ancho Reyes
1 oz cardamaro
1 oz fresh orange juice
.25 oz hot pepper infusion (in this case, house made)
Shake. Strain. Serve up.
Anyway, with more attention to the details above, Hotel Kabuki will displace the Buchanan as San Francisco’s default location for NPS. Four showerheads for the Hotel Kabuki. Rise to the occasion please!
Is NPS spoiled? Yes. Does that make life harder for hotels and airlines when it comes to expectations? Yes. Welcome to the world of high end travel.
2018 started with a trip across the country on the NPS “trip across the country” airline—Virgin America. Or what’s left of it anyway. Virgin America is becoming more and more like Alaska. And frankly, that sucks. Sure, we’re MVP Gold on Alaska by default. But who cares? Going from the Nordstrom’s world to JC Penny is not gonna cut it.
Here’s an example of what is happening to Virgin America. The checkin process at Dulles was always super friendly, efficient, and FAST. Now there is a line and it is a line of Alaska flyers.
The flight across the country was just fine after using cash money to upgrade to First. So there’s that.
Next came the wrong room problem at the Buchanan in San Francisco (216 versus 316 or 416). Sadly this happens almost every time we stay here. Sure, NPS helped to establish the Kimpton InTouch program years ago (now known as Karma and soon to be known as IHG Rewards Club (blech)), but super elite Kimpton/IHG status does nothing to add to the number of available Kimpton rooms we like in San Francisco. The staff at the Buchanan does all they can to accommodate demand. But demand is just outstripping supply. And as a demander, well the market is about to speak.
Time’s up you guys, only two OK quality San Francisco Kimpton properties still?? IHG needs to step it up in this city. Really.
View from the Buchanan San Francisco (Japantown)
Of course, Emily Glick and her people get all the blowback in public, but really it is corporate that is at fault by this stage. Hopefully Emily will forgive us for making clear what we expect!
Amenity. Thanks to the Buchanan team
216 has a few of problems from the NPS perspective. Number one is that the shower needs a better shower head. Water pressure is not sufficient. At least it’s a glass cube! Number two, the room is ADA sanctioned and we are not special needs campers. That means the closet is not usable, and the tub is a mess of machines. Number three, the second floor is too close to the street and it is noisy.
So no more 216 for us. We’ll just have to stay elsewhere next visit.
Shower? Glass is good.
The tub has served as a closet for hanging clothes this trip
Or maybe you can hang your coats on this thing in the hall
Of course, Japantown is great and the Buchanan is hip and well located. Staying here is always a good thing.
Green tree view
216 does not suck. But pretty not bad is not good enough.
Yeah, we brought the violin and even managed to play some music with our friends in Oakland.
Some data from San Francisco. Sweet Maple is a great place for breakfast and so is The Grove. For a real Japantown meal, try to find Kui Shin Bo.
Dinner at Flour+Water is just as fantastic as ever. The Progress is, likewise, a very good place to eat (and unlike its sister next door, you can walk in).
The Dando from The Progress
1 oz rye
.75 oz amaro angelino
.5 aperol
1 oz meyer lemon juice
.5 oz pear shrub
shake. up. large cube.
Cocktails at Wildhawk are highly recommended.
This time three showerheads for the Buchanan’s failed Tetris game. No more games of chance for NPS. 2018 is gonna be interesting.
