An Absolute Gem in Stockholm: Ett Hem
April 23, 2024
Though NPS has been to Sweden a handful of times, this was our first trip to Stockholm, and it probably won’t be the last.
Ett Hem is a tiny luxury hotel that does every single thing right. The staff is so professional that they feel like really particularly helpful friends, the food is absolutely world class, and the grounds (two buildings with a few rooms in each) are gorgeous. Needless to say, the showers are not plastic.
After a delayed arrival (on Swiss Air, whose business class equipment and service did not match United’s standards(!!)), we all met in the second floor common room in the building with the restaurant (that is, the building that includes its own bakery where they mill flour). We had a Negroni from the honor bar and caught up after some years. It’s always fun to introduce good friends who have yet to meet, in this case a Finn and a Norwegian.
Of course there was a mandatory hot shower and checkin in to the rather small but well appointed room 29.
The shower was most excellent.
The fact that the bedroom is small is made up for by the extensive common rooms (like the one where we met) and run of the entire well-groomed property.
We snagged a dinner reservation at Matbaren Mathias Dhalgren, the kind of resraurant designed and executed for foodies. Dinner was excellent and service was just as fun as our furnishings were quirky.
Then we had a nightcap at the Grand Hôtel bar. The cocktails were good but not fantastic, and the vibe of the space is pretty much what you would expect from such an old school hotel. Ironically, my two friends decided to get another drink and I left the scene early since my reason for being in town was a breakfast seminar a couple of days later at the ungodly hour of 8am. I guess that’s one way to avoid jetlag…just blow right through it!
After sampling the outstanding Ett Hem breakfast we made a quick visit to the photography museum.
Then we shot some video of our own, but with more clothes. And played some team building company trivia games. After which dinner at Soho House was an excellent experience. Always fun to hit it off with friends of friends. It was taco Tuesday in Sweden, and, well, Swedish tacos are hilarious.
On our way to A Bar Called Gemma we stopped in at Grodan for a cocktail or two.
Gemma was a much better craft cocktail mixology joint than Grodan, but it was also slightly slouchier and grimy.
Then it was up way early to give the talk. We decided to try out the restaurant at Ett Hem for lunch. Outstanding.
Ett Hem is worth a visit to stockholm for all by itself. Magical. Fiver showerheads with no reservations at all.
The Hotel Washington, Washington DC
March 19, 2024
Steph Vogel now runs the Hotel Washington. And you know what that means…an attentive staff, attention to detail, and all around excellence. In fact, you might accidentally find yourself believing you have been transported to a Kimpton of yore. (Trust us, Kimpton used to be excellent…)
We arrived in the late afternoon, just in time for a cocktail at sunset in the rooftop bar.
The staff knew us by sight (due to the wanted poster in the staff room, no doubt). We were given an excellent suite, 820, bumped up three flights by someone paying attention. Sadly, Steph is out of commission with a major skiing injury, so we did not get to see him.
We were greeted with a personal note, a snack (saved for late night) and a bottle of Pinot Noir (much appreciated by Romey). Though it has been a while, all of our preferences were not only noted but met. Attention to detail is so rare.
820 is a beautiful corner suite with lots of room to spread out. We were bummed that our schedule was so tightly packed.
The bathroom is great. Only one quibble with the shower involves water pressure.
The bed room completes the suite.
We dropped our stuff in the room and headed up to the rooftop. After a few sips of our Negroni we were able to score a seat by the open windows.
We watched the sun set over the white house. We saw the President’s motorcade depart as well. Classic DC.
And then it was a fight through the wedding hoards and a quick uber to dinner. Rooster and Owl (recommended by Steph) is outstanding. We shared a bottle of champagne.
Next was the 9:30 club for the late show. Thievery Corporation was a blast.
We were in bed no later than 2:30am. Then up too early for brunch at the Jefferson (which you can skip).
Fiver showerheads but a distinct absence of Steph for this visit. We hope to be back soon.
The Catamaran: The Tired Part of San Diego
February 27, 2024
Back in the mid-’90s we spent a bunch of time in San Diego. One of the first annual trips was a visit to NDSS, a geeky conference always held at the Catamaran hotel. That must have lasted a decade or more. A return in 2024 (some 15 odd years since visiting the Catamaran) shows the toll that time has taken.
You see, the Catamaran has spent more on the common areas (which are very pretty but also just a bit wrong…like, say, a pool area where you are required to wear a wrist band as if you are an untrusted 20 year old) than they have on the rooms. Nobody seems to have considered fixing up the rooms since maybe 1982. Or maybe they spent all of their budget on marketing drones?
So you go from this:
To this:
Hamster cage with no design sensibility and indestructible furnishings. But wait, there’s less. How about the Holiday Inn bathroom console (featuring communal soap)? With a vinyl floor?
But you are here for the shower. Here is a prime example of the worst kind of plastic shower. Oh let us count the ways: lilliputian tub only a foot deep and made of plastic, obesity bar, plastic shower curtain (with a see thru plastic window portal design), and a shower head that does nothing to improve the flaccid water pressure. A big nope.
Here, watch the plastic shower in all of its glorious action…
There are good things about the Catamaran, like friendly staff, a good restaurant, and an espresso bar that knows how to make a real macchiato. And it’s right on the Pacific! But we’re not surfer dudes.
There’s an excellent coffee bar nearby too—pump coffee.
A visit to Ken Sushi Workshop is a great idea. Excellent.
Ultimately, room 218 is so dissatisfying that it was time just to jettison the plan, pack up early (after the morning meeting), and switch hotels. A lowly one showerhead and no more chances for the old Catamaran. It has sprung a fatal leak.
Art in London: Zetter Townhouse
November 6, 2023
The Zetter Townhouse, situated just behind the Zetter Hotel and home to one of the best cocktail bars in London, was the base of operations for some business and a nice pile of art. NPS was put into room 6.
Art included, the Tate, some theater, and a concert.
The shower is not plastic, though climbing in and out of the enormous tub is a thing, Perhaps some short stairs should be installed.
Room 6 could use a better wardrobe, and some updated less shabby furniture. But all in all it is a nice place to spend a few days.
On our way to the Tate, we stopped by Ibérica Farringdon for a bite.
Our visit to the Tate Modern is documented here.
Of course a cocktail at the Zetter Townhouse rounded out the Thursday plan. We keep reminding them what a Liberal is.
Then some business which included two very nice meals, one at Bocca di Lupo and an incredible lunch at Inko Nito.
A French dinner at Le Café du Marché was very good for London but would never fly in Paris.
Saturday afternoon was meant to start with ramen, but Mohonon was closed (fortunately that was remedied Sunday evening. Suffice it to say that Bone Daddy just does not stack up.
Waiting on line might require a beer.
Some shopping at Varvatos cost everyone a pretty penny, but was surprisingly not awful.
We just had time for a brown meal at Hawksmoor before the theater. Then it was off to see Lyonesse which was enhanced by some sugarless French 75s.
The play was quite good, a medical emergency nothwithstanding.
The next day included a run back to Soho to visit Etro. And then some incredible classical music at the barbican.
Followed by real Ramen. Mohonos is just so good…equal to Japan.
A nightcap at Boccas was not terrible. But no Fernet in an Argentinean bar?! What?! A Pisco Sour (Peru?) would have to do.
All in all, four showerheads and a quick furnishings update required for the Zetter Townhouse.
The Dupont Circle Hotel: Washington DC
October 22, 2023
Generally speaking, we don’t frequent too many DC hotels since DC is so close to home. But sometimes timing is such that a night in a hotel is in order. The Dupont Circle Hotel is centrally located and not an unreasonable place to stay. Nothing to write home about, but good meeting facilities and proximity to plenty of good things to do.
The outside patio is a nice place for a Negroni on a fall evening. Do note that the bar closes down rather early.
A corporate dinner event at the Lafayette (in the Hay-Adams) was very nice but exceptionally old school even by DC standards.
We were assigned hamster cube 804. The view of the construction site (where jackhammers fired up at 7am) was unobstructed.
Though by no means plastic, the shower was still slightly wrong.
Jackhammer guys.
Excellent meeting facilities.
Four showerheads and some more imaginitive fun and games for the Dupont Circle Hotel. We didn’t get that room on the roof from the website. LOL.
Boston: The Verb and Its Wishful Thinking
August 27, 2023
Before the 30th Anniversary Music Party, there was Contessa. Great food with a superb city view and militant eastern european staff. Not sure I would make a habit of it. Dining with two of my favorite women tips the scales radically. But honestly, Contessa thinks too much of itself. It is aptly named.
After the 30th Anniversary Music Party, the pool at The Verb Hotel (right next to Fenway) was bait. Honestly we felt a bit baited (and switched). The Verb is trying so hard to be hip and cool. But they are falling short due to a number of factors mostly involving an actual demographic of families with kids, a terrible breakfast situation, and a very small dingy pool. Oh well. It was a great plan.
We paid for a pool view room. Whatever. We were on the second floor a nice hike from everything past many hallways of refrigerated hamster cages.
This may be one of the only times and actual touring musician has ever stayed at The Verb. Too much veneer and not enough reality makes NPS a grumpy poster.
The Pool. Such a great idea, and so not what it needs to be. We did use it. And we had some great Mai Tais from next door.
At least the shower is not plastic.
The real record player was a nice touch and fun. Many of the records were in terrible shape though.
Mandolin.
It was great to be in Boston for the night. We had fun.
Sunday Jazz at the Mad Monkfish.
All in all, not a plan to repeat but one that was worth doing once. The Verb Hotel earns two showerheads and is summarily dismissed from the target list.
NYC: Intercontinental NY Barclay
August 27, 2023
In the still active quest to find a NY hotel to use as home base, we present the (nope) Intercontinental Barclays hotel. This was a quick, trip up for business and pleasure.
The Barclays is old school. Well, old. Definitely old. Try as they might to upgrade to “hip” or “relevant,” there is too much inertia for the sluggish IHG chain to overcome.
Our arrival was very corporate and our room was nice but hamster cage. All vestiges of Kimpton privilege have been assimilated. And there is only so much that you can do to drag a mid-century hotel into the new millennium. Frankly, I don’t even remember what our room number was or even what floor it was on.
The shower was fine.
A comfortable generic bed. Design by somebody’s grandmother.
Oh, here it is, room 939 on the not at all memorable 9th floor. This is a concierge floor which means only you can share an OK breakfast with other people who think that concierge service is good.
But it was NYC! BTW, the Fasano is a great place for a ridiculously expensive business dinner. Great food and a relaxed atmosphere conducive to conversation.
Also, as always the tucked away Oyster bar in Grand Central is a fun place for a snack. We tried out the back room (new to me). The front is more NY, FWIW.
Meanwhile, the bar back at the Barclays has a reputation far beyond its ’70s reality. Great cocktails served by cynical old school NY barkeeps with a hotel lobby feel that can’t be overcome. Skip it.
The great news is that the trip’s most memorable experience was a great one. The MOMA’s Karl Lagerfeld exhibit was not to be missed. See more here.
Before whizzing back across town and under the river to Newark, we had a great lunch at Blue Willow somewhat on a whim. Outstanding.
All in all, three showerheads and a continued search for a NY home for the Barclays Intercontinental. Too much corporate genericism for us.
Stuck in Texas: The Dallas Hotel Zaza
April 1, 2023
Imagine there is no worse airline than United domestic? Think again! American Airlines pulled absolute garbage service on my last trip. First some background.
A last minute talk opportunity popped up and the hosts promised to pay for a business class day trip. So the plan was to fly into Dallas at 9am (departing the house at 5:15am) and get home before 10pm. Ha!
The talk was great and the day was going smoothly, and then American Airlines operations just FUBARed things up. I mean wow. First there was the drip delay supposedly cause by weather (there was no weather), then there was a plane and no crew, then the crew landed at a gate 40 minutes away, and then, the coup de grace, the captain timed out and walked away. Leaving 300 or so people stranded in Dallas all wanting to get to Washington DC.
American, after some real delay during which I purchased a seat on the only United flight to Dulles the next day, “rebooked” me on puddle hoppers through some tiny ass Ohio town and into DCA. Nope. I flew United the next day and burned 24 hours.
American Airlines had a hard time accepting my rejiggering as reality. After a couple of hours of bullshit and waiting 10 days, they refunded my original business class leg. They had to be forced to do that. No more American Airlines for me!
Anyway, Hotel Zaza in Dallas came up during a cursory search for hip hotels. And off I went, arriving around 10pm…ironically the same time I was due to be in my own bed at home.
I think I was assigned 418. Of course no clothes and no bathroom amenities were with me.
At least the shower was top notch.
Here is the free bathroom stuff you get for your money. Yuck.
Finding a cocktail nearby at 11 was a thing. Even super barman Jacques was at a loss and sorry I was stuck in Dallas. LOL.
The car service at Zaza was good and was more than willing to drive me 4 blocks in style.
The Kennedy room (above) was a dive serviced by kids who were utterly clueless. Don’t even bother. Beau Nash looked promising, but closed at 11pm on a Wednesday. So it was off to the Tipsy Alchemist on a tip from the bartender at Beau Nash.
Though I was the wrong demographic being over 35, the cocktails were well made, and there was real bourbon in the house. Needless to say, insanity reigned after too many shots, but I somehow woke up back at the hotel in the morning. So that was good.
Actual real Weller in the house.
After a somewhat late breakfast at the hotel (pretty not bad, but also unremarkable), a visit to the Dallas Art Museum was in store.
I felt kind of like the picture above. DFW airport was still a pit. Overcrowded and old. The United gates are way better than the American worn out 80s mall gates through.
Three showerheads for the Zaza. Lets just skip Dallas from now on.
Denver Renaissance
February 23, 2023
We didn’t really have our hopes set high enough, it seems. Because business trip, travel set by others, Marriott property, etc. But here we are at a very nice Renaissance Hotel in Denver. And everything is fine.
Getting here was a thing because a huge winter storm had travel all in a bind. Something like 1200 flights were cancelled. Mine was not, but it did take an extra 40 minutes because the headwinds were so strong.
The snowy drive from the airport was actually hazardous due to Americans in SUVs.
We were assigned an excellent suite (550) with lots of windows and, most important of all, glass showers. The room design is dated, but passable. Some refurbishment would be a good thing.
We were greeted with a personal note and a bottle of bubbly (which sadly will remain behind).
Glass shower for the win. The rest of the bathroom is pure Marriott.
A fun little chair.
The lobby bar is very good with clear ice, and proper Negroni capability. Seriously.
Entertainment for the evening included bowling (?1) and tequila shots. yeah no.
A late evening visit with Gino to Lady Jane (who made an absolutely excellent El Diablo with house hot ginger syrup) killed some time before we headed over to Williams and Graham (special shouts to Jacques and Sean Kenyon). Though W&G remains a top notch bar, it somehow seems to be overrun by non-bar people from conferences. Enthusiastic and stupid. Our bartender from NC was a hot and cold mess (and being a southern gentleman myself, I can assure you he is not very legit NC). Thing is, there was no green chartreuse. But instead of saying so, NC boy swapped to something not at all the same without saying a word. Not a fan of that kind of nonsense. We did have some excellent snacks and some great drinks in the end before we were summarily dismissed. Fernet for all.
Nephew Gino.
Sam’s number 3 is a great place for breakfast, even when it is 4 degrees outside.
All told, four showerheads and a great deal of surprise for the Renaissance. You go Marriott.
Hotel Zelos, Dirty Habit, and the Ghost of Kimpton Past in San Francisco
December 18, 2022
Oh the Kimpton of yore, how we miss it. After the IGH acquisition, the properties have gone completely corporate. No brand left at all. No personality. No staff that loves their jobs. So sad. Our last two Kimpton attempts in NY sucked (see https://noplasticshowers.com/2022/10/17/quick-hit-in-nyc-hotel-indigo-is-very-corporate/ and https://noplasticshowers.com/2022/05/08/back-in-new-york-the-muse-hotel-ihg/).
But the good news is that some of the properties have the old magic. Like the Zelos in San Francisco that used to be the Palomar. This was once one of our favorite hotels. And maybe it will be again.
We remember fondly talking to Mike Defrino about adding good bars to the properties (using Bourbon and Branch as one of the examples of what people will pay for a cocktail). Jacques Bezuidenhout was hired, and Dirty Habit was born under the direction of Brian Means.
We remember the battle of the Palomars.
At what os now the Zelos, we were assigned 712 (which is a nicely renovated version of a room we’ve stayed in back in the Palomar days). Great room.
In fact, enough space to conduct a zoom meeting with multiple attendees in the same room. (Don’t ask.)
The bathroom could be bigger. But it works. The shower is over a tub, but the nice glass doors make it all OK.
Though we arrived late, there was time for a slightly adjusted Boulevardier before bed.
And then a Cloudbreak (from Friday, Saturday, Sunday in Philly). This is still a magical cocktail. Make one!
Though it arrived late, a welcome note did arrive (along with a nice bottle of wine that I gave to madou since I was not checking my bag. Thanks for that Ben!
This is not your usual hotel art. Love it.
Breakfast at Cafe de la Presse is always recommended. At the Chinatown gate.
And for fun? How about Wildhawk, followed by ABV, followed by the Good Good Culture Club all with a bunch of great friends? Yes please.
So, a Negroni or a Breakfast Negroni?? Jacques, which should it be?
Maybe Suzu (who has become quite famous, aparently) knows.
While at ABV, tequila (or mezcal).
Thee guys…
Good Good was very good. What a treat to be in San Francisco for 32 seconds! Merry Christmas all.
Five showerheads and a big thumbs up for the hotel zelos. Looking forward to returning.
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