the remodel in september that ruined this hotel for me: I have been staying at this hotel for many years, most notably, during hurricane sandy for 3-4 weeks in 2012...
living abroad in london, i come back to the area, once or twice per year, and always want to stay here, so convenient, great staff... did not feel like a hotel, felt like a temporary home over the years...
one of my favorite features was that i could work from my room, and then take 'coffee breaks', involving me walking down to the elevator, riding to the ground floor, passing the reception and saying 'hello', and then filling up my coffee, headed back to my room
the kitchen is gone, the fresh coffee is gone, the colors of the remodel make the hotel look and feel like an office building
the beds are comfortable, the rooms are the same shape, there is that nice 'smell' everywhere inside... but DUDE!
i see the general manager has taken the space of the 'general pantry', where i used to fill up on coffee
i would imagine in a property that size, the general manager could have taken a plush office somewhere else in the building
i sensed it as soon as i walked in, a pathetic attempt at 'converting' the pantry to items stapled to the wall in the entrance...
i will finish, putting it this way: the rooms haven't changed (except for different fixtures and art), i recognize the friendly staff over the years, still working there... so physically, the room is the same..
it no longer feels like a temporary home 8(
