Daley Blames - Who Else? - The Media For Oprah-geddon
Chicago Gets Googled
Friday Flashback - Old School Oprah
Today's Transgender Day of Remembrance Honors the Dead
Review: Paramount Room
The venerable old Drake Hotel, nestled in all its glory upon the northernmost reaches of Michigan Avenue, has long been the Chicago hotel equivalent of your loveable, old, slightly intimidating rich great aunt… you know, she used to be the belle of the ball and has hung out with royalty a few times, but is looking kinda haggard and just hasn’t been herself lately. Well, in a move that is essentially akin to giving that beloved ol’ gal a tummy-tuck, suitcase full of Botox and brand new pacemaker, the owners and general manager of the 84-year-old Drake have announced the second phase of a combined $60 million in improvements that began in the late 1990s and is expected to continue for the next few years.
The Drake pulled itself out of an early 90s slump with a five-year, $45 million renovation of its guest rooms and hallways, and now that relative newcomers like the Peninsula, Park Hyatt and Ritz-Carlton have stolen its antiquated thunder, the work will continue. The newest spate of improvements, estimated to cost $15 million, will include the addition of a 4,000-square-foot fitness center and 7,500-square-foot executive conference center, as well as new luxury bedding and oversized desks for each and every room.
Competing for top hotel honors in this town won’t be easy for the Drake, whose Italian Renaissance façade contains rooms whose size and functionality reflect a different era of travel. But Chicagoist likes the history and classic styling of the Drake, and when our exceptionally rich relatives (who simply must be out there somewhere) finally decide to pay us a visit, we’ll send them straight over.
In hotel news that falls a bit further south on Michigan Avenue, the stylin’ Art Deco InterContinental Hotel is being sold for a whopping $210,000 a room to Chicago-based Strategic Hotel Capital Inc. While London-based InterContinental Group PLC will retain a 15 percent stake of the property and will continue to manage it, the new owners are expected to add increased retail development on the hotel’s first floor. Chicagoist doesn’t care what they do, as long as they don’t touch the hella-ornate swimming pool.
Drake Hotel photo courtesy of tripadvisor.com
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Mmm, love me some afternoon tea at the Palm Court -- not only is the tea service impeccable, but the décor reminds me of "The Golden Girls", one of my all-time favorite shows.
i'm actually quite a fan of the palm court women's restroom... it's gigantic (i went in on a tour, once, when it was not being used). apparently it was included on some list of the nicest bathrooms in the world...
Andrew, you're right -- the ladies room are sweet. The stalls are like little rooms, each featuring a vanity with ashtray, box of tissues, etc.
Also, love the harpists. They'll take requests sometimes if you ask nicely (and they know the song).
yeah? she did a mean "i wanna be sedated" last time i was there...
Andrew, I asked for "Freebird" once, and the harpist looked sincerely disappointed to say that she didn't. But she did play a Beatles medley for me which included "Here, There, and Everywhere".
ooooh, nice! if ever a beatles song were fit for a harp, that'd be it (along with 'she's leaving home,' of course)...
Have you seen this before? It's a number guessing game: http://www.amblesideprimary.com/ambleweb/mentalmaths/guessthenumber.html. I guessed 70044, and it got it right! Pretty neat.