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Report: Ritz Carlton Chicago, a Four Seasons Hotel
After a one night stay at the Peninsula we checked in yesterday to the Ritz Carlton, a Four Seasons Hotel. Please find my report below -- I will add to it as we complete our stay but I hope you will enjoy my initial impressions.
Synopsis:
Vital statistics:
I booked a Deluxe Four Seasons Executive Suite through my TA who is a Preferred Partner agent. The PP amenities are upgrade subject to availability, daily breakfast credit up to $55, a welcome amenity, and a lunch once per stay up to $85.
Upon request my TA was able to secure a time of booking upgrade to a Superior Lakeview Suite. Hearing that these suites were newly renovated we were very excited to be confirmed into one. We were also booked on the pay 2, stay 3 promo which is a fantastic value.
From the Four Seasons website info on the two suites:
Pre-arrival
I had been communicating with the Chef Concierge, Jon, for the past few weeks in assembling the details of our trip. He was instrumental in organizing our itinerary. We had a few requests which were taken care of, save for one, without any problems. One such request was for sprouted wheat bread for our meals. The request which initially met with resistance was to see if we could have the option of using our $85 lunch credit towards Sunday brunch. However, with the intervention of a contact I have, this request also was granted.
Arrival
We arrived by taxi and the doorman at the RC promptly opened the door and welcomed us. Our luggage was loaded onto a cart and we were on our way to the 12th floor lobby. At the Reception desk we were warmly welcomed to the hotel (however, not by name). Once I gave her our name we were once again warmly welcomed and was promptly handed confirmations of arrangements made by the Concierge and a small card with the Preferred Partner amenities. Our keys were waiting for us and the Front Office Manager escorted us to our room.
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Last edited by luxury; Nov 3, 09 at 9:57 am.
Reason: Adding more information
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Funny that when I stay in Chicago I often prefer NOT to face the lake. The sun rises that direction, which can be annoying and I like looking at all the great buildings in downtown chicago over the lake - especially in winter when the lake is just frozen. Looking forward to all of your other reports!
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The Room
Upon check-in I was informed that we had been upgraded to first a nice suite and then to a very lovely suite. Since I knew our upgrade to a Superior Lakeview suite had already been confirmed I thought nothing of it. The Front Office Manager explained to us that we had been upgraded to a Premier One BR suite. We were mesmerized by the fantastic views of Lakeshore Drive and the Lake beyond, the Navy Pier, the Hancock Tower, and some cityscape views. Yes, we had been upgraded 5 categories (Dlx FS Exec Suite > Superior Suite > Anniversary Suite > Deluxe Suite > Premier FS Exec Suite > Premier Suite). We are very ecstatic and extremely appreciative of this upgrade.
The room is gorgeous and newly renovated. The room has personality whilst still being elegant and very comfortable. As one enters the suite, there is a hallway which takes you all the way to the LR and the first thing you see are two large banks of windows with stunning views. Just before you hit the LR, on the right is a short hallway that leads to the bedroom. The hallway has, on the left two closets, and the right the only bathroom. The bathroom is separated into two sections, separated by a frosted glass door. As you enter the bathroom the first section has dual vanities to the left, and on the right, is a large doorway that leads to the separate stall shower, tub, and toilet. Toiletries were L'Occitane (not the usual Bulgari I request and receive but not complaining here!!). Shower pressure is excellent and provides for a really invigorating shower.
Beyond the closets and the bathroom is the large bedroom with a king sized Stearns and Foster bed dressed with Rivolta linens. The bedroom also has stunning views of the Lake and Navy Pier.
The room is simply gorgeous and we have enjoyed it very much. The extra space is so luxurious and is very calming after a day out on the streets. I remember the old photos of the hotel pre-reno and I really like the decor now.
__________________ I am a poor man, I have nothing, therefore, I give from the heart
Yes, we had been upgraded 5 categories (Dlx FS Exec Suite > Superior Suite > Anniversary Suite > Deluxe Suite > Premier FS Exec Suite > Premier Suite). We are very ecstatic and extremely appreciative of this upgrade.
Wow! What a stellar upgrade.
I'm really enjoying your Chicago reviews, luxury. Thanks so much for putting these together.
I had some family members do a similar trip this summer: 1-night @ Peninsula followed by 3-nights at the Ritz. They didn't necessarily have any major complaints about the Pen, but they ended up preferring the Ritz. (Biggest <and very minor> complaint I heard about the Ritz was how their fountain in the lobby just seemed awkward and out of place. On the flip side, they raved and raved about how great their view was of Lake Michigan and of the airshow that was going on that weekend.)
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Food & Beverage:
Of all the Four Seasons hotels I have stayed at in North America the Ritz Carlton thus far has the best F&B -- it even edges out the FS LA which is excellent. It ranks up there with the FS Paris and Bangkok internationally for me. I find that luxury hotels do "fancy" foods quite well but they often blow the simple foods -- a good hot dog, a good french onion soup (can you tell I like these?), a good breakfast, fish and chips, etc. The RC does both well.
As I have been suffering from a stomach bug this trip I have had the Japanese breakfast each morning. For any non-Japanese hotel, it is very difficult to create an authentic Japanese breakfast, understandably. However, the RC has been able to cook one that rivals those in Japan ( and may be better than some!!). The rice is a weak point but rice is a weak point for many restaurants who attempt to make Japanese rice. Still, the rice is not bad. The miso soup is decent. The grilled salmon is grilled and seasoned to perfection. The accompanying dishes are prepared, executed and flavoured very well. I am impressed with the variety of Japanese pickles they offer. The only minor glitches are that the onsen egg (which is a poached egg in a dashi broth) did not come in a dashi broth but the quality of the egg makes up for it and the nori (dried seaweed) has stuck all together. My sister has had the Midwest breakfast with scrambled eggs, sausages, hash browns, the sprouted wheat toast, and juice the first morning and blueberry pancakes the next. The quality of ingredients is outstanding and the hotel makes an effort to source organic and local products. It shows in the resulting taste of the food.
At lunch today I had chicken noodle soup, a rack of lamb, and a bosc pear tarte tatin. My sister had the french onion soup and the hamburger. Each course was executed precisely and seasoned perfectly. Nothing was under- or over-seasoned and everything was sublime. The pear tarte tatin was divine -- a lovely caramelized bosc pear on a flaky and crusty pastry with a vanilla sorbet and oatmeal crumble. It was the perfect portion size as well.
Last night we had a room service dinner and I simply had a french onion soup, a hot dog and the chocolate velvet cake while my sister had a special request fish and chips and an ice cream sundae. What impressed me about the hot dog was not necessarily the wiener but the accompaniments (finely minced red onions, home made sauerkraut, diced tomatos, a choice of mustards, home made ketchup) that came with the hot dog. The chocolate velvet cake was one amazing piece of cake and the accompanying scoop of walnut icecream were spoonfulls of heaven. The fish and chips were very crispy on the outside and perfectly cooked on the inside with the flesh flaking off, moist and succulent. The homemade tartar sauce was a perfect accompaniment and the coleslaw had the right balance of acidity in the dressing to cut through the fat of the fried fish and the rich creaminess of the tartar sauce.
As you can see, I am impressed. The only gripe one could have is that the accompanying cost of all of this is pretty high. $4.50 for a soda and $6.00 for a tea is a little pricey -- however, all things considered, I am still impressed.
One piece of information I have gleaned is that the entire Lobby area, restaurant area, and the Greenhouse area will be shuttered in late December and will be undergoing renovations to update the look. Most of the work is expected to be completed for February with the entire project expected to be completed in May 2010. This will bring the lobby area more in-line with the new room interiors.
__________________ I am a poor man, I have nothing, therefore, I give from the heart
Of all the Four Seasons hotels I have stayed at in North America the Ritz Carlton thus far has the best F&B -- it even edges out the FS LA which is excellent. It ranks up there with the FS Paris and Bangkok internationally for me.
wow. what would you use to compare in terms of regular restaurants or other hotel restaurants?
its too bad there is no more japanese breakfast at MO DC, would have been curious to hear your opinion. the one thing they kept on menu is pork belly, although it might have changed. i definitely enjoyed that, but then my standards are really low for this forum.
hope you get over the bug quickly!
Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Nov 3, 09 at 7:57 pm.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kagehitokiri
wow. what would you use to compare in terms of regular restaurants or other hotel restaurants?
its too bad there is no more japanese breakfast at MO DC, would have been curious to hear your opinion. the one thing they kept on menu is pork belly, although it might have changed. i definitely enjoyed that, but then my standards are really low for this forum.
hope you get over the bug quickly!
Thanks, Kage.... i think I am now getting over the bug.
For me, the key comparison is when I eat the food, is the first reaction that sigh or intense "hmmmm" of the food being incredibly tasty. It is a reaction of intense joy no matter what the food morsel is, be it a piece of sushi, a mouthful of pillow-light pasta, or a biteful of well age and cooked to perfection beef. I had this same reaction eating almost every bite of food at the RC Café and Room Service as I did at restaurants like Gary Danko in San Francicso, Bouchon in Las Vegas, the old La Cote Basque in New York City, Spice Market in Bangkok, and top sushi bars in Tokyo. This was a very pleasant surprise -- I knew the food at any FS property will be good; I wasn't expecting this good.
__________________ I am a poor man, I have nothing, therefore, I give from the heart
One piece of information I have gleaned is that the entire Lobby area, restaurant area, and the Greenhouse area will be shuttered in late December and will be undergoing renovations to update the look. Most of the work is expected to be completed for February with the entire project expected to be completed in May 2010. This will bring the lobby area more in-line with the new room interiors.[/quote]
That is welcome news. As I recall the hotel was built in about 1975 and the influence is certainly present. I will look forward to seeing the results.
Great review!
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"Give me the luxuries of life and I will willingly do without the necessities" - Frank Lloyd Wright -1932
How can a hotel be called a Ritz Carlton Chicago, a Four Seasons Hotel?
Isn't that like being called Sheraton Chicago, a Hyatt Hotel?
As I understand the hotel was built before the current RC corporation was formed in the early 1980's. I don't believe this property was originally managed by FS but it never was part of what we now know as RC. There are others here who probably know more about this. As I recall it has been discussed before so you might try doing a search.
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"Give me the luxuries of life and I will willingly do without the necessities" - Frank Lloyd Wright -1932
How can a hotel be called a Ritz Carlton Chicago, a Four Seasons Hotel?
Isn't that like being called Sheraton Chicago, a Hyatt Hotel?
The original investors behind this hotel got the usage of the name Ritz-Carlton before the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company was formed. They approached Isadore Sharp, who at that point did not have any hotels in the US, to manage it for them. This was his first hotel in the US. Then, of course, Four Seasons Chicago was opened and they could hardly turn the R-C Chicago into Four Seasons Part 1, so we are left with the name. Maybe one day it will change. Everyone at Four Seasons wishes it would as it is a real headache to market!
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Service
My apologies for the delay in continuing this report. We have had a few extremely busy and long days.
On the whole I felt that the service was excellent at the RC. I think the arrival process was WAY smoother at the Peninsula and for that the Peninsula deserves a lot of credit. There are measures the RC could have taken to make our arrival a little smoother. However, once we presented ourselves to the Front Desk the "service machine" kicked in. Whether this is good or bad is debatable. However, I was made to feel special but not so super special that it became overbearing or uncomfortable. For example, when we went for breakfast the first morning we did not announce our names but somehow the hotel knew who we were as several key Management came by our table to introduce themselves. The Director of Restaurants served our breakfast and ensured we were very well taken care of. Every morning thereafter our table was always waiting for us and were greeted by name.
We experienced similar attention to our housekeeping with a Housekeeping Manager checking on us to ensure everything was completed as per my profile requests. While some may find this overbearing this did not bother me. All of my profile requests were met and it is such a nice feeling walking into a room set exactly to your liking -- it makes for a much more comfortable stay, like a home away from home.
The hotel respected our privacy and left us alone when we wanted to be but were always genuinely concerned with our wellbeing. The Concierge team led by Head Concierge Jon W is fantastic -- they were able to get us a table on Saturday night at Charlie Trotters only a few weeks prior; I understand that for weekend tables typically one needs about 12 weeks advance notice. Either way we were very lucky to be able to get us a table.
While I certainly hope everyone who reads this will enjoy the same level, or better, service than we did. However, I do want to be candid and mention that I am privileged to have two "special arrangements" with Four Seasons -- one which applies to all of my FS stays and the other specific to my stays in Chicago. I will not elaborate on what these "arrangements" are but I wanted to be forthright in mentioning that they exist. In addition to this I have booked through a Preferred Partner agency and I am one of many on this board who are Profile guests.
In short, we were sad to leave the RC for the Park Hyatt. We had a wonderful stay and now that I am experiencing the FS (report to come) I can say that the RC is my favourite hotel in Chicago.
__________________ I am a poor man, I have nothing, therefore, I give from the heart
