Matt4200

Wow, it must be a good property to put a good chunk of stays here (or very centrally located).

I haven't tried yet, that’s just what the VIP Manager emailed me when I asked how Glob Breakfast worked seeing if it was vouchers or you had to charge to the room. I may order a side of hash browns and see if it’s all taken off, I’d hope it would be, but it could also be due to your extra loyalty. Definitely good to show the gratuity.

I’ll post back my thoughts after departing.

skj

We live about an hour away and spend the night when we head into town for dinner.The weekend rates are usually comparable to a Lyft/Uber round trip and definitely cheaper than a DWI. I also needed the spend for LTG. We do stay at the HR Galleria when we're dining in that part of town, but only had about 5 nights there last year.

skj

We spent a night here this past weekend. The property is undergoing a significant renovation that we were told should be completed before the end of the year. The lobby area is almost completely gutted right now. The check in desks will be moving but it looks like the bar and restaurant will remain in the same place. We stayed in an "updated" room - but no Glob upgrade - with new carpeting and furniture. The bathroom appeared unchanged and there were a few "infrastructure" issues, so it appears the renovation is primarily cosmetic.

When checking in, the agent made a big deal about waiving the parking charge (on a paid stay) and claimed to not know that was part of the current promo. The Glob breakfast was takeaway from Einstein Bagels, which has been relocated from the lobby to the 6th floor, near the pool entrance. Our 2 breakfast bagels and bottles of juice was about $25, but it was not charged when we checked out. The bagels were fine, but I wouldn't have paid the cash price for them, and we're looking forward to a time when we can enjoy the breakfast at Shula's again.

The property did a good job with COVID precautions. The staff was masked, hand sanitizer widely available, etc. The guests, not so much ...

nycflyer17

Has anyone stayed at the HR Houston recently? Did it get renovated? Can’t go wrong at 8k points but was curious since I also had a few Marriott options to consider. I am only Explorist while Platinum with Marriott. Don’t care much about upgrades but wouldn’t mind some outdoor area somewhere with WiFi.

skj

The renovations (which were largely just cosmetic and most apparent in the lobby) are complete. As of a few weeks ago, Einstein's Bagels in the lobby was the only "restaurant" open although the front desk agent said they were hoping to open Shula's soon.

The only outdoor area I'm aware of is the small pool deck on the 6th floor. I have no idea if the wifi is any good there.

skj

Shula's Restaurant has reopened for breakfast, currently on weekends and holidays only. We were told they expect to be open daily starting sometime in August. It's a buffet, but one can get omelets, pancakes, and waffles cooked to order as part of the buffet. They will bring back al a carte offerings too, but the target date for that isn't determined yet. For us, this is a great improvement in service. Takeaway from Einstein's wasn't bad and, based on reports, was likely better than what was offered at many properties. It can't compare to a nice buffet in a restaurant setting though.

FatPigs

Most bizarre breakfast experience at Shula's this past week. Gave them my room number, signed the bill, wrote down that the tip was included/globalist, and was hit by a gratuity charge on both days for 40 cents.

Checkout agent seemed to be new and just reiterated that it was a gratuity charge but I didn't really press further.

projectmaximus

Whatever you ordered may have gone over some predetermined limit? But it would be very strange for it to happen for the exact same amount, unless you ordered the same breakfast both times.

skj

I've mentioned it previously in this thread, but it may be worth saying again. IMHO, this property does Glob breakfast right. Let the server know that you have breakfast included (if they don't ask; although they typically will) and they will add the gratuity to your check. Then you can just sign and go without bothering with the glob/tip included or trying to guess the right percentage nonsense. I've started asking other properties to do this and I haven't been refused yet. By the way, Lois and Ruby are great servers at Shula's - always cheerful and welcoming. Seeing them in the morning is a good way to start the day. I always leave some cash in addition to the included gratuity.

FatPigs

Breakfast is back to being a buffet (throughout the week), with omelet/waffles/eggs available to order, all for one price.

Servers were definitely friendly though I didn't catch their names. They did ask for my room number and confirmed that breakfast was included, but in the spirit of not leaving things blank I just indicated that tip was included. Maybe somehow that translates to 40 cents 😂

Boraxo

Good to hear Shula’s is back. The only thing I dislike about the breakfast here is that it takes 20min to get hard boiled eggs or a custom order. But otherwise the buffet is quick. Hopefully the shuttle to downtown is back up & running.

jayer

I'd like to know the details of that myself.

Boraxo

No not to IAH!

There was a free hotel shuttle bus that would take you anywhere downtown and I think you could call for pickup as well. It was on demand first come first serve (like the JW Teslas) so not always a good option as you could be left waiting a while. But occasionally more convenient than waiting for rideshare.

Warriorconcept

Just checked out a few minutes ago, front desk was trying to say that gratuity was not included in breakfast (I had written in globalist on the tip line). She asked her manager and the manager also said it wasn't included. I brought up the Hyatt website terms and conditions but was in a rush to get the airport so I told them I'll just have my concierge deal with it and the front desk agent said she'll handle it.

Overall though really liked the property and staff, especially Shula who accommodated me despite arriving very late to breakfast. They did say they do not currently have a shuttle fwiw.

krazykanuck

I stayed here for one night earlier this week as an end of year mattress run as I needed one more night to hit Globalist. It's only a couple miles from my place, so I packed an overnight bag, went to happy hour downtown and to the hotel after. I was given a room on the 29th floor, the 2nd highest. No proactive suite upgrade even though they seemed to have all categories available, but for a one night mattress run I didn't push for it. Breakfast in Shula's was very good. I loved the cinnamon roll bake they had and the omelet was very good and came out quickly, contrary to Boraxo's comment above. They also had the full complement of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy, in addition to all the usual pastry and fruit suspects.