arlflyer

Speak for yourself! I've been living here for ten and feel like I've just scratched the surface.

Have definitely lived the per diem life before, just going the other direction. Gotta love those 75% "travel days" that go from 12:00 AM to 10 PM. Though most places I traveled to didn't have much better than a Wendys...

pinniped

Agreed. I've never been in a U.S. lounge that I felt was a legit dinner replacement. Breakfast, fine. A quick snack at 5pm, okay... I've been in lounges in other parts of the world that provided full dinners, sometimes even full buffet plus table service for drinks,

I've traveled often to the DC area on a per diem...there are tons of great options that fit well within the per diem. Hotel breakfast + a sandwich for lunch + any number of great restaurants and you're still finishing under the per diem amount if you do it right. That was one of the things I loved about DC - even the casual eats are very good and very diverse.

jrich7970

I'm very sad, I rolled into the Marquis last night, and found that my favorite pizza place, Matchbook, has closed permanently as of two weeks ago (the Chinatown location).

I just went to &pizza instead, but it wasn't quite the same.

arlflyer

Matchbox? Yes, they closed the original a few weeks ago and will be opening a new spot in Penn Quarter soon.

In the interim, you'll want to walk just two blocks north of the Marquis to All Purpose, which cranks out fantastic pies and the best fried calamari in town. Head a little further north and west onto 14th Street and you'll encounter Ghibellina, where happy hour is every day of the week, with half off all pizzas and great drink specials. Now sufficiently fueled, you can trek just three more blocks to 14th and T, where you'll encounter...another Matchbox location.

DELee

I also suspect that others who travel by themselves have the same issue as me - ordering / eating as a table of 1 and principally at non-prime meal hours. For instance, yes, there are gobs of places to try nearby and around the Marriott Marquis. However, if I order the 2 or 3 dishes I'd really like to try, there ain't no way I'll be able to finish them all myself and I don't necessarily want to deal with transporting leftover food around without a fridge once I leave the/a hotel. I could try to get folks I work in the DC/Northern Virginia/Maryland area with to join me but that's also its own hassle - especially given the challenges of getting in/out of DC since few, if any, live in the District. And, if I do try to plan with folks from work who travel for the same trip, there's the "I'll be over per diem" or "I don't eat <zzzz>" or "I can't eat <yyyy>".

Plus other hassles when travelling. So that's why full service properties with (decent) lounges can become a destination in and of themselves.

David

jrich7970

Yes, Matchbox. Interestingly enough, the other hotel that we've been talking about, the Ritz in Pentagon City has a Matchbox next to it as well. But I never liked the pizza there as much,

I'll try the other places you mentioned, Next week...since I'm at the Reni.

DELee

@iluvdoco: Any report?

David

iluvdoco

I wrapped up my stay here, and on the whole, was disappointed. In terms of Marriotts with lounges in the greater DC area that I've visited, I would rank them in the following order;

1) Crystal Gateway Marriott (Crystal City)
2) Georgetown Marriott
3) Marriott Marquis DC
4) Crystal City Marriott at Reagan Airport

Marriott Marquis PROS: impressive M-Club dessert spread, snack variety (peanuts, chocolate yogurt covered pretzels, white chocolate peanuts, pretzel bites, gummy bears, peanut butter M&Ms, dried banana chips), M-Club outdoor balcony (must be amazing for fireworks watching), stylish lobby design.

Marriott Marquis CONS: lackluster evening M-Club appetizer spread (close to the worst of any DC-area Marriott I've visited), M-Club has cigarette smoke odor, M-Club location not ideal (situated in far corner of hotel), short M-Club breakfast hours (6-9am on weekdays, even on weekday holidays), weak shower water pressure, small TV (at most 40-42"; other Marriotts have 50-55" TVs)

pinniped

For what it's worth, I did not notice any cigarette smoke odor in the lounge when I was there a couple weeks ago. That sounds like a one-off...some idiot lit up in the lounge.

I look at the 6AM breakfast opening as a huge "pro". Lounges that don't open until 7AM are a bit annoying, especially if the full spread isn't ready to go at 7AM on the dot.

Does the outdoor balcony face the right way for the fireworks? I didn't pay close enough attention.

iluvdoco

I don't have an issue with the 6am breakfast start time. The breakfast should end later, especially on a holiday weekday like July 4th. For example, the Crystal Gateway Marriott's weekday breakfast starts at 6-6:30am but ends at 10:30am everyday.

Balcony was facing south, should have a decent view of fireworks (assuming they're projected high enough) although there are some other buildings in the way.

jrich7970

I did not notice any smoke smell, and I spent nearly all day in that lounge Mon, Tue, and Wed. Nor have I ever smelled smoke there.

You missed the sliced vegetables and dips they put out at around noon. The appetizers in the evening do suck. Can't argue with that one.

iluvdoco

Evening appetizers, M-Club. Fried dumplings.

Breakfast items, no sausage. M-Club.

Dessert items, M-Club.

Breakfast items, smoked salmon, cold cuts. M-Club.

Dessert array, M-Club.

DELee

Hard to follow up iluvdoco 's 4th of July post of appetizer pictures but here's a photo I took of what look to be a number of the Hot Shoppes locations in and around DC area that hangs in the lobby area of the Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek:



Anyone on FT actually go to the Anthem restaurant and sit in one of the 9 dining stools that reflects back to Marriott's Hot Shoppes heritage?

(FWIW, this is one of the few Marriott forum threads that actually mentions Hot Shoppes...)

David

jrich7970

Never noticed the stools, but I'm there tomorrow, so I'll look specifically. Maybe even post a pic if I remember,

jrich7970

Here we go. And, actually, now I recall sitting on one of those stools about six months ago while waiting for a "Fresh Bites" cheeseburger.