Event Recap: The Renwick Hotel Opening in Midtown Manhattan @TheRenwickHotel @chefjohndelucie @bedfordconyc
The Renwick, a new 173-room hotel, featuring 33 custom suites, located at 118 East 40th Street, has officially opened its doors. Centrally located steps away from Grand Central Station and Midtown Manhattan, the hotel resides in a quaint, brick building with spacious interiors and a rich history of inspiring creative luminaries.
The product of a blooming partnership between Interstate Hotels & Resorts, hotel Asset Value Enhancement (hotelAVE), and Meadow Partners, The Renwick delivers a fresh new focus on whimsical luxury with a modernistic approach designed for business travelers and leisure-seekers alike. John DeLucie’s first solo restaurant, Bedford & Co. is open as the hotel’s signature food and beverage offering, bringing increased energy to the property sparked by its modern American cuisine prepared on a custom-made wood-burning grill.
“The Renwick is an artfully curated hospitality experience that caters to the most discerning of travelers and locals,” said David Israel, Senior Vice President of hotelAVE. “We’re excited to bring back the creative spirit of the building’s past through each detail of the property and launch a new lifestyle luxury hotel that brings to life the new soul of classic New York.”
Housed in what was built in 1928 as a long-stay residence for sheltering artists, intellectuals and noted authors — such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Thomas Mann, and John Steinbeck — The Renwick takes inspiration from the imaginative spirit of its former residents. Their works and lasting influence has inspired many of the elements found within the rooms and suites.
The hotel takes its name from James Renwick, Jr., the highly acclaimed architect best known for his design of St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Fifth Avenue in NYC. Renwick’s passion, worldly travel experiences, and dedication to modernization is the driving force behind the new accommodations, evident throughout the fully renovated property, from the décor details to the unique service culture.
Renowned New York-based architect and interior design firm Stonehill & Taylor was tapped to reimagine the space, crafting interactive interior features and surprises, while paying homage to past residents and cultural and artistic innovations of the 1920s, through a modern lens.
The Renwick’s 33 spacious studios and suites are all inspired by the prominent literary and creative figures of its past, curated to pay homage to either F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, Thomas Mann or Ernest Hemingway. They feature literary works, quotes from the respective authors as well as other items reminiscent of each name and their celebrated careers. For a more interactive experience, the hotel houses two Creator Suites: one Artist’s Suite with a blank canvas on a wall ledge and an artist easel with paint brushes, and a Writer’s Suite with a functioning typewriter and an inkwell and pen on the desk. The James Renwick Suite is the hotel’s Presidential Suite and embodies how the designers’ imagine his urban, modern day apartment. The suite hosts an ample living room, bedroom, dining area, wet bar, powder room and a large outdoor terrace that showcases views of the Midtown skyline.
An inventive post card can be found in-room, encouraging guests to leave their creative mark, which they can mail directly to the hotel by placing it in the original mail chute next to the elevator bank for a chance for their art to be displayed in the hotel or as a future hotel postcard. Bathroom amenities are made exclusively for the hotel by Brooklyn-based Apotheke. The hotel’s unconventional in-room dining concept, debuting later this year, was conceptualized by famed NYC chef John DeLucie.
The hotel offers no framed artwork and instead spotlights functional art sourced by 19 local New York artists who were tapped to create pieces exclusively for the hotel that complement the public spaces and thoughtfully curated rooms. Hand painted blinds of the New York skyline hang in every room. One-of-a-kind ceramic pen cups with an excerpt from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby sit upon each guestroom desk and the uniquely designed “do not disturb” signs come in the shape of paint brushes that hang on door knobs.
Each room is also equipped with a different hand-painted artist stool and a quote of inspiration on the desk’s blotter. A rising star in the art world, Brooklyn-born artist Gregory Siff created the multi-medium wall mural in the hotel lobby, a stunning signature piece that pays tribute to the building’s former residents with his unique street style.
Bedford & Co.
Bedford & Co introduces an exciting signature restaurant concept helmed by noted Chef John DeLucie, in his first solo project, at The Renwick.
Inspired by the wood-burning grill that sits within the open kitchen, the restaurant’s unique interiors are outfitted with rich woods and warm brown tones juxtaposed with sleek metals and copper accents to create an inviting ambiance that is cozy yet sophisticated. Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well weekend brunch, Bedford & Co. caters to hotel guests and local New Yorkers alike. A refined beverage program features a seasonally rotating menu of Prohibition-Era style Artisan cocktails as well as an extensive selection of beer and fine wine.
The Renwick is located at 118 East 40th Street between Park and Lexington Avenue.For more information and reservations, please visit www.therenwickhotelnewyork.com
