Do you wear vintage broaches or bow ties? Have a penchant for “The Great Gatsby” or Gene Kelly? Take your cocktails classic, preferably with a side of live jazz piano or pop-up cinema screening? Or, perhaps, you are just looking for a luxurious, comfortable stay on a quiet block of downtown Portland, within a stroll to The Pearl and a skip to Nob Hill, and a location with a spin of old Hollywood glamor.
Enter scene Hotel deLuxe. One of the boutique properties in the chic Provenance Hotels portfolio, this 130-room hotel channels the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema through vintage-inspired Art Deco meets modern design. Nearly 400 photographs, film stills and studio shots from Hollywood films from the 1930s to the 1950s are displayed in the corridors and guestrooms, and each floor of the hotel is decked out with a specific theme. I was tickled to stay on the third floor—dedicated to “The Dance and Music Masters” (Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, Ginger Rogers, Debra Kerr, Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse and Bing Crosby). In the grand lobby, one of the sites for the aforementioned well-crafted cocktails, a giant video wall displays classic movie stills. The scene is set.
The Hotel deLuxe earned its historical sentimentality honestly. The property began its life as the Hotel Mallory, commissioned in 1912 by Rufus Mallory. Even at that early stage it was a luxurious retreat: the Crystal Room (now the Screening Room) was a ballroom featuring Grand Piano and orchestra pit. There was a billiard room furnished with a pool table, crystal decanters of spirits and fine cigars. Across the lobby, ladies could socialize privately in the Lady’s Parlor, which is now the Editing Room, one of a number of elegant meeting rooms. In the mid-1950s, when Oregonians voted to allow liquor sales in bars, the iconic Driftwood Room was added, and remains today serving up champagne cocktails and evolved Manhattans to Portland’s thirsty revelers. Gracie’s, the onsite restaurant, is chandelier-lit and grandeur-gilded, popular with the pre-theatre and all-day brunching crowd; the life of a movie star.
While the Hotel Mallory has been setting trends for decades, the thoughtful amenities of The Hotel deLuxe are cutting edge chic. Guestrooms are havens of indulgent (but quickly essential) amenities like locally-sourced Portland Roasting Coffee and Smith Teas; Provenance Hotels’ signature pillow, spiritual and iPod menus; a truly deluxe, locally-sourced honor bar, Salt & Straw fresh made ice cream waiting for delivery; and a phone with a “Make It So” button, inviting and accepting the most whimsical desire—or replacement for a forgotten toothbrush. I had no such use for the “Make It So” button, try as I did to conjure up something. I had everything I needed. Well, after my late night Flaming Negroni, Barrel Aged Manhattan, white truffle frites and charcuterie and cheese plate in the Driftwood, that is.
End scene. Oscar worthy.
Hotel deLuxe || 729 SW 15th Ave, Portland || hoteldeluxeportland.com
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