A hotel with multiple personalities? Find out what guise you are when you stay.
Tell me what hotel suite you choose and I’ll tell you what you are.
Okay, so maybe that’s a poor paraphrase of Miguel de Cervantes’ famous quote, but the sentiment is shared. At OPUS Hotel, one of Vancouver’s original and surely most famous boutique hotel, guests can select one of five room personalities, curated by OPUS’ Lifestyle Concierges. Upon check in at the modular, circular front desk I was assigned to a Deluxe King Room inspired by BILLY. According to BILLY’s bio, he’s an “enlightened rockstar from London,” into “underground and after hours clubs,” reveling in both “loud music and inner peace.” Among concierge BILLY’s local attraction suggestions? The stunning modern Chinese brasserie Bao Bei and the local nude shores, Wreck Beach. My newly renovated electric green room was an artist’s retreat, with local art gracing the walls, calming and colorful fabrics and huge windows flooding my Yaletown room with light, even in the thick of Vancouver’s winter.
The Lifestyle Concierges or “Five Muses,” as general manager Nicholas Gandossi likes to call them, are just another way that OPUS tailors the experience to the guest, intuiting what you need before you know it yourself. “Uniquely Stylish, Always Fresh” is the hotel’s M.O., and indeed, the chic, 96 guestroom Davie Street property has been setting standards since the doors opened in September 2002. Forward motion touches include a complimentary iPad in every room with free wifi to use on and off property, Optik TV in room and solid (gratis) high speed wifi throughout the property. Deluxe and above rooms offer Samsung Galaxy 3 phones, open and accessible for local calls and wifi around the city. Shopping in Gastown and want to make a dinner reso for family style dinner at La Pentola, the hotel’s acclaimed Italian eatery? Just push “0” for the front desk. Want to receive a call from home, without any roaming charges, while you’re exploring Stanley Park? Ask the front desk to forward the call to your hotel phone that you’re carrying around with you in your coat pocket. BAM! Brilliant.
Other thoughtful complimentary touches that will quickly win repeat guests include a bevvie at check in, luxury hybrid Jaguar car service around downtown, 24-hour fitness center, full suspension mountain bikes with all the extras to toodle around town and a highly sustainable, green-friendly mandate. OPUS was a founding member of the Green Table Network, an initiative to reduce waste, recycle, conserve water and energy and use fewer pollutants in hotel and restaurant kitchens, and they were the first hotel in Vancouver to use renewable natural gas as a green energy source. Turndown service features filtered water in glass carafes (waste-free) as well as a retro candies—mine was a PC-friendly Popeye Candy Sticks.
Though the location in the heart of Yaletown is a walker/shopper/diner’s dream, it’s hard to not head off the sleek and stylish lobby directly into La Pentola della Quercia and Chef Lucais Syme’s rustic Northern Italian inspired cuisine. This highly respected “chef’s chef” is known for utilizing local and seasonal ingredients to turn out simple and delicious, comforting foods: handmade pasta and traditional nose-to-tail meat and fish dishes served family style are the evening focus of this award-winning resto. Consulting sommelier Terry Threlfall, an illustrious Vancouver Sommelier of the Year Lunch alumni, has created a wine list that highlights Italy’s delicious diversity, while head barman Martin Corriveau’s seasonally-centric craft cocktail program highlights BC bounty. Lunch service is quicker (small plates and Panini shine), catering to the Yaletown office and shopping crowd, while Sunday Brunch is leisurely and sumptuous. Try and time your stay around La Pentola’s Famiglia Supper Series, a multi-course communal table event on the last Sunday of each month.
So let’s see then—my next visit should fall on the last Sunday of the month so I can break bread with Chef Syme and fellow guests, but I think I’ll opt for one of PIERRE’s rooms. His profile (food critic), provenance (Paris), scene (food & wine) and likes (jazz, culinary tourism, history, architecture) sound exceptionally familiar…
OPUS Hotel || 322 Davie Street, Vancouver || opushotel.com
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