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| The New York Palace | |
 The New York Palace with The Villard Mansion in foreground |
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| Building information | |
|---|---|
| Name | The New York Palace |
| Location | 455 Madison Avenue New York, New York 10118 |
| Country |  United States |
| Architect | McKim, Mead, and White (The Villard Mansion) and Emery Roth & Sons (The Helmsley Palace Hotel) |
The New York Palace is a luxury hotel that became one of The Dorchester Collection in July 2008. The hotel blends the historic landmark Villard Mansion with a modern 55-story tower. Located at the center of Manhattan in Midtown at the corner of 50th Street and Madison Avenue, it is directly across the street from St Patrick's Cathedral, and a short walk from Rockefeller Center and Saks Fifth Avenue. On the CW series Gossip Girl the penthouse atop the hotel is home to the van der Woodsen family and Chuck Bass. In the series the hotel is owned by real estate billionaire Bart Bass.
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History
In 1882, Henry Villard, a well-known railroad financier, hired McKim, Mead, and White to create six private brownstone townhouses surrounding a courtyard on Madison Avenue. The prominent architectural firm created the houses in the neo-Italian Renaissance tradition, after the Palazzo della Cancellaria in Rome.
In the spring of 1974, the developer Harry Helmsley proposed a 55-story hotel for the site of the Villard Houses called The Helmsley Palace Hotel. To construct his hotel tower, Helmsley hired Emery Roth & Sons, who created its design of dark bronze reflective glass and anodized aluminum to blend with the Villard Houses and its surrounding skyline.
In 1981, The Helmsley Palace Hotel opened, and Helmsley operated this hotel until 1992, when the hotel name changed to The New York Palace Hotel and came under the management of a private New York limited partnership.
During Helmsley's ownership Harry's wife Leona Helmsley maintained a strict and intolerant management style which involved her firing staff members for trivial mistakes, an act which gave her the nickname, "Queen of Mean".
Hotel Description
The Courtyard and Lobby
What was once The Villard Mansion carriage entrance on Madison Avenue is now the New York Palace’s famed Courtyard. During the restoration, it was redesigned to incorporate motifs from the flooring of several 15th-century Italian cathedrals.
The two-story marble lobby unites The Villard Mansion with the hotel. As you enter the lobby from the Courtyard, you will encounter a grand staircase that takes you down to the lower level lobby and a pair of staircases on either side of the foyer will take you up to the second floor. The red Verona fireplace, an original feature taken from the south wing of the Villard Mansion, is located on the second floor.
Restaurants
Gilt is a 52-seat restaurant that opened in December 2006, which replaced the former Le Cirque 2000. One of France’s new interior designers, Parick Jouin, redesigned the historic landmark’s interior. With a Modern American menu that offers such acclaimed signature dishes as The Tuna Wellington, Gilt has received great critical acclaim across the globe. In 2007, Gilt received Four Stars from Crain's New York and in 2008, Gilt was honored with Two Michelin Stars.
Restaurant Istana is located in the hotel lobby, which is adjacent to the hotel's 51st Street entrance. The dining area is positioned on both sides of the hotel’s lobby walkway and serves a Bistro style cuisine.
Guest Rooms
The New York Palace Hotel has 805 guest-rooms, 88 suites, a 7,000-square-foot (650 m2) Spa & Fitness Center, 34,000 square feet (3,200 m2) of banquet and meeting space, a business center, and four Triplex Penthouse suites.
The New York Palace offers three different levels of guest room accommodations. The Main House is located on floors 9-29. The Executive Level rooms are located on floors 30-39 and have access to the Executive Lounge. The Towers Rooms occupy the top of the hotel on floors 40-54 and feature Classical or Art Deco style rooms and suites, and butler services.
The Hotel also has good Nasi Lemak breakfast. (A typical malaysian breakfast dish comprising of coconut flavoured rice, chilli, egg, chicken wings and fried fish).
References
- The New York Palace Hotel: the history behind a New York icon Press Release
- Streetscapes/Madison Avenue Between 50th and 51st Streets; A Landmark 6-Home Complex in Dark Brownstone Gray, Christopher. New York Times. (December 21, 2003).
External links
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