This was my second time staying at the Soho Grand, and this stay was as wonderful as my first. I called ahead after landing in JFK around 10:00am after a 13 hour flight and asked if an early check-in was possible. I thought they might say they could do 1pm or so, but they let me know our room would be ready for us when we arrived.
We were warmly greeted by Jose at the door who quickly took care of our 8(!) bags. Check-in was quick and easy. When we got in our Standard King, we realized it would be too small because of the number of bags we had. I called down and explained the situation, and we were immediately moved to another room. When I went down to get the keys, I met the amazing Marcus Morales who is in charge of Guest Experiences. I thanked him for the room change and the early check-in as my husband and I had returned from overseas where we celebrated our anniversary. Later, that afternoon, we came back to our room to find a bottle of wine and sweets with a very nice note from Marcus.
The room was nicely appointed and a good size for a NYC hotel, especially the bathroom. It's is in a great location in Soho and was surprisingly quiet at night given it's location near the entrance to the Holland Tunnel. There seems to be a great bar/club scene at night with music for folks of my generation: Sade, Luther Vandross were tunes we heard getting on the elevator. Our jet lag prevented us from hanging out and checking things out properly.
We were enjoying ourselves so much just at the hotel and in the neighborhood that we decided to stay an extra night before driving home to Rhode Island. All it took was a call to the front desk to book. The next day I needed a new key and mentioned to Marcus that I was going to try Gilligan's, one of the restaurants on the property with outdoor dining. He gave me a coupon for a free drink and recommended I try the watermelon margarita. It was delicious! The next morning we had great breakfast at the Soho Diner, the other hotel restaurant, which also provides in-room dining.
After two stellar stays at the Soho Grand, it will definitely be my go-to hotel in NYC. I highly recommend and can't wait to go back!