Since the Huntley Santa Monica reopened a couple of years back, there's been um-ing and ah-ing about whether it's really up to the luxurious standard it should be. This weekend the NY Times got around to checking the place out and they were pretty harsh.

The NYT reviewer Leah Rozeen had a few complaints about the Premier Room (#1404) she got to stay in. A cramped bathroom, a broken towel rail and no new towels at turn-down time, no comfortable armchair to read in and a room layout that didn't take full advantage of the ocean view were just a few of the negatives.]]> amandak 2008-03-03T09:00:01-05:00 34.018794 -118.50106 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/12/9/232749/031 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/ambrosehotelstory.jpg" class="imgborder"><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/maps/Green-Hotels-Map"><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/ambrosestorysml.jpg" align="right"></a><p>HotelChatter tipster <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/user/Ray%20Burger">Ray Burger</a> recently gave us the tip that the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/The+Ambrose/ian/205206"><b>Ambrose Hotel</b></a> in Santa Monica is worthy of being included in a list of top green hotels in the US. We've already mentioned the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2005/6/28/223729/439/hotels/Once+Upon+A+Time+In+LaLa+Land">reasonable prices</a> at the Ambrose, along with its big bathrooms, so the fact that it's also not doing badly in the environmental department is a bonus.</p><p>The Ambrose is proud to be green, and the "Green Initiatives" button hits you pretty loud and clear from their website. Their goal is to offer their guests "truly holistic hospitality" and there are a number of ways they try to achieve this, including using ecologically-responsible cleaning products, recycling and composting.</p><p>In fact, amandak 2007-12-10T11:42:55-05:00 34.030445 -118.48149 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/9/11/171934/639 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/hoteloceana_lounge2.jpg" class="imgborder"><p>Last month, we checked out the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Oceana+Santa+Monica+Hotel/local/748"><b>Oceana Hotel</b></a> in Santa Monica and pretty much liked what we saw, except for crazy expensive room rates.<p>But <a href="http://la.eater.com/archives/2007/08/31/a_labor_day_weekend_tip_just_stay_in_santa_monica.php">Eater LA</a> managed to snag a one night stay at the place (thanks to an NPR-KCRW pledge) over Labor Day Weekend and has the inside scoop on the guests-only restaurant.<blockquote><p>We held court at the The Ocean Lounge, a guest-only restaurant conceived by New York City's Jonathan Morr, that recently opened. (Morr will bring his BOND ST. to the Thompson Beverly Hills hotel soon.) <p>The restaurant offers a pretty lavish breakfast buffet in the morning with an array of Bread Bar baked goods, fruits, smoked salmon, yogurts, plus an a la carte menu. juliana 2007-09-11T17:22:08-05:00 34.021385 -118.50596 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/8/6/16029/62417 <![CDATA[<p><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7QEqTCuteVQ"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7QEqTCuteVQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><p>As we mentioned <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/8/3/15422/73037/hotels/Snapshot_The_Newly_Renovated_Hotel_Oceana">last week</a>, we were able to get a tour of the newly renovated <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hotel+Oceana/ian/172564"><b>Oceana Santa Monica.</b></a><p>The hotel has been transformed from a ho-hum little hotel by the ocean to a bright and vibrant place worth checking out. Originally built as an apartment building in 1952, the current owners (who have a place by the same name in Santa Barbara) added seven new rooms and suites for a total of 70. And since this was a former apartment building, all but 12 of the accommodations have a separate living area. Suite, indeed.<p>Guests can also choose between Lanai suites, Ocean View Suites and Deluxe Ocean View juliana 2007-08-07T12:09:43-05:00 34.021385 -118.50596 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/8/3/15422/73037 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/hoteloceana_lounge.jpg" class="imgborder"><p>This week, we took an in-depth tour of the newly renovated <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hotel+Oceana/ian/172564"><b>Hotel Oceana</b></a> in Santa Monica. While we were there, we snapped this shot of the hotel's Ocean Lounge on the first floor where guests can enjoy meals and cocktails. (There are proper dining tables off to the side.)<p>You may remember this hotel from <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/4/11/151259/512/hotels/Hotel+Oceana+Gets+%27Extreme+Makeover%27">a few months back</a> when it was undergoing the changes and put up an "Extreme Makeover" sign causing us to believe it would actually be featured on the show, <i>Extreme Makeover.</i> Well, it was just a gimmick but the hotel has undergone some tremendous changes, all of which we like very much.<p>We promise a full report on Monday including a <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Hotel%20Video%20Tours">Hotel juliana 2007-08-03T10:00:01-05:00 34.021385 -118.50596 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/