HotelChatter

The rooms immediately under the bar are the ones with the knockout views of the Empire State, and if you get one on the eastern-most side of the building, you can also get a glimpse of the Chrysler Building. The rooms themselves are a decent size for Manhattan, and look better in person than in pictures. The design is quite basic but the little touches—porthole-shaped mirrors, Deco-style armchairs, the Conde Nast prints and floral-covered benches—elevate the rooms from boring-basic to something a little more stylish.

The street The Strand sits on is a grab-bag of Midtown weirdness, but you can’t beat the central location. It’s ideal for tourists exploring the city on foot, and is also convenient for anyone doing business in the area. For Midtown, it’s a welcome alternative to the cookie-cutter chains and rundown relics.

Our only gripe? The price point. We know this is NYC, but for $329 a night and up, we could stay somewhere a bit sexier, surrounded by bars and restaurants—places like The Cooper Square and The Standard. We’d like to see the rates come down into the $200-250 range if we were to wholeheartedly recommend The Strand to friends from out of town. But we’ll happily pay a premium to drink at the bar.

Also? The tuna tartare and ceviche hors d'oeuvres were delicious and bode well for the hotel’s restaurant, A Fish Called Avalon, when it opens early in 2010.