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'Top Chef' Alum Sam Talbot to Open Restaurant at Mondrian New York

Where: 9 Crosby Street [map], New York, NY, United States, 10013

Now that we've learned the The Mondrian New York will open on Nov. 15, it's time for details about the property to start trickling in. Unfortunately, the trickle is still not enough for us hotel fanatics.

Today's NYT Diner's Journal has the scoop on the Mondrian's forthcoming restaurant. It will be helmed by former "Top Chef" contestant Sam Talbot and the cuisine will mostly be East coast seafood. There's no name for the hotel either. Hurumph.

Talbot has had experience with seafood--although somewhat mixed--at the Hamptons hotel, The Surf Lodge. He's also had some experience with Morgans Hotel Group, having served temporarily at the Woodward restaurant inside The Ames Boston. So we hope both experiences--seafood and Morgans--prepare him for this new gig. We've been waiting so long for the hotel to open we don't even want the restaurant to disappoint!

[Photo via FanPop]]

Hotel Openings / Boston Hotels / Morgans Hotel Group / Sam Talbot / → All Tags

Watch Out W: The Ames Hotel Boston Is Now Open

Where: 1 Court Street [map], Boston, MA, United States, 02108

UPDATE:Boston.com has some new interior pics of The Ames Hotel.

What a long way in such a short time The Ames Hotel in Boston has come. When we checked in on the hotel at the beginning of October, we were quite skeptical based on the construction work we saw going on.

But lo and behold, The Ames has gone ahead and opened itself up. Boston.com has the scoop on the hotel execs that made it out last night to the hotel's opening party:

The opening party for the Ames drew a long list of VIP guests including the project’s celebrated architect and designer David Rockwell, hotel partner Seth Greenberg, former “Top Chef’’ contestant Sam Talbot, who’ll be at the Ames restaurant, Woodward, until he moves on to another job in SoHo.

Congratulations, Ames! We're happy to see you made the opening date. And we're happy that Boston is getting some Morgans Hotel cool. No reason why NYC and Miami should have all the fun. But we bet the W Boston can't be too happy about this. Room rates at The Ames start at $225 a night for a 350-sq.ft. minimalist-designed superior room. If you use the special opening code we told you about--Spgrat--the rates come down to $180 a night. Meanwhile, the W Boston starts at $242 a night.

Tell us where you would rather stay--The W Boston or The Ames Hotel? Put your thoughts in comments below.

Hamptons Hotels / Hotel Restaurants / Sam Talbot / → All Tags

Checking in on The Surf Lodge :: Guest Reviews Are In

Where: 183 Edgemere Street [map], Montauk, ny, United States, 11954

The Surf Lodge in Montauk has been open for just under a month now and surprisingly, has received little fanfare in the press, save the occasional celebrity sighting. (Molly Sims showed up an hour late for her reservation and had to wait for a table, says the New York Post!)

And so we turned to the truly opinionated for help: Commenters, natch. Over at TripAdvisor's forums, one poster said the hotel "looks like something you would see in the Caribbean" with a "happening outside deck and restaurant," but the commenters over at Gridskipper were less fawning.

Most seemed offended by the hotel's claims of being influenced by East End surfing culture, i.e. "I don't know one surfer who would go to this place," while another commenter alleged food poisoning and lousy service. Sam Talbot say it isn't so! 

So either the rest of the world doesn't care as much about the Hamptons as New Yorkers do or maybe it's just that there isn't that much good stuff to say about the place. We're hoping one of you dear readers out there can set the record straight on this, since it seems like such a lovely place, but one more account of food poisoning and you can officially consider our reservation cancelled, Sam Talbot and his good looks be damned.

Hotel Openings / Hotel News / MCM Hospitality / Lodge Hotels / Sam Talbot / Hotel Restaurants / Hamptons Hotels / → All Tags

The Hamptons Gets a New Hotel :: The Surf Lodge

Where: 183 Edgemere Street [map], Montauk, ny, United States, 11954-5327

Word to all you would-be Hamptonites. If you don't have a share and you don't want to brave the dark hotel secret of Andre Balazs, there's another option for you.

From the peeps who brought you the CAIN nightclub brand comes The Surf Lodge, which will open over Memorial Day weekend on the farthest point of Long Island in Montauk.

The 32-room hotel is located a half-mile from the beach on Fort Pond.

Rooms and public areas at the Surf Lodge will have a subtle surf theme running through them: white-washed walls, sun bleached pine flooring, outsized photos and artwork from surfers, surf lovers and all things beach.

All rooms with have lake views and 12 of them will have private courtyards and hot tubs, which is like ubiquitous Hamptons make-out setting. According to the press release, amenities include flat-screen TVs, iPod docks and the vague "more" which we hope is PR-speak for some booze in the mini-bar.

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