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Inside the Chelsea Atlantic City's Dining and Nightlife Scene

Where: 111 South Chelsea Ave [map], Atlantic City, NJ, United States, 08401

Teplitzky's General Manager, Michael Goins describing The Chelsea's Dining Options

Normally when we do a hotel review, our thoughts about the restaurant and nightlife is combined into the main review - but for The Chelsea in Atlantic City which has not one, but two Stephen Starr dining spots, and a nightlife spot hosted by Paul Sevigny and Matthew Abramcyk it deserves its own post.

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Tags: Hotel Openings / Atlantic City Hotels / Hotel Hype / Hotel Delays / Curtis Bashaw / Stephen Starr / Jason Pomeranc / Hotel News / → All Tags

More Boutique Hotel Delays :: Atlantic City's Chelsea Hotel Not Quite There

Where: 111 South Chelsea Ave [map], Atlantic City, NJ, United States, 08401

Curtis Bashaw on the roof of The Chelsea

Right now we were expecting to be packed and ready to go to the opening party for The Chelsea tomorrow in Atlantic City, but unfortunately we have to sleep in our own beds instead.

While guests have been able to sleep at The Chelsea, they won't be able to use the pool or partake in the nightlife and Stephen Starr dining that The 5th Floor is set to offer. As for the spa, well that probably will not open until November. Thompson LES, you are not alone! The Chelsea AC is here for you.

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Tags: Stephen Starr / Atlantic City Hotels / Best Hotels for Fireworks / Hotel Hype / → All Tags

Chelsea AC Lights Up Sign, Does Not Open Doors

Where: 111 S Chelsea Ave [map], Atlantic City, NJ, United States, 08401

We hope you're sitting down because we have big, big news: Tuesday night, the Chelsea Hotel Atlantic City lit up its sign.

Take a moment to lift your jaw from the floor.

To clarify, it did not open. And it won't be officially opening until August 1st. But it did turn on its sign to kick off what is apparently a month-long series of summer opening events.

The Courier-Post says:

The signage lighting of the luxury non-gaming boutique hotel on the boardwalk symbolizes what the Chelsea will bring to Atlantic City when it opens in August -- refinement, color and vivacity. The sign changes color with the seasons and celebrates American holidays.

If that isn't enough to get you into the holiday spirit, more Atlantic City festivities will be happenin' tonight, too -- the Borgata and Harrah's Atlantic City will be jointly hosting a fireworks show.

One more thing: if you plan on checkin' out AC this weekend, be sure to do your research first.

Tags: Party Dispatch / Hotel News / Hotel Parties / Hotel Restaurants / Stephen Starr / Curtis Bashaw / Colleen Bashaw / Hotel Hype / AC Hotels / → All Tags

Party Dispatch :: The Chelsea Atlantic City's Preview Party

Where: 111 S Chelsea Ave [map], Atlantic City, NJ, United States, 08401

Stephen Starr, Colleen Bashaw, and Curtis Bashaw.

On Tuesday night, we checked out the Preview Party at the Beatrice Inn for The Chelsea Atlantic City which is still on schedule for a mid-July opening.

Our favorite Philadelphia Restaurateur (and soon to be Hotelier) Stephen Starr was there along with Curtis Bashaw and his sister Colleen Bashaw who designed the interior of the Chelsea, as well as a number of Curtis' other hotel projects in Cape May.

While we were a little disappointed that there were no pictures of the interior, or a presentation about the hotel, drinks were free, hors d'Oeuvres were excellent and the opportunity to actually get into the Beatrice Inn without having to pay off a bouncer made up for it.

And yes, we sat on the couch where Lindsey Lohan probably made out with 684,384 guys (in one night) last week and felt a little bit of the celeb vibe.

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Tags: Hotel Hype / Atlantic City Hotels / Stephen Starr / → All Tags

The Chelsea Atlantic City Updates

Where: 111 South Chelsea Avenue [map], Atlantic City, NJ, United States, 08401

We opened our inbox Friday morning to a nice little surprise containing some great looking renderings (after the jump) of the The Chelsea, Atlantic City. After no major delays, no financing issues, and no crane collapses - The Chelsea, Atlantic City is officially scheduled to open mid-July 2008.

The Chelsea is the first non-gaming boutique hotel to open since the 1960's (read: First nice hotel without a casino) in the former Holiday Inn Atlantic City Boardwalk which closed down for this conversion last year.

After looking at these pictures, it looks like the Chelsea is going to be a destination onto itself - no casino action required here to keep guests mingling around all day long. With two Stephen Starr restaurants, named Chelsea Prime and Teplitsky's, a nightlife destination called "The 5th Floor" (located on...well...I think you can figure that out), a spa, a banquet facility catered by...(this is a hard one) Stephen Starr, and an indoor salt water pool as well as an outdoor, rooftop pool surrounded by a huge pool deck. Whew!

Of course, you can't forget the rooms - 331 rooms, divided into two classes "Chelsea Luxe" and "Chelsea Lite". All rooms do include flat screen LCD TVs, twice daily maid service and room service furnished by Stephen Starr.

Rates for this amenity galore hotel? $225-$450 during the high season, $95-$275 during the low season, so even though you can't get any comped rooms by dropping a grand on the casino downstairs, it's still surprisingly reasonable.

It's about time someone decided there is more to Atlantic City than gambling!

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Tags: Stephen Starr / Philadelphia Hotel Scene / Hotel Restaurants / → All Tags

The Stephen Starr Philadelphia Story

It's common knowledge that restaurateur Stephen Starr has been sniffing around Philadelphia for some big-time hospitality industry opportunities.

Whether it be opening his own boutique hotel or just getting in on some ground-floor restaurant at an already well-established hotel, Starr is looking to beef up his hotel presence in the City of Brotherly Love.

Already Starr has done a bang-up job of getting his restaurant company inserted into big hotels like W Philly and Ft. Lauderdale (and possibly South Beach).

More importantly he's signed a letter of intent to take over the Sofitel Philadelphia's restaurant, lobby bar and lounge.

Now Illadelph Blog has done some analysis of Stephen Starr's presence in the city and it's all good.

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Tags: Stephen Starr / W Hotels / Philadelphia Hotels / Hotel Hype / Hotel Restaurants / → All Tags

Stephen Starr Hotel Coming to Philly

Looks like Philly may be getting more than just another Stephen Starr restaurant. True, a dining room is on the menu for the W Hotel Philadelphia, currently set to open in 2009. (That's part of Starr's bigger plan to integrate his dining operations with Starwood Hotels, including the W Fort Lauderdale and the W South Beach.)

And while that's exciting for scene-y restaurant fans, we're more interested in what could be Starr's break into the hotel biz: He's planning a four-suite hotel above a new restaurant in Philly. The dining space will be designed by Taavo Somer, who did New York's Freemans and Gemma. As for the hotel, it's still very much a work in progress, but Starr says it will be "small, warm and easy--very cozy".

Related Stories:
· Buzz, Design and Build [The Illadelph]
· A Starr Is Reborn [City Paper]
· Philadelphia Hotels [HotelChatter]