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When you live in Vancouver one of the best escapes entails driving south to Seattle to go see a show, and, inevitably, spending the night at the first Ace Hotel in the heart of Belltown. When the Ace in Portland opened three years ago it gave us a great excuse to push the trips by a few hours, rediscover Oregon, and smuggle Stumptown coffee beans back across the border. Rather recently, Alex Calderwood (along with Wade Weigle, Jack Baron and Doug Herrick) opened the Ace Hotel & Swim Club in Palm Springs and the Ace Hotel in New York at 29th and Broadway. Each place is different, and, come to think of it, quite evocative of their environments. This Ace was designed by the New York firm Roman and Williams and includes The Breslin Restaurant (the name of the original SRO hotel) which is owned by Ken Friedman and chef April Bloomfield of Greenwich Village’s treasured Spotted Pig. I love the Ace because it’s simple and comfortable. There’s an Ivy League reading room table, deep couches, Stumptown coffee in the morning, Hendrick’s Gin in the morning, and terrine boards… Feels like home and anyone from the Pacific Northwest might feel esoterically proud when drinking or staying here.

Acehotel.com