This New NYC Hotel Is Walkable From Both Times Square and Central Park — and It Has a Piano Lounge Coming Soon

Romer Hell's Kitchen is welcoming guests on Sept. 12.

Right next to New York City's Times Square is a neighborhood with vibrant nightlife and a robust theater scene: Hell's Kitchen. Now, the neighborhood is welcoming Romer Hell’s Kitchen, a hotel that honors the area's historically artistic and theatrical spirit.

This property — the newest addition to Romer Neighborhood Hotels’ portfolio — is located on 8th Avenue, just a few blocks away from multiple subway lines. (In fact, its convenient location saved me from trekking during this recent end-of-summer heatwave.) Eight blocks due north lies Central Park, and eight blocks south is the heart of Times Square.

Romer Hell's Kitchen starts welcoming guests on Sept. 12.

The hotel has 295 vintage-inspired, pale sage guest rooms designed by New York City-based Islyn Studio. Each room feels like a pre-war apartment, is decked with local art by FIT alumni, and has classic black-and-white tiled bathrooms. (My favorites, though, are the velvet, olive green couches and record players that sit in a few of the suites’ parlor areas.)

“Romer will serve as both a gathering spot and gateway for guests to experience the true essence of a neighborhood by amplifying small businesses and creating jobs for local talent,” Arash Azarbarzin, the visionary behind the project and CEO of Highgate, the company that manages Romer, told Travel + Leisure. "Romer Hell’s Kitchen is rooted in authenticity and community. The hotel takes shape around the people, ideas, sights, and sounds that make Hell’s Kitchen unique."

The hotel will have a variety of communal spaces open to both guests and the public. (Hell's Kitchen-based design firm Goodrich is behind the lobby and communal spaces.) This includes Neighborhood Café, an all-day eatery with home-grown local coffee and pastries from a nearby bakery. The Study, a library-inspired area with ample seating and a cozy fireplace, is slated to open later in fall.

Additionally, the lobby will feature a "corner store." It's a small room tucked behind the reception desk that serves as a community market featuring goods from vendors and artisans around Hell’s Kitchen. “I want to eat where the locals are eating and discover the best that the destination has to offer rather than ending up in spots I can find in my own neighborhood,” Azarbarzin said.

Guests can purchase these items at the front desk and learn about what’s right around the corner. “Instead of just giving our guests keys to their rooms, we’re giving them 'keys to the neighborhood' via artfully designed key cards that unlock exclusives, access, and happenings at spots around Hell’s Kitchen they may have never otherwise stumbled upon," said Callie Peck, the hotel's creative director.

The hotel is opening a piano bar and lounge this winter, complete with nightly live music and classical cocktails.

Peck said she sees Romer Hell's Kitchen as more than a hotel. "We’re a platform for the neighborhood in a way that I don’t see in an urban hotel," she said. "There’s a real soul and commitment to investing in the native talent and culture of Hell’s Kitchen in a way that’s not trying to leverage 'hyper-local' as a measure of cool factor."

Romer Neighborhood Hotels prides itself on being "where guests become locals and locals become regulars." And I believe that's exactly what Romer Hell's Kitchen will become for this particular New York City neighborhood.

Rooms at Romer Hell's Kitchen start at $265 per night. To learn more or book a stay, visit romerhotels.com.

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