Eat. Sleep. Design. And Repeat.

-----Aced It.-----
nyc part un

It's been awhile since I last wrote actual words on my blog, but to redeem myself, I'm posting pictures and discussing my recent road trip down to my favorite city, New York.

(By the way, I was a Toyota Prius owner of three days. I think I'm now determined to make it my first car.)

Hotel hunting is an arduous and hideous task. Their pictures can tell you in eleven words: don't trust us; we were shot professionally to lure you in. However, Ace's website and photos immediately punches you in the face because it wants your attention. There was a masculine-comfort, quirky-silly, dingy-sexy and historic-classic vibe happening. Pretentious it was not. Gaudy it obviously was not. Bed bugs sexy it…may have, but hey it's New York Bed Bug Central. Ultimately, affordability and location were my reasons until continued research made me anxious. Not the nervous kind, it's the I-can't-wait kind. For creative people, art lovers and style conscious, this hotel is an eye-candy utopia. My points were soon validated as I arrived at its architectural marvel; greeted by its iron green French doors, while the 1920's glowing, lightbulb signage, "HOTEL", gleamed above.

Left image: front entrance. Right image: the library like lobby.

The branding of Ace is breathing its own kind of brilliance. They call themselves a "boutique" hotel. They differentiate themselves from chain hotels, offering personalized services, stylish or themed environments; this can also be called as "design" hotels. Smaller and better. Thoughtful and creative. Walking in there for me was like a child walking into a theme park dedicated to their favourite cartoons. I wanted to run around aimlessly! Every detail down to the wording in the fire escape instructions were also quirky. Ace's choice to write in second person provides an intimate and memorable experience. Witty sayings like, "You look good in that", engraved across the clothes hangers tingles your mind. With my new camera in hand, I was photo-whoring the place. Of course with reason not because I'm Asian. The place is smart in every corner. The choice of furniture were eco friendly; some are reconstructed from recycled pieces like pipes to assemble clothes rack. The most I hate about hotels is the generic hospitality. Dictionary definition would be: cream coloured walls, tacky floral covers, pale carpets and wood furniture; and ugly lamps. Before Ace, I would only rent apartments due to the reason of wanting to feel homey like I'm living in New York; adding to the vacation experience when I wake up to when I sleep. Certainly, Ace aimed to do just that, and the design team (Roman & Williams) really did it with a kick-ass plan.

This is the first hotel I can claim I love and would go back in a heart beat. Oh, one more point, it really doesn't hurt that it houses two highly-talked about restaurants and one coffeehouse: The Breslin, John Dory Oyster Bar, and Strumpton Coffee, respectively. Poached eggs over curried lentils and toast is seriously the only way to start a morning after a sleepless night and a 6 hours drive.