Places to Stay: The Ace Hotel, Brooklyn, New York

Hotel check in/check up – our intrepid writer booked a room at this modern design hotel with views of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, and why you should, too.

Ah, Brooklyn. The last time I was there some 25-plus years ago, it was on the cusp of hipness as a young and eager creative class of Manhattanites began to decamp for cheaper rents over the river. It was cool and getting cooler then – and now it’s hot and getting hotter. The Ace Hotel Brooklyn opened three years ago in the Boerum Hill neighbourhood, very near to downtown Brooklyn. So I went to check it out – the Ace and the neighbourhood. And I had a blast.

Photo: Ace Hotel / Stephen Kent Johnson

This new(ish) and modern “design” hotel is a great jumping off point to an in-depth exploration of this extremely hip and ever-evolving piece of New York. The hotel chain’s schtick is to combine contemporary design and artful touches, community and neighbourhood integration – viz, lobby parties, work spaces, etc. – and really good food and drink. But foremost, this is a hotel – and a very good one. Guests’ needs are well addressed. The hotel is extremely comfortable and eminently eye-catching, and the service is top level.

Where you stayed
Ace Hotel Brooklyn

What brought you to this hotel?
My first time back to Brooklyn after 25-odd years… embarrassing, I know. So I figured let’s see what’s truly exciting. I planned very little but asked for help from people who know Brooklyn better than me because they live there. The Ace resonated because we also have one in Toronto, and it’s pretty cool: sleek design, good food, a chic rooftop cocktail bar. The whole Ace schtick is about art, community, sustainability and a fun and unpretentious level of sophistication. Figuring the Brooklyn Ace would deliver a groovy vibe, I decided to check it out. Plus, the neighbourhood is fantastic (read on).

Photo: Ace Hotel / Stephen Kent Johnson

When did it open?
The Ace was purpose-built from the ground up and opened in 2021, designed by Roman and Williams in the Brutalist architecture style born out of post-war UK reconstruction projects. Ergo, minimalist, geometric, with unfinished concrete and a monochrome palette.

Any history to the place?
Well, it’s only three years old, so the history is being written. Debuted three years ago, Ace Brooklyn is one of the most recent editions to the Ace portfolio, which extends to Seattle, Palm Springs, New York, Kyoto, Sydney, Toronto and Athens.

Location, location, location
It’s in the centre of pretty much everything, or close enough to it for a $20 ride. The Boerum Hill is sweet, a fun mix of old-school residential (tree-line streets, etc.) and business (there’s a mall, a thrift shop, tons of taco joints) and industrial (big-ass Tesla headquarters, river-side port services, plumbing supplies, etc.). The streets around the Ace have an inordinate number of vets, pet supply stores, groomers and the unfortunately named “pet bakery….” Anyway. There are lots of bars, bakeries, Mexican snack shops, kids stores, tailors, book stores, antiques… seriously, this is a wanderer’s heaven. Also, the Long Island Bar is a 15 minute walk… owned by the guy who invented the Cosmopolitan. Nuff said.

Designed for everybody?
Designed for people who love design and take notice of the little details – because there are little details everywhere along with a whole lot of visual art and art-like touches. Even the entranceway – formally called The Stoop – is designed as a functional space for the neighbours to hang out and meet the guests while taking in the street art. (Grab a coffee and people-watch here – guaranteed for gathering good intel. Friendly greeters know where everything can be found.)

Photo: Ace Hotel / Stephen Kent Johnson

The lobby is like a multi-functional traffic-control facility. Everything branches off from here: the café, restaurant, lounge, bar, reception desk, elevators… The ground floor becomes a bit of a scene in the evening and certain designated DJ nights, so be forewarned. (None of this action ever seeps onto the guest-room floors, so no worry.) But you’d better be in the mood to be social. And make friends. The scene skews hipster, but all-ages hipster. Guaranteed you’ll overhear someone discussing a movie or music project.

On that note, great for the solo traveller (you will meet people), art and music fans, families with maturing kids, walkers and anyone who wants a funky anchor from which to visit a substantial bit of Brooklyn.

Breakfast in bed?
If you want – and the beds are surely worthy of lingering. (Excellent crisp linens and a variety of very good pillows.) But the food program is excellent, so you might want to hit the full-service restaurant.

In the lobby, a recently introduced breakfast menu is, the bar manager told me, designed to appeal to hotel guests and neighbourhood work nomads. The lobby is full of laptop toting hipsters, all day long – and they’ve become accustomed to bringing in food from outside and lingering. The Ace would prefer everyone availed of their own excellent fare. And they should: pastries are made in-house (the chocolate croissant is excellent).

What you loved

Photo: Ace Hotel / Stephen Kent Johnson

You know when you walk into a place and it just feels good, it smells nice, the music is good (and not too loud) and the greeting is sincerely sincere? That was my entry into the Ace Brooklyn. This being a fairly new hotel, it positively shines and sparkles. Also, everything works beautifully. The elevators are spacious and fast. The hallway carpets are decidedly NOT hideous. The rooms are spacious – most with floor-to-ceiling windows with black-out drapes – and airy. And it’s quiet, and was clearly designed with this important criteria in mind – with purpose-specific industrial rubber suspension to cushion the building from the subway running beneath and all the usual street grind. And one more thing: Every member of the staff provided excellent advice, delivered with enthusiasm and charm.

What you thought could be better
My Americano could have been hotter. That’s about it.

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