Last minute trip to New York and found a good online deal on a suite at the Mondrian Park Avenue. Had never previously stayed in that neighborhood, but decided to give it a try and ended up quite liking the neighborhood and being away from the madness of midtown.
The lobby wasn't much - just a small area with some fake rock looking thing that you can sit down on. Fine by me - a fancy lobby is most definitely not one of my requirements for a hotel.
The balcony suite was attractively decorated and actually looked like the online picture, so that was a relief. Because it was a corner suite, there was lots of light during the day and there was a large table in the living room area that was convenient to spread out and work. I did go outside on the balcony, but being out on the balcony was not terribly exciting so I didn't use it during my stay. There was an espresso maker in the room for those who are interested - I'm not a coffee drinker so I didn't use it.
On the downside, the suite was on the small side for a suite with only miniscule closet space. It wasn't really an issue for me because I was traveling in the dead of summer and didn't have a lot of clothes with me and I was only one person, but something to note if you are two and/or you travel with a lot of clothes (as I do in winter when I bring various coats, different sets of boots, etc.).
The bathroom was large, which was nice, and had a lot of counter space to lay out toiletries which was great since no bathroom counter space is a pet peeve of mine. The towels were probably the worst I have seen in an upscale New York City hotel. Small, scratchy. Not great water pressure in the shower.
The room was quiet (always a treat in New York City), except for Thursday and Friday night when I could hear loud music coming from the 15th floor terrace restaurant at the hotel. Luckily the music ended at around 11:00 p.m., so it wasn't a huge issue and I just watched tv until then to drown out the sound.
There is a $30 resort fee, which was disclosed in advance. It didn't bother me that much because it is becoming par for the course at every hotel in New York City and, as they say, you can't fight City Hall. They did provide free tea and coffee at the restaurant bar in the morning which was nice, as well as free copies of the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (I'm a dinosaur and still like a paper in the morning that I can grasp in my hand). You also have the use of the house car, if it is around, and one afternoon when it was raining I was able to grab the car to take me to see a relative in a nearby hospital, so that was a nice perk.
The $30 resort fee also includes free Internet, which was a joke. The Internet was reminiscent of the old days of dial up and I had to go out to a cell phone store and buy a $250 hotspot (with monthly data plan as well) in order to be able to get any work done and to connect to my corporate network. If you're with Verizon, there is a Verizon store down the street (I marched over to a Sprint store which was further away). Word to the wise - if you need to do any work during your stay, bring your own Internet connection.
The bellmen were affable and helpful. The front desk was kind of lackadaisical -- not rude or anything, but, on the other hand, they didn't make you feel particularly welcome either.
Had breakfast a few times at Cleo. It was okay, not great, but I always like to be able to tumble downstairs and have breakfast without leaving the hotel, so I guess I appreciated it was there.
I found the neighborhood very convenient. A drug store on the next block where you can pick up anything you forgot to bring, or buy snacks. Around the corner from the hotel is Marta -- an Italian restaurant in the Redbury Hotel. Love, love, love Marta. Really one of the best pizzas in New York City, good wine menu and attractive and comfortable atmosphere. I might return to the Mondrian just because of its proximity to Marta. The restaurant is definitely worth checking out.
The hotel is also an easy walk to the Union Square area where there are a lot of good restaurants, including my favorite place to have breakfast in New York City -- abcV restaurant at ABC Carpet. Even saw the owner of abcV, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, at breakfast.
The hotel is also not that far from the new Hudson Yards shopping center on the West Side. Just keep marching west on 30th Street and you'll hit it.
You are also conveniently located next to the 6 train. And if you are a shopper, you are a hop, skip and a jump away from Dover Street Market, an interesting boutique at 30th and Lexington. There is a cafe for lunch at Dover Street Market, which I've been told is good, but I didn't try it.
I've done a lot worse in New York than the Mondrian and while it was not perfect, I wouldn't hesitate to return (toting my own hotspot for Internet connectivity).