The hotel and its iconic red sign.

It’s a good thing the iconic red neon ESSEX HOUSE sign blazing atop the roof doesn’t mention the hotel’s brand. Following its sale last week to Chicago-based Strategic Hotels & Resorts, the Essex House has a new manager — again.

Sometime between now and early September, the hefty metal Jumeirah marquee over the entry will come down, along with all things redolent of the Dubai-based hotel group that owned and operated the hotel for six years.

In its stead, look for JW Marriott on cocktail napkins, invoices and the marquee. As the JW Marriott Essex House, the 509-room Art Deco tower becomes the first Manhattan outpost of the luxe-infused Marriott brand sandwiched in the company portfolio between the sumptuous Ritz Carlton and the plain vanilla Marriott. With the Ritz Carlton New York Central Park just up the street, Marriott now dominates blue chip hotel real estate on Central Park South, a very nice place to rule. (more…)

Rory McIlroy golfing at the Burj al Arab.

It’s hard to grab the US sports world’s attention the same day that a) Team USA wins basketball gold and b) the Olympics closing ceremony unfurls.

But an emphatic 13-under-par 275 at the PGA will do it. And on Sunday, 23-year-old Rory McIlroy, the affable Northern Ireland golfer, did it sporting a white cap emblazoned with the logo of Jumeirah hotels, the Dubai-based chain that includes New York’s Jumeirah Essex House.

This was Jumeirah’s second widely televised win using McIlroy’s head as a billboard (he pocketed the 2011 US Open touting Jumeirah).   (more…)

Roses at Jumeirah Essex House.

“Florals? For spring? Ground breaking.” We hear you, Miranda Priestly. But strolling through a half dozen or so hotel lobbies, we couldn’t resist whipping out a camera and celebrating spring with flowers.

In the early and mid 20^th century a flower shop was a must at large urban hotels. Besides eye-catching blooms for the lobby, weddings and parties on the premises, the shop sent flowers to guest rooms on behalf of friends and associates (guests checked in for longer than a night or two in the years before air travel).  The shop also stocked the boutonnieres and corsages that were the mark of the well dressed.

Such shops are a rarity today, but the custom of dressing the lobby with fresh blooms lives on. (more…)

A good egg.

Whenever a holiday rolls around, we head to Jumeriah Essex House in the hope of seeing a grand-scale edible work of art. Last Christmas a 10-foot-tall tree constructed from 500 lbs. of white chocolate commanded a corner of the lobby. The year before, a minutely detailed rendering of the hotel in gingerbread doubled as a mouth-watering photo op.

And with Easter nearly upon us? The lobby and adjoining South Gate restaurant are showcasing Faberge eggs rendered in chocolate. Two of the eggs are three feet tall and weigh 35 lbs. All are gorgeous. And yes, they’re edible, but really, it’s much more fun to look at them. (And the signs say Do Not Touch.)

We asked Deden Putra, executive pastry chef at the hotel, all about eggs, crafting art out of chocolate and whether those creations ever get eaten. (more…)

When Hollywood’s luckiest lookers thank their lawyers, agents, stylists and Mom for their screen success this Sunday, where do you want to be? Sure, you can stay home with your TV and Twitter feed, but watching the festivities on a big screen at a hotel can be so much more fun.

We found three hotels in different parts of town that go all out for Oscar night.  The envelope, please! (more…)

We love the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. A classic liminal period, it’s an opportunity to work less (or not at all), see a movie, read a book, catch your breath. And if you’re like us, you’ll probably stop by a hotel (or two). Here are 10 worth checking out even if you don’t check in. (more…)

Funny how something that seems so out of place in February or April looks utterly perfect in December and early January. We’re talking trees, of course – Christmas, holiday, whatever you may call them. And they’re lighting up hotels all around town. We found a dozen we love, each with a distinct style. That big tree at Rockefeller Center isn’t the only game in town! (more…)

Pumpkins at the Jumeirah Essex House Hotel.

The official bloom of Thanksgiving? The pumpkin, of course. So in honor of this noble gourd, equally agreeable embellishing a tabletop, a soup or a pie, we bring you Overnight New York’s pumpkin fast facts and show how two hotels, the Jumeirah Essex House and New York Hilton, displayed the big orange guys this year.

+ Cucurbitaceae — the family of squashes, melons and gourds from which pumpkins, like cucumbers and watermelons, hail.

+ 7000 to 5500 B.C. – the years the earliest pumpkin-related seeds date from. (They were discovered in Mexico.) (more…)

Jumeirah's Rory McIlroy at the US Open.

For anyone who follows golf, June 19, 2011 will be remembered as Rory McIlroy Day, thanks to the charming, unaffected 22-year-old golfer from Northern Ireland who won the US Open with a spectacular 16-under-par 268.

Since high-end golf pros double as billboards at tournaments, the US Open’s other big winner was Jumeirah Hotels and Resorts, which counts McIlroy as its Global Brand Ambassador. A winning golfer sporting a logo at a major is the next best thing to a TV ad during the Superbowl. Small wonder the Dubai-based hotel group, whose properties include Dubai’s iconic Burj al Arab and New York’s Jumeirah Essex House, prominently featured McIlroy and his trophy on its Web site the day after the big win.

Jumeirah’s portfolio includes international golf properties in addition to hotels. (more…)

Trump International's Jean Georges restaurant.

At the moment Kate Middleton and Prince William say “I Do” next Friday, early bird guests at a cluster of Manhattan hotels will raise their champagne glasses. How did London’s royal wedding turn into a hotel event in New York? Here’s our play-by-play of the race to see which hotel will catch the bouquet.

Round 1 – The Trump International Hotel & Tower is first off the mark on January 13, and the race is on. (more…)