The Room Mate Grace

Times Square

Times Square, in the heart of Manhattan, is as emblematic of New York as the Champs Elysées is of Paris. Formerly Longacre Place, it changed its name when the New York Times set up its offices here. Until the Depression of 1929, Times Square was filled with theatres and restaurants, and it was not uncommon to run into stars like Fred Astaire or Charlie Chaplin here.

After the Depression, the neighborhood deteriorated and became the site of prostitution, drugs and corruption. Thanks however to New York’s mayor from 1994 to 2002, Rudolph Giuliani, the quarter once again became the crossroads of the world that we know today. It’s here that most New Yorkers come to celebrate the New Year. This bustling area with its immense, brightly lit advertising signs, its chic restaurants, its Broadway theatres and its myriad yellow cabs is in constant movement, making it a must place to see in the Big Apple.

An ultra trendy youth hostel

Hidden in the heart of Times Square, the Room Mate Grace is a trendy hotel known for its parties held around its focal point, the swimming pool. This former office building offers, for the most part, relatively small rooms. In order to transform the building into a hotel, the owner André Balazs and the architect, Lindy Roy had to make do with the classic constraint of space in Manhattan. The result however, is rather successful since the pure décor in each room optimizes the space, with foldaway cushion mattresses on raised platform beds, quilts covered in Egyptian cotton and storage space under the beds. It’s not the height of luxury, but it creates an upscale YMCA atmosphere. The only common aspect of each room is the wall panel behind each bed which has a kaleidoscopic décor with psychedelic motifs in three tones: black, gray and white, orange, yellow and white or khaki black and brown. There’s a throw cushion on each bed recalling one of the tones of this modern day tapestry.

There is no restaurant at the Room Mate, although a stand in the reception area sells snacks of all kinds. It’s possible however, to have dishes from the local restaurants delivered to your room.

The bar however, at poolside, is one of the Big Apple’s trendiest spots where disc jockeys work their turntables several times a week. There are more celebrities than swimmers here including Candace Bushnell, the celebrated author of Sex and the city, and the electro star, Moby among others.

Times Square is the only neighborhood where shopkeepers, owners and managers are asked to advertise in bright lights. The 36.6 meter high electro-luminescent diode NASDAQ advertising panel is the biggest of its kind in the world. It cost 37 million dollars to build, and the NASDAQ pays two million dollars a year to rent the space.