The Talbott Hotel itself is a bit worn around the edges. No - not a bit worn - very much so I'm sorry to say. Although the location a block and a half from the best part of Michigan Ave. can't be beat, and the level of service is on par with many Four Seasons, there were quite a few bumps in the road. Number one, the rooms are quite dreary - brown on brown is just so not pleasing. The desk chair was so badly worn that the "lift" button simply swirled down when you sat in it and no we're not grossly obese. The back of the chair leaned so much it was uncomfortable. My husband had to use 2 couch pillows to use it - one to get him up to desk heighth, one up against his back to scoot him up to the desk. The bathroom was oddly arranged so that the door swung up right next to the sink, so if you were using the far sink and someone needed to enter the bathroom you got hit with the door. The towels were very well worn and thin, although bath sized, which was a plus. The restaurant downstairs is practically another posting - suffice to say, it was horrific. We had some appetizers outside on the nice streetside tables, and they (appetizers) were awful and looked as though a child had tossed them together in the kitchen. A room service sandwich ordered later in our visit was totally wet on the side, served on a large white plate, and was one slice of meat and one slice of plastic American cheese on a grocery store-like roll - very very sad. Even the menu, as limited as it was, looked as though someone's child had written it out. The good news is that Chicago is a fairly well-read restaurant town so there are plenty of other places to go. Unfortunately for us, the 3 days we stayed there was a large convention and jazz festival in town so we paid $325/nt for our disappointments. The good news is that the mini bars' wares were incredibly well-priced - when's the last time you had a $4 beer anywhere in a hotel? (even if it was Bud and Bud lite - lol!~) The front desk and curbside staff could not have been more accommodating. The water out of the shower was hot and plentiful, and the bed comfortable. The A/C was not noisy nor uncomfortable whatsoever, and we had it going the entire time as it was in the 90's our entire stay. Free wi-fi - YES! And it wasn't horribly grindingly slow! No need for the advertised "upgrade" for faster wi-fi. Talbott - please update your rooms and get a new restaurant concept and you will be ahead of the game. Apparently there are enough folks getting deals on rooms here so they are pleased, but we were sadly not.
