The Robey

The Robey, Chicago: A Michelin Key Selected Blend of Historic Charm and Modern Chic in Wicker Park

The Robey, a Michelin Key Selected property in Chicago, consistently earns high praise for its unique blend of Art Deco history and contemporary design, offering guests a distinctive boutique hotel experience in the vibrant Wicker Park neighborhood. Guests frequently highlight the exceptional location, stylish ambiance, and attentive staff as key reasons for a memorable stay.

1. Overall Rating & Sentiment

The general consensus for The Robey is overwhelmingly positive, with guests frequently rating it as "Exceptional" or "Very Good." The hotel is celebrated for its "updated old hotel feeling" and its ability to blend "yesterday's daring with today's modern evolution." While specific numerical overall ratings vary across platforms, individual categories like location (averaging 9.5/10), comfort (9.4/10), cleanliness (9.3/10), and staff (9.2/10) on booking sites indicate strong guest satisfaction.

2. Key Highlights

Guests consistently love several aspects of The Robey:

• Design & Ambiance: The hotel, housed in the landmark triangular 1929 Northwest Tower, is lauded for its Art Deco architecture seamlessly integrated with modern, industrial-chic interiors. This creates a "luxurious and thoughtful" atmosphere with a "curated, minimal design."
• Location: Its prime spot at the intersection of Wicker Park and Bucktown, often called the "Brooklyn of Chicago," is a major draw. Guests appreciate being surrounded by cool bars, restaurants, boutiques, and art galleries, with easy access to public transportation.
• Views: Many rooms and especially the rooftop bars offer "spectacular" and "incredible" views of the city skyline, including North and Milwaukee Avenues, Lincoln Park, and downtown Chicago.
• Amenities: The rooftop pool and bar (The Up Room and Solana) are particularly popular, offering year-round city views and a "dreamy and unforgettable" experience. Complimentary bicycles and free Wi-Fi are also appreciated.

3. Room Quality

The Robey offers 89 rooms, including Tower Rooms and Annex Loft rooms, each designed with a minimal and functional aesthetic. Rooms are described as light-filled with hardwood floors and 400-thread count sheets.

• Comfort: Beds are "gloriously firm" with "perfect feather pillows," and guests appreciate the comfortable linens. Black-out blinds are a welcome feature.
• Design & Features: Rooms often include custom-designed furnishings, functioning factory-style windows, Schoolhouse Electric bedside lamps, and exposed ductwork in the loft rooms. Waterworks bath fixtures and custom terrazzo tile are found in bathrooms, along with bold accents of oxide red and Calcutta marble tabletops. In-room amenities typically feature a flat-screen TV, a Bluetooth-enabled sound system, Le Labo toiletries, and an in-room safe. Some suites boast a private bar.
• Variety: Room types range from Landmark Queen and Urban King rooms to Panorama Suites and multi-bed Annex Loft rooms, catering to different needs and group sizes.

4. Dining Experience

The Robey offers a variety of on-site dining and drinking options:

• Café Robey: This ground-floor restaurant serves New American fare for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with guests praising its "fantastic" food, including delicious brunch options like biscuits and gravy. It's described as an "all-day diner with serious retro charm."
• The Up Room: Located on the 13th floor, this rooftop lounge offers year-round city views and an array of cocktails and spirits, making it a "dreamy and unforgettable" spot for nightcaps and celebrations.
• Clever Coyote: A second-floor 90s nostalgia lounge, it offers tiki-style cocktails and nostalgic bar snacks.
• Solana: This seasonal rooftop oasis on the sixth floor of the Hollander Building features an outdoor bar, dipping pool, and serves tropical frozen cocktails and street-style tacos.

5. Service & Staff

Guest feedback on the service and staff is consistently positive. Employees are frequently described as "super nice and helpful," "polite and friendly," and "professional and welcoming." Many appreciate the staff's eagerness to share useful information about the neighborhood and hotel amenities. Instances of exceptional service, such as staff finding and safekeeping a guest's watch or accommodating early check-ins, are also noted.

6. Location & Accessibility

The Robey is strategically located in the heart of Chicago's Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods, at the iconic six-corner intersection of Milwaukee, Damen, and North Avenues.

• Neighborhood: This area is known for its "young, hip" and "vibrant, creative" atmosphere, with a plethora of cool bars, restaurants, independent boutiques, art galleries, and studios. It's a neighborhood frequented by locals rather than tourists, offering an authentic Chicago experience.
• Attractions: While removed from the immediate hustle of downtown, major attractions like the Magnificent Mile (3 miles), Lincoln Park Zoo (3 miles), and Wrigley Field (3 miles) are easily accessible. The United Center is a 14-minute drive away.
• Transportation: The hotel boasts excellent accessibility to public transport. The "L" train (Blue Line) Damen Station is just a 5-minute walk away, providing quick and easy access to downtown and O'Hare International Airport. Several bus lines also stop nearby.

7. Value & Pricing

While The Robey offers a luxurious experience, its pricing is generally considered reasonable, especially given its design, amenities, and location. Average room prices can range from approximately $153 to $361 per night, with some reviews suggesting it offers "exceptional value for money" compared to the average hotel room price in Chicago. Some older reviews even called it a "fantastic bargain."

8. Common Complaints

Despite the largely positive feedback, some recurring issues and criticisms have been noted by guests:

• Noise: Some guests have found that rooms are not entirely soundproof, with thin walls allowing noise from next-door TVs or banging from above to be heard. The omnipresent sound of the "L" train, while sometimes described as "strangely soothing," can be a concern for light sleepers, especially for rooms directly facing the tracks.
• Room Design Quirks: A few guests have found the room design to be "oddly and not practically designed" in small ways, such as splashing sinks, shower/toilet doors that bang into each other, insufficient space next to the sink for personal items, or clothes hanging pipes not high enough for long items.
• Construction Noise: On occasion, construction in downstairs restaurants has led to "incredibly loud" noise, making lobby and restaurant areas unavailable.
• Service Lapses: While generally excellent, isolated incidents of less-than-attentive service have been reported, such as a lack of apology or follow-up after discovering unclean sheets, or billing discrepancies.
• Rooftop Bar Access: The popular rooftop lounge, The Up Room, can be crowded, and access is not always guaranteed even for hotel guests without getting on a guest list promptly upon check-in.
• Missing Robes: Despite the website referencing "signature soft denim robes," some guests have found robes to be absent from their rooms.

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