Conrad New York Downtown — Hotel in New York

Date of Experience: June 15, 2025 Time: Morning, approximately 9:30 AM Location: Restaurant Barista Counter

I would leave 5 stars, but because of the experience I had, I’m leaving 2.

I had planned to order some breakfast to-go and waited patiently in line after my stay in the morning. When I reached the front, the employee I spoke to—who was seating guests—told me I needed to place my order at the barista station, so I walked over and said hello to the woman working there. She didn’t acknowledge me at all—didn’t say a word or even look up. It was an uncomfortable silence, and I was left wondering if I had done something wrong.

Assuming she was waiting for my order, I began speaking. She entered it into the system and pushed the receipt toward me to sign. I started to review the receipt so I could leave her a tip, but before I could even finish reading it, she abruptly snatched it away, tucked the menu out of sight, and said curtly, “20 minutes.” No “thank you,” no further communication. I was genuinely stunned.

I waited in the lobby, thinking maybe she was just having a bad morning. But as I observed her interacting with other guests, she was perfectly pleasant to some, though at one point she did roll her eyes at a woman who had simply asked a question. That made me realize the treatment I received wasn’t a one-off; there was a visible lack of consistency in how she spoke to different people.

Twenty minutes passed—then more. I headed over to the area but she wouldn’t even look at me or give me any update or ask any questions. She seemed busy so I waited to be acknowledged. But no- no updates, no communication about delays, absolutely zero acknowledgement or eye contact. I felt invisible. Eventually, my family member approached to ask what was taking so long. They kindly suggested she could at least acknowledge or apologize for the wait. Her response? “I am just the barista. I owe no apology and I am not obligated to do anything.”

I stepped in, asking if she could show a bit more decency or customer service. She again repeated, “That’s not my job. I am just the barista.” When I asked for her name to include in this feedback, she replied coldly, “I’m not telling you my name. Go to the front desk if you want to complain. I’m the barista.” I eventually went to the front desk and asked for her name, and the lady working informed me her name was Doris.

What struck me the most is that the chef—not a manager—came out to calm me down and explained that the kitchen was backed up. He was kind and professional, and I appreciated his effort, but I found it deeply concerning that it was the kitchen staff, not the front-of-house, trying to take accountability.

To be fair, the rest of the hotel was lovely. The room was clean, the view was excellent, the park in front was very nice, and the front desk staff were friendly and helpful. But this one encounter ruined what should have been an enjoyable morning and, honestly, cast a shadow over the entire stay.

I worked in customer service myself before, and I understand that we all have hard days and have experience with hard-to-deal with customers. But this was not just a moment of stress—it was a clear lack of professionalism, empathy, and basic courtesy. Guests shouldn't be made to feel like they're bothering someone by simply placing an order or feel like they are being discriminated.

I’ve stayed at Conrads and Hilton properties around the world, and this was by far the worst service experience I’ve had. If this is the standard that's being accepted, I may have to reconsider my Hilton membership altogether.

Please do better. Train your team—especially those interacting with guests face-to-face—to embody the values and hospitality that a hotel/hospitality brand should...

While the room at Conrad Downtown NYC was spacious and comfortable, and the promised river view was as breathtaking as expected, these positives were overshadowed by the sheer incompetence, unprofessionalism, and rude behavior of the staff. This was easily one of the most frustrating hotel stays I have ever experienced.

Front Desk Rudeness at Check-In Our problems began at check-in. The lady at the counter, in a curt and rude tone, informed us of the $200 pet fee if our pet intended to stay with us. The way she said it made it seem as though we were planning to smuggle our pet in without paying or that the pet wasn’t meant to stay. This was completely unnecessary and an awful first impression for a “luxury” hotel.

Billing Mistakes and Arrogant Front Office Manager During check-in, we were told we had a $100 daily credit as part of our reservation package and a $50 daily F&B credit as Hilton Gold members. Based on this, we dined at their restaurant on the first night, expecting the credits to cover the bill. On the final folio, however, only $50 was credited. When we raised the issue, the front office manager, Sandrea D., rudely dismissed us and explained that the $100 credit starts the day after check-in and doesn’t apply on the first day. This policy was never communicated to us, and her response was dismissive, as if it was our problem, not theirs.

When I insisted, she eventually applied an additional $50 credit, but her tone made it seem like she was doing us a favor. She even had the audacity to blame Hilton’s communication instead of taking responsibility. This kind of attitude is unacceptable, especially from a manager in a luxury hotel.

Additionally, they failed to apply the $100 daily credit for the subsequent days correctly. Initially, only $250 of the $300 was credited. After much back-and-forth, they corrected this. Such constant errors in billing and the effort required to fix them are exhausting for guests.

Messed-Up Breakfast Order and Double Charges One morning, we messaged the concierge to arrange a breakfast pickup order, which they agreed to. However, they provided the wrong items. When I brought this up, the restaurant staff rudely told me, “It’s none of my concern,” and since the restaurant was closed, they couldn’t provide the correct items. After insisting, they adjusted the bill. But in the final folio, they charged me for both the original incorrect order and the corrected one! This level of carelessness and unprofessionalism is unacceptable.

Dinner Pickup Incident Later that day, I requested a dinner pickup order. Sandrea D., the same rude manager, told me there would be an additional service charge. When I mentioned that there wasn’t one for breakfast, she dismissively replied that it was done “as a courtesy.” Her tone was condescending and arrogant, completely inappropriate for someone working in hospitality.

Awful Food at Atrio Restaurant The Atrio restaurant was another disappointment. The food was bland and lacked flavor—far below the standards of any decent restaurant, let alone one inside a Conrad hotel. Dining there felt like a complete waste of money.

Conclusion While the room and the view were nice, the rude and dismissive behavior of the staff, especially Sandrea D., completely ruined our experience. The numerous billing errors, messed-up orders, and poor communication created unnecessary stress during our stay. This is not what I expect from a luxury hotel, and it is certainly not up to the Conrad or Hilton standard.

Do yourself a favor and avoid this hotel. With rude staff, incompetent service, and terrible food, it’s simply not worth your money...

When you stay at a Conrad by Hilton, their flagship brand, you expect excellence and I was very disappointed about my recent stay in early May 2024, largely owing to the inadequacies of the billing and front desk staff, who - despite multiple requests in writing - failed to credit me the benefits I should have received as a long time Diamond member who booked the stay through the Impresario program, which offers additional benefits at a variety of luxury resorts around the globe, to include the Conrad brand. I have never gotten anything less than excellence when using this program, because the available properties are supposed to be outstanding, but this stay is an unsatisfactory outlier. ||When I checked out the first problem I noticed was not receiving a copy of my folio. When I texted the hotel, I found out they bizarrely sent it to my Impresario travel agent, even though the reservation and HH number only applied to me. I then noticed they failed to apply the $100 per stay credit for the Impresario program, or the full breakfast I was to receive for up to two people per room. More texts to get that fixed, but they only corrected the $100 per stay credit and not the breakfast. More texts and more copies of the folio sent, which still did not reflect the full breakfast; just the $100 credit.||While the front desk was nice enough, they do not seem to be able to resolve issues for their guests, who are paying quite a lot to for each nightly stay. Other issues:||1. They asked if I would wait for an upgraded room when I arrived and I agreed. They took my cell number and said they would text when the room was ready. After hearing nothing by close to 3:00PM, I went to the desk to ask, and was told the room was ready. No text. 30 minutes after checking in I got the text saying the room was ready.||2. The internet would not work using the usual combo of the last name and room. When I asked about this, they did not say what was wrong but offered me a code. Why is this Hilton property different than others?||3. The service on the only day I had breakfast was subpar. Slow, not at all friendly and perfunctory at best; I had to ask for things multiple times.||I will say the bar staff was universally excellent for both nights; friendly, professional and exactly what you might expect.||One of the bell staff who checked my bags and brought them up to the room was also excellent. Funny, helpful, and just what you would hope to see at a high-end property.||If I was staying at a Hampton Inn or Doubletree I would expect less and be very happy, but for a special occasion stay, this was a big swing and a miss by a luxury hotel, the supposed flagship of the Hilton brand. There are better places to stay when you are spending this much, and if they can't get their act together, the staff needs retraining. Sorry to be blunt, but I expected FAR better from Conrad and didn't get it. As of the writing of this review, they STILL have yet to fix the breakfast credit...