The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park — Restaurant in New York

Great expectations met with a great experience.

I'm not a regular guest at this property, but I felt very welcomed here. I'd previously visited the Battery Park property a few months ago for my birthday, and I thought they were impressive, but about the Central Park location, "Wow," is an understatement.

I reserved a stay on short-notice to visit the city to celebrate a friend's birthday. I chose this hotel as much for its reputation as its location. As I'm also celebrating my retirement from 20+ years of service in the U.S. Army, I splurged a little to treat myself. I'm also a great fan of "old world" style and symbols of luxury, so my expectations were rather high.

As I always do, I considered the reviews from other guests prior to making my reservation, disregarding the overly harsh ones as from those whose poor experiences were either not typical or possibly exaggerated. I'm glad that I decided to seize the opportunity to experience this hotel for myself and form my own opinion.

From the first moment's experience during the reservation, to my final experience with the door man to hailed my taxi, I was treated very well. I feel like everyone did a splendid job taking care of me. The representative who took my reservation over the phone, Natalie, made notes of the reason for my visit, a typical formality, which I expect is mostly for making conversation during the booking.

Upon my arrival, the reception staff, including a young man named Robinson, greeted me promptly and with a smile and polite conversation. They offered me immediate congratulations on my retirement, and allowed me complimentary access to the spa. Upon check-in, I was attended by another staff member, Ronald, who offered me a variety of cold beverages prior to accompanying me to my room. He put my luggage away and introduced me to the amenities of the room. The room was clean and beautifully appointed. The bed was soft, the pillows and coverings fluffy, and the water pressure in the sink and shower were excellent.

The hostess and servers in the restaurant were super attentive. Our meals were very good, as were the freshly made hot and buttered dinner rolls that preceded our meals.

Upon returning to my room that evening, I found that the guest services manager, Cassidy, had made a very kind congratulatory gesture leaving a card and bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries in my room. Yummy!

When I checked out, Jorge took care to make sure my bill was correct, and offered me a bag for my extra belongings.

The experience could not have been better if I'd scripted it. I could easily write several pages, naming several more names, in order to do the experience justice, but I'll leave it here, and commend the team for making such a memorable impression on me for my first stay.

I believe that the assets that the Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park calls its staff deserve to be acknowledged for their contributions to upholding the standards that people likely expect from this brand. I'm sorry that I cannot remember more of the names, but I'll remember the way they made me feel. It was awesome. It felt like...I was someone who had been away for a while and who had been missed dearly. All things considered, I'm sure it's just a testament to job training and quality customer service, but it's nice to feel appreciated, even if by people who don't know you.

I hope the rest of the guests have similar experiences to mine, and that my future experiences will also be like my...

We had a wonderful two nights stay at The Ritz Carlton, New York, Central Park||Our room was a deluxe room with two double beds with limited view on the sixth floor room 617|||First off the check in And the arrival experience we were arriving from another hotel and When we got there, we were greeted by the staff and we did arrive a little bit early at like 3 o’clock so our room wasn’t ready but we were free to explore central Park so once we got back to the hotel, possibly around Eight or nine We went to our room and it was a wonderful spacious room with a nice bathroom with a tub and a shower and it was so epic about the bathroom as we had a window outside. The double beds were so comfortable and there was a nice desk area and a lounge area to sit and read a book we also enjoyed the convenience of having a TV in the room to watch movies and also sign into our Netflix account We did have club lounge access for the second night of our stay and I have to say it was definitely worth it to get The club lounge First of all, It was all very good. We definitely enjoyed breakfast which was delicious lunch. I even try to new food there. They had a crab salad sandwich and a roast beef sandwich, which was delicious. For dinner, we had crabcakes and a shrimp cocktail there For breakfast this morning, it was basically the same and by the way, the pastries were delicious as well. Lunch was very good. They had a lobster rolls which I had never had before from a club lounge at the Ritz Carlton. I ended up eating five or six of them total because they were so good but that’s the only thing I had for lunch and it was delicious, other than that the club lounge staff was very helpful as well as the concierge desk because on the day of our arrival we were trying to figure out the bus tour of where to pick it up and the concierge team was Very nice and helpful about it other than that we truly had a nice day and I just want to say thank you to the front desk staff The club lounge staff and the concierge staff for helping us in planning our New York Central Park day it was wonderful to come back to this hotel after five years and we truly enjoyed it and hope to come back soon in...

Beginning with service: Ritz Carlton Central Park staff members are uncommonly professional in demeanor. Their conduct is characterized by dignity; their roles, and selves, being of value—with their guests being of equal value and worthy of respect. Notice the phrase "their guests." The most dignified of successful individuals are also the most gracious of hosts. This is the attitude that is demonstrated and greatly appreciated.

Also appreciated is the attention that has been paid to creating a cohesive interior wherein the interior architecture marries nicely with the decoration such that, while contemporary in color palette and updated in tone, no discontinuity is present. Rather than trend-seeking—a lower bar in design—the interior has been composed with the intent to be beautiful in a timeless sense by utilizing color, texture, marquetry, etc. I am an architecture professional and can speak to the paucity of such work. It is far easier to jazz up a perceived "dated" classical architecture by denuding it of details and/or glossing it with glass lamps and geometric prints than it is to compose a refined and cohesive interior environment that, because of that cohesion, is suitable for guests of a wide range in age and personal style. The overall ambiance is one of luxury and beauty.

There is but one minor complaint; the lack of press pot, electric kettle, and china cups in the guest room utilized. These items could be in harmony with the ambience while allowing guests to prepare morning coffee or tea before dressing. The absence of these items seemed designed to encourage the use of room service for this minor item. With access to the Club Lounge, I was not inclined to order room service and, therefore, found myself dressing before coffee and immediately consuming breakfast afterward, neither of which is preferred. This issue, however, did not spoil the experience and would not, given Lounge access associated with the specific guest room, be of concern to most.

Final note: The Star Lounge afternoon tea is excellent; perhaps the best food items received in any tea, UK or US. For those so inclined, it is...