Review: Hotel Kinsley

What was your first impression of the place?
It's clear from the outset that Kinsley is a beautiful hotel, fit for a guest who expects more than unblemished greige carpeting from their stay. Think: solid-wood mid-century credenzas; ivory-and-maroon checkered hallway carpeting; deep red oriental rugs; white-as-the-driven-snow Frette linens; a bar that just looks like it makes a delicious, complex cocktail (and boy, does it). If you've ever heard the term "jolie-laide"—French for "pretty-ugly"—the color scheme of this place kind of nails it, with washed-out tones like olive green, and shades of merlot that feel like a throwback to the '60s. Perhaps with the exception of the restaurant, to a really small degree (burnt orange velvet banquettes can only feel so natural), the hotel doesn't feel over-designed, or like it's trying too hard. If anything, I wanted to keep looking at it so that I could spot details I'd passed over the first time.

I had a tricky time finding the actual front door—mainly because it was in the back. Housed in a former State of New York bank building that dates back to the 1860s, the hotel's main door, on Wall Street, actually leads into the hotel’s restaurant; the entrance for overnight guests is around the corner, in back, through a small side door. There's no lobby, per se, just an anteroom that enters into the small, swank bar and check-in desk (which is actually housed in the former bank's vault—you can see the massive metal door as you walk in). But those two small receiving spaces are where you'll get your first taste of the hotel's outrageously great selection of art (much of it from one of the owners' personal collctions), with a lunar landing-esque print by artist Beth Hoeckel hanging above the check-in desk; bold, Matisse-like cutouts by Nick Dahlen hang on the third floor. All of them, quite charmingly, are graced with their own individual pharmacy lamps, to light them up.

Give us the backstory on this place. Is it part of a chain or independent? Is there a notable group or owner?
This 10-room branch of Hotel Kinsley is the first of four planned buildings that will eventually make up the hotel in its entirety; the next one is slated to open in March, in a building on Pearl Street, near the hotel's designated parking lot. (Once complete, the whole thing will total 43 rooms; each branch will have a different name.) The project is backed by developers CBSK Ironstate, but its decor is the masterful work of the New York-based Studio McKinley, a design firm known for its sophisticated, if slightly bubbly, spaces. (Past projects include the romantic interiors at Sant Ambroeus Soho, and the artfully distressed Surf Lodge in Montauk.) In short: good design is a cornerstone of the project.

Tell us about the digs.
We stayed in Room 305, which was a top-floor corner room overlooking the intersection of Wall and John Streets. The room was gorgeous, with high ceilings, several windows, and blond wood floors, though I probably would've picked one of the ones I'd seen (and coveted) online, specifically, the one with the dark chinoiserie headboard and sitting area. That segues into one of the things I felt was slightly lacking at the hotel, which is the notion of a common area as a place to just sort of chill. Yes, you can go to the restaurant, but if you’re not eating, it doesn’t really make sense (and you probably wouldn't be able to snag a table anyway). As I found out too late in my stay, there's a small mezzanine area above the restaurant, where the staff puts overflow at busy mealtimes, with a long communal table that can be broken up into twos and fours, and two sitting chairs; this also could have served as sufficient chill space; but again, I didn't know about it until the eleventh hour.

Back to the room: The bathroom was rendered mostly in tasteful marble, and though ours had no tub, the shower was extra-roomy—even for my linebacker-sized partner—and stocked with C.O. Bigelow goodies (including a lavender-peppermint body lotion that I definitely pocketed). We had a deliciously comfortable king-size bed decked out in fresh white Frette linens, but it was the headboard that I particularly loved; McKinley has taken what look to be room dividers or screens, and used them as headboards for the low-profile wooden bed frames. (Ours was orange on the top, and red on bottom.) It's a subtle way to add color and texture in a space that otherwise thrives on minimalism, albeit with a mid-century kick. My only complaint is about the noise; both the hotel's interior and exterior walls are extremely porous, to the point that we could hear our neighbors coughing and talking at a normal decibel; it was almost as though they were in the room with us. We could also hear noise from passersby outside, both those on foot and in cars. That’s honestly my only true complaint about this hotel. The room service component is minimal; I asked the front desk whether they'd send up a pot of coffee in the morning if I asked, and they said yes. They also said that the restaurant would deliver food from its menu up to guests' rooms. But I didn't try for either, so I can't speak to them.

Tell us about the food.
We had a great dinner at Restaurant at the Kinsley, the hotel's F&B concept, when we rolled in after a two-hour drive from the city on Friday night. Conceived by famed Freemans restaurateur Taavo Somer, the restaurant's menu is a mix of seasonal American specials, with a lot of emphasis (and a much-appreciated one) on pickled ingredients. Because we're actually pigs, we ordered three appetizers (chicken liver pâté, a shaved fennel salad, and lamb meatballs), and three entrées (arctic char, a duck special, and papardelle with lamb ragu), with a side of turnips. I can report that the papardelle—thick, fresh strands of pasta plopped on a pile of silky whipped ricotta, layered with chunks of lamb and studded with pistachio nuts—was pretty life-changing, as was, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, the turnips, whose flavor was so complex and tangy, with a taste and texture that fell somewhere between a kimchi and a preserve. The pâté was light and airy, more like a mousse, with a side salad of arugula and pickled onion that felt nothing like an afterthought. We also had three desserts, again, because we're disgusting human beings (the panna cotta, which was divine, the lemon tart, topped with a fluffy meringue that was probably the best I've ever had, and the blondie with malt ice cream, which hit me like a pile of bricks in the best possible way). Rounding out our dinner were three of the special cocktails, which were each different and equally delicious. (I especially appreciated that each one came with its own type of ice: regular cubes, a single, oversized cube, and crushed ice, in each case, to maximize flavor and look.)

Oh, and to return to the art for a second: the mural above the open kitchen was painted by illustrator Happy Menocal, who also lent his touch to the hotel's website; there's also a slick black-and-white photo of George Harrison hanging above the fireplace, in the center of the room, that I couldn't stop staring at. Again, top marks on visual stimuli!

There's no true breakfast service, only brunch, which starts at 11 a.m.; but the hotel puts out a lovely self-serve selection of fresh pastries and coffee on the bar in the mornings.

How did you find the service, start to finish?
The service here was great; everyone I interacted with was charming, considerate, knowledgeable, and helpful.

What are the other guests like? Who stays here?
Here's what I picked up about the other guests: They were either cool older folks trying to inject the buzz back into their relationships with a fun little weekend getaway, or millennials of a certain taste level with disposable income to burn.

What about the neighborhood? Does the hotel fit in, make itself part of the scene?
Kingston, in many ways, feels like Brooklyn—if Brooklyn wanted a hit of fresh air. You’ll find the same kooky, slightly off-beat vintage shops and the same artfully spare apothecaries lined with overpriced tinctures, along with the same bushy beards and blunt bangs plastered on the folks that frequent them. (You’ll never feel as invigorated by a coconut milk cappuccino as you will here.) Kinsley feels like the worldly older sibling of these establishments, a slightly more grown-up apotheosis of all these fledgling creative pursuits. It’s a throwback, yes, but in the cleanest, crispest sense; you won’t find any rickety tables here, any garage sale chairs that don’t match. All to say: Yes, it fits in, and not only that, but it elevates the rest of the town.

If you really want to get a good sampling of the rest of the neighborhood, make sure to hit Outdated Café across the street, for a mean cappuccino and a solid egg sandwich; Blue Byrd's Haberdashery & Music, also across the street, for a nice selection of winter hats (up here, a necessity) with a side of OG musical history from owner and blues aficionado John Allen Blue; and Lovefield Vintage, for one of the best vintage clothing selections I've yet to come across.

Is there anything you'd change?
I’d make the walls thicker, by a factor of 10, and put in a working elevator that, while newer (and therefore, less charming) works! To my knowledge, the hotel is already working on both soundproofing and a new lift. And, especially given the level of design here, it’d also be nice if there were a lobby (beyond the mezzanine space) to put all that TLC into.

Tell us what we missed.
There's a single-room spa on the landing between the first and second floors, though at the moment, it's just a slightly oversized bathroom with a sauna. There's a small room attached, with a massage table, though there are no masseuses yet to call upon. (I was told they'd be available for hire soon.) I also wish I'd spent 45 minutes to an hour at the bar, because it was about as intimate a space as I've ever seen, with low ceilings, dimmed lighting, and a beautifully carved wooden bar top. There was a nice little crowd, too, though it was never overcrowded, and it's probably the thing I have the most FOMO about not experiencing while we were up here.

Bottom line: Worth it? Why?
Truly, there's a lot to love about this hotel—great design, top-notch F&B, terrific location, if you're looking for a little fresh air but still need shopping and artisanal coffee within walking distance. As soon as they get the soundproofing situation improved, I'd have no hesitation giving it a strong recommendation.

Anything left to mention? Anything left to mention? As of late 2021, all four of the hotel’s buildings, located within a radius of a few city blocks, had opened, totaling 42 rooms in all: In addition to the flagship at 301 Wall Street, reviewed above, there is  270 Fair, which offers 12 rooms in a late 19th-century building above a women’s clothing boutique; the unbelievably picturesque 24 John, a white, gabled pre-Revolutionary War cottage that houses seven rooms; and 41 Pearl, a 13-room Georgian limestone mansion that dates to 1680. The last address feels a bit quieter and away from it all than the Wall Street location, a quality that, along with the generally larger room sizes, makes it an appealing family option. Book the Pearl St Queen Suite or adjoining Pearl St Luxury King Rooms for a comfortable multigenerational stay. As with the original Hotel Kinsley location, the experience is full of beautifully preserved original architectural details, like fireplaces with hand-painted tiles, curio cabinets, crown molding, window seats, and a grand staircase that greets guests when they enter. Those aspects, combined with characterful luxuries like gorgeous custom-made white-oak platform beds and heated checkerboard Carrara marble tile floors in the bathrooms, already add up to a terrific experience, but there is one more killer ingredient that really puts the place over the top: the phenomenally beautiful natural light that floods through the tall windows, casting a golden glow across these thoughtfully curated spaces. A stay now comes with access to a fitness center, sauna, and massage room. You may not want to leave the premises, but when you do, Restaurant Kinsley is just a few minutes’ walk away and Somer’s excellent Lola Pizza is even closer. —Jesse Ashlock