This fall, Times Square is set to get a new luxe hotel that hearkens back to Old New York: The Knickerbocker. General Manager Jeff David recently swung by our offices to give us a special sneak peek at the property.
A member of Leading Hotels of the World, the new hotel will be a reopening of an historic New York hotel. The original property was built in 1906 by John Jacob Astor IV, and the reopened building will have a Beaux Arts style and presentation that hearkens back to an earlier age of NYC.
Our tip? Keep an eye out for one of the property’s four Signature Suites, each of which draws upon a piece of New York history. The Caruso Suite, on the 16th floor, is named for world-famous tenor Enrico Caruso, who once lived in the hotel. The Cohan Suite, also on the 16th floor, is named after another famous resident: legendary Broadway performer George M. Cohan. On the 15th floor, the Martini Suite pays tribute to another piece of Knickerbocker lore, which holds that the hotel is the birthplace of the classic cocktail. Finally, the Parrish Suite on the 14th floor is named after Maxfield Parrish, the artist and creator of the “Old King Cole” mural that was created for the original Knickerbocker. (That famous bit of New York art has since moved to the St. Regis Hotel on 55th Street.)
The property will also include a rooftop cigar bar in partnership with tobacconist Nat Sherman, as well as three dining venues by celebrity chef Charlie Palmer: Signature restaurant Charlie Palmer at The Knick, rooftop cocktail and small plate bar St. Cloud and grab-n-go café Jake’s @ The Knick.