Kimpton lets you buy a leg up on the competition with Gordon Ramsay MasterChef package at Palomar DC

So you think you can … cook? Kimpton is making it easier for those with a hunkering for reality TV fame to have their shot at tryouts with FOX’s MasterChef with Gordon Ramsay with an exclusive Friday night package.

Kimpton’s Palomar hotel in Dupont Circle is offering a limited amount of special “MasterChef” packages, which offers an overnight on Friday, November 11th and a VIP pass that allows them to skip to the front of the line at MasterChef Auditions at Trinity Washington University on Saturday, November 12 to give the best audition possible.

There are only five available and each package comes with only one VIP pass – so if you want to show off your skills, we’d suggest booking soon. The package starts at $339 for a deluxe room and can be booked with code MCHEF online.

Want inspiration? We’d suggest having dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, Urbana, on Friday. It’s one of our all-time favorites, filled with Mediterranean-inspired and seasonally-influenced dishes (try the pork belly – it’s amazing). Don’t skip the house-made gelato for dessert, especially if the mint flavor is on the menu!

Is the new Hotel Palomar the sign of a rooftop pool trend in Chicago?


Some cites get the rooftop pool concept right. Chicago is not the first place that would come to mind, but if we’re being honest, when summer descends on Chicago, it’s like God is smiling. Its winter weather gives the city a bad rap for the rest of the year, but outside of snow season, visitors to Chi-town could use the mercy of a cool dip.

Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar, which opened in March in River North, acknowledges the Illinois summer heat by opening a dedicated rooftop pool. Although the pool, located on a setback of the 17th floor of the 36-floor building, is enclosed for year-round use, it’s attached to an outdoor terrace, with views of the Wrigley Building and Marina City.

A few other Chicago hotels have rooftop pools — the ritzier Peninsula, nearby, comes to mind, which is telling since the Palomar’s designer, Orlando Diaz-Azcuy, also did the spa and pool of the Peninsula’s flagship property in Hong Kong. But for the past few years, it’s become the amenity du jour for newcomers such as the Affinia, the Avenue, and now, the Palomar.

On a recent Friday, I came back to the 261-room Palomar after a night of dinner and cocktails. The pool was undeservedly deserted. In Phoenix or Los Angeles, the pool deck is mobbed when the temperature goes above 80 degrees, and not always with inviting results. Not in Chicago. In Chicago, the pools are still mostly undiscovered, which makes this a sanctuary you can have to yourself.

While the moody Kokopeli-styled soundtrack might be cheesy by day, by night, as the clouds drifted across Lake Michigan, it made the lap pool feel more like a private spa — with the bonus backdrop of some of America’s most impressive skyscrapers.

Maybe visitors to Chicago still don’t think of it as a rooftop town unless there’s baseball involved. Let them bake on their boozy decks overlooking Wrigley. There are signs that a new kind of al fresco civilization is making inroads in Chicago’s summertime.

Hotel Palomar Chicago officially open to Windy City guests

Kimpton’s new Hotel Palomar Chicago welcomes its first guests today to the 261-room art-themed hotel.

The pièce de résistance of this 4-star-caliber hotel is the green roof, which helps promote Chicago’s city-wide eco-friendly initiative. The roof is covered with grass and vegetation and helps improve air quality, clean and retain rainwater, and helps promote Kimpton’s brand-wide EarthCare program.

Located in Chicago‘s River North district, the Hotel Palomar Chicago features an indoor rooftop pool, 23 suites on higher floors and like its sister property is a pet-friendly hotel.

To celebrate the launch of the new Windy City digs, the hotel is hosting a “Hot Sexy City” promotion good for weekend stays through April 28, 2010. Book a room Thursdays through Sundays and get overnight valet parking and two in-room signature cocktails for $139 per room, per night. (The cocktail, for those who need a little convincing is called the Chelsea, and consists of Death’s Door white whisky, pink port, basil and strawberry-allspice bitters.)

Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar Chicago set to open with $89 nights

Question: Where can you get a king-sized bed and a bottle of wine for $89 on a Saturday night? (Hint: it’s not your parent’s house)

Answer: 505 N State Street, The Kimpton Hotel Palomar, Chicago

The new boutique hotel is opening its doors on Saturday, April 24, 2010, and hosting a killer sale: $89 gets you a king-sized bed, a bottle of red or white wine, and all the amenities you’ve come to love from Kimpton (like leopard-print robes and L’Occitane bathroom amenities). You’ll pay more than $89 for dinner out so why waste time waiting for a table when you can cozy up for the night with room service? (Other packages at the Hotel Palomar are available for those who want more than a hangover, courtesy of the free bottle of wine.)

Located in Chicago’s River North district, Kimpton’s newest property will lure travelers with opening season deals and access to some of Chi-town’s coolest conveniences: Michigan Ave., Watertower Place, Navy Pier and more.

The boutique hotel will come with all the same features and amenities you’re used to from Kimpton’s including an indoor heated pool and sundeck, hosted evening wine hour, WiFi access and of course, the Kimpton “Forgot It? We Got It!” loyalty program.