Photos: The Graham Georgetown
The Ritz-Carlton Georgetown Hotel The 86-room Ritz (3100 South Street, NW) has been overlooking the Potomac River for about 10 years, so the appeal of the area is nothing new to general manager Jeff Brower. “When you stay in Georgetown, you feel a part of the neighborhood versus being in our nation’s capital, and yet you are completed connected,” Brower said. The Ritz has become an integral part of the Georgetown fabric, housed inside a former incinerator that’s a neighborhood landmark. The redbrick industrial structure epitomizes the industrial roots of Georgetown (before it became awash in multimillion-dollar row houses) and offers a nice contrast to the hotel’s sleek, contemporary design. That neighborly sentiment extends beyond the Ritz’s luxurious appointments and amenities, such as feather beds and down comforters, 400-thread count Egyptian cotton linens, complimentary overnight shoeshine, and twice-daily housekeeping. “We are very connected and work closely with the Georgetown Ministry Center, which we fundraise for and have supported with holiday meals for the homeless,” Brower said.“The C&O Canal is in our backyard and we maintain two of the locks, and we work with mentoring students with the Shaw Middle School.” In the past decade, the neighborhood has also had a makeover, he added, with the resurgence of retail shopping and design in Cady’s Alley.The opening of the Graham and Capella further support Georgetown’s status as “D.C.’s location for luxury,” Brower said. “These hotels combined with great restaurants and shopping have helped define a historic neighborhood that you can enjoy and work in or visit.” To keep itself fresh, the Ritz recently added the loft-style Fahrenheit Ballroom and Urban Garden, which Brower describes as “an oasis within the city, where you don’t see many green spaces, not in hotels, at least.”The hotel also recently introduced the Urban Garden’s “Sun, Stretch, Sip” program, featuring high-intensity workouts with local fitness expert Chris Perrin and Sunday brunch with a DJ on the outdoor terrace. Additionally, the hotel is getting ready for a two-year renovation, starting with the guestrooms. The Ritz’s rates start at about $400 for a Large Premier room with a king bed or two doubles and pass the $6,000 mark for the Royal Potomac, which includes a one-bedroom Presidential Suite, a king bed, one and a half bathrooms and views of the river and city.
The Graham Georgetown For Camilo Miguel Jr., owner of the Graham (1075 Thomas Jefferson St., NW), finding property in Georgetown was extraordinary. “We just really liked how charming the area was, just kind of the Old World feel of the area is very unique,” said Miguel, CEO of Mast Capital, the Miami-based real estate At the Graham, a new boutique private equity firm responsible for remaking property in Georgetown, panwhat was the Monticello Hotel. “Owning seared Scottish salmon is on the something there is actually something quite menu at A.G.B., a farm-to-table restaurant/cocktail lounge. special.” The Graham opened in April and is already seeing a mix of clients, including businesspeople and families. Named after Alexander Graham Bell (who lived in the neighborhood), the hotel has 57 rooms, including 30 suites, spread over seven floors and topped by the Observatory, a 3,000-square-foot rooftop lounge — the only one in Georgetown that’s open to the public, a huge draw. “The views from there are, in my opinion, spectacular,” Miguel said.“The sunset, when it’s coming down over Georgetown University, it’s really special.” On the bottom level sits A.G.B., a farm-to-table restaurant/cocktail lounge that serves plates such as Maine lobster rolls with white truffle-lemon aioli, panseared Scottish salmon, and the house specialty cocktail: Angels’ Envy, a custom whiskey distilled exclusively for the hotel.
July 2013
The Graham (whose lobby is pictured above) is home to the Observatory, a 3,000square-foot rooftop lounge — the only one in Georgetown that’s open to the public.
The five room types, ranging from king deluxe (250 to 300 square feet) to the Frank Sinatra Junior Suite with outdoor patio (750 square feet), offer amenities such as pillow-top mattresses, Liddell linens, free Wi-Fi and Bvlgari White Tea toiletries. Room prices vary from about $199 to $599 in the low season and $259 to $799 in the high season. Besides welcoming guests, Miguel wants his hotel to be part of the community. To that end, the restaurant will bring in chefs from local restaurants at brunch to showcase their food. “We have a great GM and we have a great team with Hersha [Hospitality] managing the property, and we just opened a month ago so we’re continuing to evolve and continuing to improve our operations, but it’s really a lot about people feeling like they’re having a great experience,” Miguel said. “For a small property, I feel like we have a lot to offer,” he added. “I think it turned out to be a very nice product.” Stephanie Kanowitz is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.
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