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Thursday, April 5, 2007

Room Service: The W Dallas - Victory

filed under: Jet Sex, Room Service by Irene Kaoru

The other weekend I played jet-setter and hopped a quick flight to Dallas, Texas to attend the opening party for the new video installation at Victory Park. While there, I stayed at the W Dallas Victory, a 33-story hotel and condo that attempts to bring a slice of swank NYC to the cowboy kingdom and mostly succeeds. Sexy!

Atmosphere: The carefully-composed hipness of the W Dallas, like pretty much any W hotel, smacks you in the face from the moment you approach the building, blinding you with the giant gleaming chrome W sign, flattering you with the array of precariously positioned calla lily and tulip bouquets in tall vases, and trying very hard to impress you with low, sleek modern designer furniture and copious glittering chandeliers. The waitresses at the “living room” bar all wear high-heeled boots and short-up-to-there Kors dresses. Color changing LED panels adorn pretty much everything. This is clearly the place to stay and be seen for the twenty- or thirty-something set in the area; bared Texan flesh and the slinky oontz of techno club-music fills the lobby all night long.

Amenities: Free design and style magazines litter the desk (I came away with a new copy of *Surface and City mag to read on the plane) and tucked into the “snack box” was a $10 “intimacy kit”: two Durex condoms, two moist towelettes, and a mini package of lube. Bottles of Voss water were provided with chic glassware on silver trays, and a soft microsuede chaise lounge was positioned by the window for a nice city view while planning tourist activities or making out. Also, the 16th floor Bliss spa is available for manicures, facials or massages if you feel like dropping a couple hundred extra bucks.

Facilities: The well-appointed room (about US$264 per night) featured a queen-sized pillow-topped mattress, smooth white sheets with a satisfyingly high thread count, and five mirrors surrounding the bed. Yes, five. (The only thing to do with that many bed-facing mirrors is just let the inner narcissist loose.) Sadly, there was no bathtub, but the shower was large and featured an oversized shower-head, making it perfect for a couple to use together.

Overall: A-. The W Whatever/Whenever service is a great idea (and the front desk does cheerfully attempt to provide whatever you want) but a bit hit-or-miss (they lost our laundry, gave us free socks to make up for it, then found it again at the last minute). The waveless 16th floor pool was gorgeous–but we were shooed away when we tried to use it due to a private party. On the positive side, the decor was lovely, the staff friendly and helpful, the bed luxurious, and the walls thick. Once you’ve worked up an appetite in front of all those mirrors, be sure to check out Craft downstairs–the food at the Dallas location of Tom Colicchio’s high-end restaurant chain is every bit as tasty as at the 19th Street NYC location (try the melt-in-your-mouth foie gras, tender Canadian wild boar and the rich homemade-daily ice creams and sorbets) and the service is impeccable. Tout ensemble: a great place for a sexy getaway–just don’t stay long enough to get sick of all the hipsters trying to get into the painfully overrated and overpriced Ghostbar.

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