Latest news with #RockwellGroup
Forbes
24-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Designer David Rockwell Has A Full Plate Of Restaurant Projects Ahead
The bar at the The View, the revolving restaurant in the Marriott Marquis Times Square Despite celebrating the 40th anniversary of his Rockwell Group design firm last year, star architect and designer David Rockwell seems unwilling to rest on his laurels. Although he's had a hand in crafting some of the world's most memorable spaces—particularly high-profile restaurants, hotels, and theater projects—he continues to seek out new challenges. The Interview, Part Two In part one of our interview, he reflected on his impressive career and talked about some of the considerations that go into building community around the table. In the second half of this discussion, he shines a spotlight on some of the Rockwell Group projects that are waiting in the wings. If it's there, I'm not sure I'm the one to see it because I'm so focused on what we're doing. (pauses) Maybe one signature is that they look better full than empty. That may be true about every restaurant, but I think we very much look at what a restaurant is like at the height of walking through it, and what it's like sitting down. If you spend money evenly on a project, you don't get highlights and lowlights. You have to have a strategy about where to put a disproportionate amount of the resources, and where you're going to create those landmarks. If the client is interested in artwork, you have to figure out how to embrace that. I had been going to the original Union Square Cafe for about 15 years before we did the second one, so I was really a student of it. We made a model of the new space and re-created every piece of artwork that [owner] Danny [Meyer] had collected to scale. With tweezers, we set them by each banquette [in the model]. We were creating an entirely new space that was channeling the DNA of the original. At The Corner Store, the owner really wanted to use New York photography, and we were very involved with where it goes, how it's mounted, and how to orchestrate it. I'm more interested in the things that have remained. The very first restaurant I did was all about movement and choreography. It was about materiality; I brought in a costume designer from Santa Fe to make a silk mural. What has stayed is my sense of curiosity, my appreciation. I'm a little less in a hurry. I really take in the moments—how profound it is to create places that people enjoy. We had done the original W Union Square, and now we got to redo it, so we had long thoughts there. My observation about Union Square now versus 22 years ago was that there are things that really relate to the grid of New York, and others that relate to the changeable explosion of color that happens in Union Square—for instance, the chalk art, which we translated to the carpet. Seahorse, the restaurant in the W Union Square We engaged Artemest, a group that connects you to Italian artisans. The light fixtures were made by different artisans, many of them from Milan, including a beautiful mosaic piece that gives the bathrooms a kind of sheen. They're high gloss and have an elevated sense of ritual. I think ritual is very important—dining is very much a set of rituals. One person's version of humor is another person's pain in the neck. I think we design places with beauty in mind, with flexibility. I think the unexpected relates to humor—juxtapositions create opportunities. Hairspray was my second Broadway show, and when I met with the director for the first presentation, I filled the conference room with lots and lots of sketches and designs. He looked at all of it, put his arm around me, and said, 'Why don't we take everything out of the room except for those things that make you fall in love with Tracy Turnblad?' It was a real lesson. The environment doesn't want to be in the foreground, and I think that's sort of true about humor. You want to create the setting and the context for it, but not solve the whole problem. I'd like to be involved with the Olympics—that would be great, having been to the Olympics in Paris, and being a fan of the Olympics. I think there's something about bringing people together to celebrate excellence. There are a million design problems—problems I've solved—about movement, choreography, and sense of place. I think it's to create experiences in places that make the world more connected. It's true, and even when we do offices, the parts that I talk about are those that [relate to] connection. I think that's what drove me to architecture—the idea of creating these temporal communities. We won't take a restaurant project if someone wants it to look like something we've done before. Each restaurant is a different adventure, a chance to dive into what that chef or operator wants. It's amazing to create places. During COVID, we made T-shirts and bags that said, 'Buildings are memory machines,' and I think that's really true.
Forbes
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
David Rockwell On Restaurant Design That Sets The Stage For Memories
Legendary architect and designer David Rockwell In the theater world, there's a saying that no one leaves a show humming the scenery. While it's true that great performances usually take precedence over set design, the latter can still have a profound impact on an audience's imagination and experience, whether they are conscious of it or not. The same is true for the look and layout of a restaurant, which is itself a stage for a different type of performance. No one knows restaurant design better than David Rockwell, one of the most famous architects and designers in the world, as well as a set designer for more than 100 theatrical productions, both on and off Broadway. Rockwell Group, the New York City–headquartered firm that he founded, just celebrated its 40th anniversary last year. The child of a vaudeville dancer and choreographer, Rockwell's passion for the theater comes through in his work, whether he's creating a set, restaurant, hotel, playground or even a hospital. He strikes a thoughtful balance between the various elements, be they background players or the stars of the scene, and the Rockwell Group's roster of restaurant projects reads like a who's who of the culinary world, including chef Nobu Matsuhisa's Nobu restaurants and hotels; Danny Meyer's Union Square Cafe; the NYC outpost of chef José Andrés' Zaytinya; and chef Daniel Boulud's new steakhouse, La Tête d'Or, which opened late last year. In fact, Rockwell himself has been inducted into the James Beard Foundation's 'Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America.' The Interview, Part One In this two-part discussion, Rockwell reflects on his extensive career and speaks to the many considerations that go into designing a restaurant. (The interview was conducted in June, at Rockwell Group headquarters in Union Square, and has been edited for length and flow.) Almost all the work we do involves an audience and some live experience, but while the net result might be creating a place that's super memorable, we don't start out by thinking about the design being noticed. We spend a lot of time speaking to the chef and the operator about what they want, and the space also dictates a lot. But if you think about restaurants you've been in that make an impact, there are certain things that stick with you. What is the first view? How are you invited in? How does it welcome you? As I think about all of our recent restaurants and what people find memorable about them—Din Tai Fung, The Corner Store, La Tête d'Or, COQODAQ, or The View—they're totally different, but they are all very choreographed. And they are all a sequence of spaces that, even within very big spaces, focus on what the experience is like at the table. Exactly right—how the views unfold as you move through the space. The main dining room of La Tête d'Or, with the wood-burning grill at center stage The really best clients come in with lots of ideas, but not what they want it to look like. So, in the case of La Tête d'Or, [chef]Something as simple as chairs and banquettes—those are really the backbone of a restaurant. How do you sit there? How are you aggregated in groups? If we do our job right, we have a point of view that is strong enough that design decisions aren't arbitrary. Archways of light in COQODAQ's dining room We're working on a new book about hospitality, so I've been thinking about the source of ideas. In terms of lighting, when I was 12, we moved from the Jersey Shore to Guadalajara, Mexico, and that was such a significant thing for me in terms of light and color temperature and the way light feels. So I've always had this heightened sensitivity about light. Then I worked as an assistant lighting designer on Broadway—I had taken some time off from architecture school—and I had a revelation. There was a moment during rehearsal, where one light just pierced a round window and landed on the center of the stage, and it was the first time I realized that light is like the cinematographer of spaces. It tells you where to look. So I started to think about that in restaurants. Lighting has so many different jobs. It creates the way things feel. It's the thing that wakes up the eye. Contrast is very important in lighting. There's a reason why candles are a primal source that brings everyone together. In theater design, there is no cinematographer, so it's the lighting designer and the set designer that are figuring out how big the picture is. If you want to do a close-up in the theater, you have to do that with set and lighting. If you come out of a show and say, 'Boy, the sets were amazing,' that's not necessarily the first thing you want to remember, and that's probably true about a restaurant as well. So I think physical things do tend to stand out if they're discordant, but every restaurant has a different rhythm, and every restaurateur is interested in a different level of quiet or noisy. A while ago, there was a feeling that restaurants were noisy on purpose; we don't create noisy restaurants on purpose. But the other extreme is that I don't think people want a restaurant where you don't hear the clink of New York in the background. The same is true about seating. There's a very different kind of strategy when you're creating a restaurant where people are going to spend two-and-a-half hours eating dinner than a place like Din Tai Fung that has a one-hour turnover. The chairs are more vertical. The tables are hard surfaces. How involved are you in designing the back of the house—the kitchen space—and how it flows? There's always a kitchen consultant we work with who deals with the layout of the equipment, but we're very involved in the flow and the circulation. For the first Nobu, what [chef] Nobu [Matsuhisa] was most interested in was the sushi bar, but the sushi bar links to the kitchen, because some of the food is begun in the kitchen and finished at the sushi bar and vice versa. So both the bar and the kitchen were involved in the laying out of the space. I'm always out looking at things. I get a lot of inspiration from travel, and I see a lot of theater. I'm a Tony voter, so that means I'm going to at least 40 shows a year. I also eat out a lot. I'm always trying to ask why, digging deep and staying curious. [Check back here in a few days for the second half of this interview, including a look at some of Rockwell's upcoming projects.]
Cosmopolitan
17-07-2025
- Cosmopolitan
Eat your way around Barcelona! 11 of the city's must-visit eateries, from bocadillos to pintxos
Going to Spain for a long weekend won't solve all of your problems (it's giving pain without the 's', vibes), but that didn't stop me and my best girlfriend, nor you, if you're reading this, from booking a trip to Barcelona on a random Tuesday. Yep, that long-awaited sun-soaked city break has finally arrived, and I'm here to prepare you with an abundance of hotel, activity and food recommendations that'll have you 90 per cent pain-free* – tried and tested by your average 20-something-year-old sangria-fuelled girlie. You can thank me later... *The remaining 10 per cent of post-holiday agony will be down to European Monzo transactions, FYI. When it comes to choosing where to stay in Barcelona, you've got options galore; Airbnbs that feel like home and hotels that offer a slice of luxury. But if you're looking to elevate your trip, I experienced the following three-night stay that truly stood out. Seeking a stylish and indulgent escape (Aren't we all...)? Well, SLS Barcelona is the city's newest five-star hotspot that offers a chic waterfront retreat, seamlessly blending Mediterranean vibes and culinary excellence with Miami design and a luxury flair. Basically, if this hotel were a Hinge date, I'd no doubt swipe right. Situated at Port Fòrum, the hotel boasts 471 rooms and suites, many featuring private balconies with views of the marina or Mediterranean Sea. Interiors by Rockwell Group combine sleek materials like Venetian mirrors and sculptural lighting, creating a sophisticated ambience. Rooms aside, with six dining spots, SLS Barcelona is a foodie's dream. Lora serves up Mediterranean dishes cooked over a wood and coal grill, while L'Anxova Divina offers tapas with a Gaudí-inspired twist. And coming soon, they have Kyara, a cocktail bar exploring mixology as an art form, and Cosmico, a rooftop pool bar and club with floating sushi boats and Ibiza-worthy vibes. Oh, and they're not short of amenities, either. Guests can unwind at one of the three pools, including rooftop options with panoramic city views, or enjoy exclusive access to Coral, the guest-only pool bar. Plus, with a 24/7 fitness centre, complimentary bikes, and a forthcoming subterranean spa, SLS Barcelona provides a luxurious base for exploring the city's vibrant culture and nightlife. Basically, if you don't want to leave the hotel, you don't have to! But if you do want to explore the city, I've got you covered... Book now Whether you're looking to indulge in retail therapy at chic boutiques or immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of history and culture, Barcelona has a number of specialities waiting for you. Park Güell is Gaudí's signature, whimsical masterpiece – think pastel-coloured mosaics, curvy stone benches, and panoramic city views that are the epitome of "Instagrammable." It's the perfect spot for a chill day of exploring, snapping pics, and soaking in the surrealist vibes. But be warned: Book in advance and head early to beat the crowds. For vintage treasures and gourmet street eats (away from tourist traps), Mercat dels Encants is Barcelona's must-visit flea market, blending vintage treasures with modern finds. From retro furniture to quirky fashion, it's a treasure hunt that's both eco-friendly and totally unique. Don't miss the live auctions for some extra thrill. Spiral through ancient laneways, spot the Cathedral, and cosy up in hidden plazas with a morning trip to the Gothic Quarter. It's packed with hidden squares, independent cafés, and historic landmarks that make you feel like you're stepping back in time. You can't visit Barcelona without going to El Born (no, seriously, it's pretty unavoidable...). El Born is Barcelona's artsy, boho neighbourhood. Prepare for indie boutiques, art galleries, and street art that give the area its creative edge. It's the perfect place to get lost and discover something new around every corner. If Parc Güell is a lil out of your budget, or you just don't have the time to spend a day there, some of Gaudí's most renowned architectural genius is on full display around the city – including Casa Batlló and Casa Milà. These buildings are like living art – curvy facades, colourful tiles, and designs that defy convention. Ocaña is a cultural hotspot in Plaça Reial, offering a mix of art, food, and nightlife. Don't forget to snap a quirky photobooth pic to remember your night out in one of Barcelona's most iconic squares. Whether you're lounging by a rooftop pool or catching rays at Barceloneta Beach, Barcelona's got your chill time covered. Grab a drink, soak up the sun, and vibe out to the sounds of the city and sea. The SLS Barcelona pool (and its bar) is the place to be. Barcelona's culinary scene is a vibrant tapestry of flavours, offering everything from traditional tapas to innovative Mediterranean cuisine and world-class wine bars. These spots are basically Barcelona's best mix of iconic, artsy and outright delicious. The OG tapas spot where you're basically time-travelling back to 1929. Get ready to elbow in beside locals, chug that homemade cava, and snack on anchovies and tortilla like a true Borneño. It's a classic, total vibe. Enter: Picasso's hangout turned artsy café. Gats has got that vintage Modernisme look plus major Bohemian energy – basically peak Insta meets art history IRL. (The patatas bravas are the best I've ever had, BTW...) Okay, slight mix-up: you've got Boadas, the slickest cocktail bar since 1933 just off La Rambla. Think mint‑tux bartenders, daiquiris inspired by Havana, and interesting history in every glass. To brunch with style, La Papa in Eixample is a mood: pastel‑tone interiors, avocado-toast glow‑ups, vegan croissants, açai bowls, and sustainable coffee that's actually worth the queue. Mercat de la Boqueria is a total bucket‑list foodie destination. The historic Modernista market (dating back to 1217!) is like walking into a sensory overload of vibrant produce, top‑tier seafood, and legendary cured hams under a stunning iron-and-glass canopy. Benzina in Sant Antoni is a breath of fresh air from the usual Spanish tapas circuit – it's that perfect blend of Italian soul meets rock‑and‑roll swagger. The vibe? Once a mechanic's garage, now a sleek industrial-chic space with vinyl tunes from The Rolling Stones to Led Zeppelin. Oh, and the food? Well, each dish flips Italian classics in fun, unexpected ways – spaghetti carbonara, eggplant parmigiana with parmesan ice cream, lobster‑avocado linguine and a viral "sferamisu" that doubles as dessert art. A speakeasy behind a random bazaar? You bet. Push past the groceries into this moody, neo‑Gothic cocktail cathedral where drinks are art and the vibe hits different, like the sister‑bar to Paradiso, but moodier and more immersive. I've never been one to fall victim to a restaurant hotel, but Volta is an exception. The setting is the verdant, plant-filled ground floor of Borneta (one of the city's coolest new boutique hotels) beneath the iconic 19th-century arches of Passeig de Picasso, but the menu is even better. Executive Chef Andrea De Benedictis's pan‑Mediterranean dishes (think fire‑grilled tagliolini with clams, cheesy tempura zucchini blossoms, and juicy ossobuco) are as fresh as they come, made with local farm-to-table ingredients and served in a chill space that's cosy but still feels bougie. Famous for its "cloud sandwiches" on challah, fluffy croissants, avocado‑feta toasts, and top-tier barista coffee, brekkie at Flying Monkey is a failsafe start to any Barca day. Plus, the natural wine selection makes it a go-to for evening aperitivo, too. Minute‑by‑minute fresh and massive sandwiches, Bo D Be is a hole-in-the-wall sandwich shop that overloads the perfect baguette with your meat/veggie of choice, plus endless toppings (feta, lentils, pesto, tzatziki – no skimps), making each bocadillo feel straight-up custom and enormous. The best bit? It's super affordable; we're talking full meal vibes for €4–6 – sandwiches, bravas, salads. Pet Nat specialises in "pétillant-naturel" (ancestral method) sparkling wines, bottled mid-fermentation to lock in that natural fizz, turning every glass into a flavourful, lightly effervescent surprise. Lia Mappoura (she/her) is the Beauty Writer at Cosmopolitan UK. Covering everything from viral celebrity hair and makeup news to the latest trend predictions, she's an expert in recognising the season's next big beauty look (before it ends up all over your social media feeds). You'll usually find her putting TikTok's recent beauty hacks to the Hype Test, challenging the gender-makeup binary and social stereotypes, or fangirling over the time Kourtney Kardashian viewed her Instagram Story (yes, it's true). Find her also on LinkedIn.
Forbes
12-06-2025
- Forbes
The Dining Destination In The Heart Of Grand Central Station
Grand Brasserie's main dining room. Train stations in the United States aren't exactly known for their great restaurants. In fact, as any regular train-goer is likely to say, the opposite is usually true. Naturally, I was skeptical when I heard about Grand Brasserie, a new and supposedly splashy hip restaurant in Grand Central Terminal's Vanderbilt Hall. Several months later, literally on a whim, I decided I wanted to give it a try. The train station is walking distance from my apartment, so getting there wasn't inconvenient, and it would only be a single meal out of the countless in my life. After one dining experience, I was more than impressed, and a second trip later, I could see myself easily becoming a regular. This is a place with excellent food and a setting to match that truly transports you to a historic brasserie in France. The sought-after architecture firm Rockwell Group designed the space, a showpiece with its towering ceilings and classic French brasserie aesthetic. A 300-seat main dining hall is a buzzy and grand dining perch immersed in the historic architecture of the station, while the intimate 100-seat Green Room is handsome with its rich leather banquettes and marble bar. A spread of brunch doshes at Grand Brasserie. The restaurant is open daily from 5:30 am to 2 am. Come here for breakfast, and tear off a hunk of a just-out-of-the-oven baguette, slather it with salted premium French butter, sip great coffee, and kick off your day. Brunch means beautifully-executed omelets and the like, lunch is a time for the best burgers and entree salads ( my favorite goes to the chicken paillard), and dinner offers both light and hearty choices. You can't go wrong with drinks here either. The wines, cocktails and spirits are expansive- one of the best and most diverse I've seen in town. As the executive chef, Guillaume Thivet is behind the cuisine and really knows his stuff. He honed his chops at respected establishments such as Veronika, Bouley, Brasserie Les Halles, and La Grande Boucherie. I spoke with him about his concept for Grand Brasserie and the way it's changing the perception of how memorable a meal at a train station can be. Excustive Chef Thivet of Grand Brasserie What is your vision for the restaurant? I want to be able to transport diners back to their favorite memories and meals in France. Or if you've never visited France, I want to make sure you can imagine yourself there. Grand Brasserie is a destination to experience elevated French brasserie cuisine – while dining at the backdrop of one of New York City's most iconic and historic landmarks. What is your inspiration and approach to the menu at Grand Brasserie? We want the menu to be elegant, affordable and approachable to everyone visiting our restaurant. You can find refined dishes including caviar or our indulgent Plateaux de Fruits de Mer, as well as our well-balanced Onion Soup or Ham and Brie Cheese sandwich. We have something for everyone and want our guests to feel like they are in France without leaving Grand Central. Is there a specific region in France that the menu is inspired by? Our goal is to bring and enhance the authentic and bold flavors of France into the menu. We aren't focusing in one specific region, but showcasing an array of different regions and complex flavors of France. You can have a flaky, warm croissant with a strong café that can make you feel like you are stopping into a Paris brasserie or indulge in a cassoulet to transport you to Languedoc region, a coastal area in southwest France. We are gathering all this in one place at Grand Brasserie. Since the restaurant is open from 5:30 am to 2 am, which are hours of the Terminal, is there a recommended time to visit? When do you get the most buzz? If you want to be in the middle of the action, come during rush hour which is between 5-7:30 pm during the work week. It's a spectacle and the entire place is buzzing. If you want to get a seat and enjoy a leisurely experience, late lunch mid-day between is 2:30-4:30 pm is also great. Weekend brunches are also very popular with families, New Yorkers and tourists. If you had to pick an ideal meal for a first time diner, what it be for breakfast and then lunch or dinner? Ideal breakfast will be at 8am, when the second batch of Viennoiserie are just out of the oven. You can start with a coffee and a hot croissant that has been baked to perfection. If you are partial to savory dishes, I always recommend our Gruyère omelette, which is moist, buttery and served with roasted potatoes (or a salad.) For something lighter, you can opt for our Avocado Tartine with a poached egg and sumac. It's perfectly tangy, creamy and a lighter start to your day. For lunch, we have a great daily prix-fixe menu available at $35 (7 days a week from 5:30 am to 3 pm) which includes three courses. You can start with the Beets Salad or the Onion Soup, followed by our Quiche of the Day or the Moules Frites that will transport you to northern France. Finally, you can wrap your meal with our Dark Chocolate Mousse, topped with whipped cream which is rich and decadent. Finally, if I had to pick my ideal dinner meal, I would let myself explore dishes that I always wanted to try – including the Escargot Persillade or the Steak Tartare. Or, if I feel extravagant, start with the Caviar and even a glass of Champagne, then go to would any Steak Frites with the peppercorns sauce or the Branzino, which is light, flavorful and absolutely delicious. If I still have some room, I would order L'Assiette de Fromages – a cheese plate which the French typically serve after the main course – or the Apple Tarte Tatin. Tell me about your bar program and your cocktails and wines. Our Beverage Director David Orellana and Bar Manager Lucas Dimitriu designed a creative cocktail menu and an incredibly robust French wine selection from Champagne, Burgundy, Loire Valley, Bordeaux, Rhône Valley and beyond. We of course have local wines from the Finger Lakes of New York State, California and Oregon too. With over 400 seats, our cocktail bar program is also designed for speed. We chose to batch many of our signature cocktails to help speed up service since many of our guests can stay within a short window, considering many of them have to catch trains from the Terminal.
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Travel + Leisure
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Travel + Leisure
Barcelona's Coolest Hotel Just Opened, but Already Has Some of the Best Restaurants in the City
The hotel's prime location near Parc del Fòrum and several local beaches provides easy marina access. The hotel's bold interiors and tongue-in-cheek design capture Barcelona's buzzy design scene. Each guest room has a private balcony or terrace, perfect for enjoying the sunshine in complete privacy. Standout culinary experiences include the wood-fired Mediterranean dishes at Lora and tapas at L'Anxova Divina. The hotel's soon-to-open rooftop pool and chic Cosmico lounge will offer epic city and sea views. Only one thing came to mind when I walked through the front doors of the new SLS Barcelona: I need to add more color to my wardrobe. From that very first step inside, it was clear that this is not your standard luxury hotel—it's more of a vibrant playground. Located in the waterfront enclave of Port Fòrum, the hotel exudes a youthful energy that's equal parts classy and frisky. 'SLS Barcelona has all the luxury and glamour of a grand hotel, delivered with a playful wit and charm that is its [SLS] signature," Ignacio Rodriguez, the hotel's general manager, shared with Travel + Leisure . Those glam moments stem from decor elements, such as the grand chandelier dripping from the ceiling, only it's slightly askew, tilted up and to the left, signaling that a 'swing from the chandeliers' mentality isn't just welcome, it's encouraged. Designed by Rockwell Group, AvroKO, and AIME Studios, the hotel is packed with dramatic lighting and opulent detailing, partially inspired by the Mediterranean Sea. There's also a hot pink, neon-lit hallway leading to a restaurant, one of many Instagram moments on-site. The hotel's patio pool is dotted with private cabanas, and its soon-to-open rooftop pool has the potential to become Barcelona's coolest spot in no time. Even its common area bathrooms are filled with quirky design details and tilework that made me want to go home and redo my bathroom. Walk through the neon tunnel-turned-catwalk in the lobby. The bold interiors are just the tip of the iceberg; SLS Barcelona also leans heavily into the city's creative culture, from collaborations with celebrity-favorite local designer Caro Luna to partnering with the Primavera Sound music festival. It's a hotel built for those who want to immerse themselves in Barcelona's modern lifestyle and support the local community. "SLS Barcelona is a resort for the curious, the creative, the stylish, the relaxed, and everyone in between. Whether you're planning a couple's getaway, a friends' trip, a family adventure, or a solo recharge, this is a place that adapts to your energy," Rodriguez added. 'If you're someone who wants to trade everyday life for something extraordinary, even for one night, you've come to the right place.' Here's everything you need to know about staying at the SLS Barcelona. The bedroom opening up to the terrace of the Luxuriate Suite. The hotel's 471 rooms and suites, designed by Rockwell Group, marry high-end elegance with youthful whimsy. Each accommodation boasts a private balcony or terrace, providing access to lovely views of the marina. Bold colors, reflective surfaces, gold-hued hand curtain holdbacks, pendant light fixtures, all create an atmosphere as indulgent as you'd expect from an SLS hotel. Guests who want to level up should opt for the Euphoria Apartment, which offers residential-style comforts, such as a stove, oven, microwave, and mini-fridge. It also includes a dining space and a private balcony or terrace. I also got a sneak peek at the soon-to-open Celestial suite, and it packs quite the design punch. The suite features a massive light fixture that doubles as an art installation, a stunning marble bath, and a 1,044-square-foot private rooftop terrace overlooking the marina. Enjoy a Mediterranean and Middle Eastern fusion at Lora. If you need a single reason to book a stay at the SLS Barcelona, it's this: The dining is simply spectacular. Once complete, the hotel will offer six distinct restaurants and bars. Lora, designed by AvroKO, channels the relaxed coastal charm of the Mediterranean, where seasonal dishes are prepared in a wood oven and coal-fired grill—think charred flatbreads, perfectly seasoned seafood, and shareable plates. (Do not skip over the muhammara , a dip made with grilled pepper, chili, walnuts, and pomegranate molasses, which is so flavorful I asked for seconds and was tempted to go for thirds.) Then there's L'Anxova Divina, which pays homage to Barcelona's legendary tapas culture with bite-sized delights. According to the hotel's team, its design is a nod to Antoni Gaudí's iconic architecture, channeled in the undulating curves of its banquets and splashy decor. Pro tip: on warmer days, ask for a table out on its sunny seafront terrace. At Deluxe, the hotel's lobby lounge and bar, guests can enjoy morning coffee, lunch, or an evening cocktail. Coral, a poolside bar, offers a selection of sunny day drinks and whatever frozen concoction you can dream up. And in June, the hotel will open Kyara, a cocktail bar, designed to evoke a curated perfumery, where the cocktails will be just as custom as a scent. Also opening this summer is Cosmico, a rooftop lounge that could easily become Barcelona's most sought-after nightlife spot. Aerial view of the SLS Barcelona across from Port Forum. SLS Barcelona is almost anti-experience, and I mean that in the best way possible. Here, things are tailor-made to simply relax and do nothing. Its infinity pool is lined with chaise loungers, private cabanas, and day beds that made me want to snooze away the day in the sun. Its soon-to-open rooftop pool will be an idyllic spot to unwind, while the lounge is all about kicking back and savoring every last drop of your coffee or cocktail. Guests who like to stay more active and explore are also in luck as the hotel is just feet away from Port Fòrum, the perfect place to charter a boat for some water-based fun. SLS Barcelona also offers access to Primavera Sound, the city's coolest music festival. Guests booking the Primavera Package for the festival dates over June 6 and 7, 2025, will also receive VIP tickets to the event. SLS Barcelona's spa is set to open later this year. However, guests can work up a sweat in the bright gym, open 24/7. The massive space is equipped with treadmills, bikes, free weights, a variety of machines, a full spin studio, and classes offered through Edan Studios. Currently, the hotel has one pool, with two more in the works, so there's plenty of room to splash. Connecting rooms and suites are available to families and multi-generational groups, with more family-friendly touches like kids' menus, cribs, rollaway beds, and babysitting services provided upon request. The hotel is fully accessible and has 14 accessible rooms (including twin-size beds and queen-size bed options) that offer roll-in and transfer showers, visual alarms, and closed captions on TVs. Sustainability is an essential part of the SLS ethos. The hotel complies with some of the EU's strictest environmental regulations, including ventilated ceramic facades, high-efficiency thermal windows, LED lighting, and solar panels to ensure energy efficiency. The artwork handing in the Events Lobby. SLS Barcelona is located slightly outside of the historic city center, where you'll find some of the best vintage shopping (don't miss the Mercat dels Encants) and all of Gaudí's masterpieces (I can't recommend this specific guided tour via GetYourGuide more). However, it's still easily accessible via public transit (there's a tram stop about a three-minute walk from the hotel). It was incredibly easy to explore the city and hop on and off the tram for just a few euros per ride. The hotel is also within walking distance of Parc del Fòrum, the venue for the Primavera Sound music festival and Mar Bella Beach. Dis-loyalty, Ennismore's travel and dining membership, gives members 50 percent off stays at new hotels, including SLS Barcelona, until July 1, 2025, along with 20 percent off first-time stays, 10 percent off return visits, and 10 percent off food and drinks at participating venues. Nightly rates for the SLS Barcelona start from €350 (about $391). Every T+L hotel review is written by an editor or reporter who has stayed at the property, and each hotel selected aligns with our core values.
