Chicago: the best part

I love boutique hotels, and of all the boutique hotels I have frequented, this, by far, was the boutiquiest.

Sometimes boutique just means small. That’s fine with me. I don’t like paying extra for air. But this hotel had a theme and it doubled down on that theme, which was art and science.

There were little theme details everywhere that would catch me by surprise. For example, on the last day while packing up I noticed the top of the washcloth holder was designed to look like a bubbling glass test tube.

And there are fun secrets all through the room like Easter eggs in a video game: the secret nightlight isn’t where you’d expect (Cheat code: it stretches across the top edge of the headboard), the hangers are in a secret spot (Cheat code: behind the blue privacy curtain between the shower and the wall), and you saw earlier how those secret drawers swung open on a secret hinge.

And of course the robots steal your heart with the way they warble and trundle down the halls. I really wish I’d ordered some basic item so they have some job security.

The front desk never tired of my questions about the robots, or the best way to get to the nearest pharmacy. Housekeeping was very accommodating when I slept late. There were two days I didn’t leave the room until three.

I just wish other boutique hotels would put this much thought into the details. There could have been a Frank Lloyd Wright hotel in Chicago, decorated in Prairie Style, with low doorways per Big Dot, and you could dodge hatchets after you check out.