Hilton Cleveland prepares to open its doors

There’s still work to be done to get the Hilton Cleveland Downtown ready to welcome guests in a few short weeks, but what is done gives a tantalizing preview of what the finished product will look like. The hotel hosted a tour for media yesterday and shared the following bits of information about the hotel.

1. The hotel is connected to the Cleveland Convention Center, and is the host hotel for the Republican National Convention, which is being held in the city in July. GM Teri Agosta said the hotel will be sold out during that period.

2. The hotel offers a few elements that make it unique. One such feature is the abundance of natural light and windows—in conference rooms and ballrooms. The hotel has 50,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, including two ballrooms, and all are light and airy. Another element the hotel features is new to Hilton properties: There are two cardio guestrooms (with elliptical machines) and two yoga guestrooms (that contain yoga mats, blocks and straps along with additional open space).

two people standing in front of a moss wall
Executive chef Maxime Kien (left) and GM Teri Agosta stand in front of the moss wall in Eliot's Bar.

3. Another unique feature is a moss wall that backdrops the reception area and extends to the second floor, providing a feature wall in the second-floor bar/food/living room area called Eliot’s Bar. The area will offer grab-and-go breakfast items, smoothies, savories, greens, juices and more in the morning, then transition to small plates and other items as the day progresses.

4. Speaking of food, the hotel will feature The Burnham, which is being developed by James Beard nominee Zack Bruell along with executive chef Maxime Kien and Ryan Beck, chef de cuisine. The restaurant will seat 240 inside, 60 more at a three-season patio and 30 in a private dining room. According to Kien and Beck, the hotel’s eggs Benedict with homemade pastrami will be a highlight of the menu, along with food influenced by the cuisines of California and Texas. All of the beef and pork are locally sourced, but there are several dishes that give special love to vegetarians, according to Beck. There’s also a bar on the 32nd floor that will open next month, as well.

5. The hotel is certified as a silver LEED hotel. One aspect that helped it earn that status is the motion-activated heating and cooling controls in each of the 600 guestrooms (which includes 37 suites).

Chef stands in a kitchen
Chef de cuisine Ryan Beck discusses the open kitchen concept of The Burnham.

6. The Hilton, which has 350 full-time employees, held a job fair in April, and 1,300 hopefuls showed up—267 were hired on the spot.

7. The artwork, the carpets, the headboards—the design is centered on Cleveland. The carpet in the ballrooms conjures images of clouds and water (the hotel is practically located on the shores of Lake Erie, after all); guestroom carpets feature maps of downtown Cleveland; local artists are featured, along with art that specifically recalls Cleveland themes; the headboards are pictures of Cleveland landmarks, and more. There’s no mistaking this hotel for one in any other location.

A guestroom with a bed and bedside table
The wall art in this guestroom features details from the city's famous West Side Market.