Opened in 1996 as downtown’s first luxury boutique hotel, the Soho Grand helped put its namesake neighborhood on the map among the fashionista set. Its architecture and design draw on Soho’s industrial heritage with touches like bottle glass, cast-iron molding, and masonry columns that you’d find in nearby old warehouses and factories. From the start, cool kids have flocked here like moths to a flame: The hotel was one of the first to install a DJ booth in the lobby, and Radiohead even hosted their press launches for OK Computer and Kid A here. Bill Sofield, who has designed retail boutiques for the likes of Tom Ford and Gucci, is responsible for the interiors, and he’s suffused the place with a touch of whimsy, in the form of dog sculptures throughout: two steel Great Danes guarding the stairs, two brass Whippets sidling up to the reception desk, and two ceramic Labrador retrievers on the 17th floor. In addition to its posh bar, reimagined dinner space, and outdoor tropical bar, Gilligan’s, the hotel houses the swanky Club Room, which pairs unexpected elements that somehow work together—Deco-inspired peacock murals on chartreuse walls, tufted sofas, and black-and-white photos of stars like Peter O’Toole and Lee Marvin.
