New York hotel review: Inside Ace Hotel Brooklyn

It’s just before 6pm when I check in to the Ace Hotel Brooklyn and the place is fizzing with energy.

There are many people in the lobby finishing Zoom calls or chatting with friends over cocktails.

Ace is known for making buildings social hubs, and bringing people together. Clearly, it’s already working its magic here.

Ace Hotel Brooklyn is located in Boerum Hill on the edge of Downtown Brooklyn

Samantha Lewis, MailOnline Travel, says that the lobby is “fizzing with energy” when she arrives.

Boerum Hill is the latest post, located at Downtown Brooklyn’s edge. It’s an emerging area close to the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station with easy access into Manhattan.

While the building’s facade is a harsh mass of concrete and steel, inside the aesthetic is super-cosy. The wood-panelled lobby is lit by a warm amber glow. It has leather couches, bars, and even a gallery.

The decor upstairs is more retro and eclectic, with lots of vintage details. Retro posters and vintage machines are part of the retro gym.

Samantha says the rooms exude a retro vibe. A Medium Skyline room with floor to ceiling windows is shown in the picture.

One of the bathrooms is shown in this picture 

The rooms also have turntables, vinyl records and mid-century furniture curated from Rough Trade.).

My room is located on the ninth floor. It has spectacular views of Staten Island from my window.

The space is decently-sized and very functional but it’s a little lacking in luxury touches.

Bottles of water aren’t provided (you have to go to a refill station at the end of the corridor) and in place of a cavernous wardrobe there’s just a tiny rail to hang my clothes.

What’s the thinking behind this? The Ace is what the travel industry calls a ‘lean luxury’ hotel. It’s all about cutting back on amenities and being smart with space in order to make the rooms more budget-friendly.

As You Are is the adjacent restaurant. It looks like a high-end diner that offers a variety of Brooklyn cuisine and culture.

A plate of crispy Brussels sprouts and grilled halibut are the first things I eat. End the meal with thick, toffee-flavored toasted oat cream.

The restaurant transforms from a cafe to a café all day with a bakery run by Danny Alvarez, renowned pastry chef. 

Samantha dines at the adjacent restaurant As You Are. It features a menu that “celebrates Brooklyn culture” and serves Brooklyn cuisine.

Samantha says that this hipster hotel is a top pick.

Pasty chef extraordinaire Danny Alvarez heads up the bakery (above), which serves treats such as PB&J doughnuts 

This hotel gym features vintage machines, posters of bodybuilders and a throwback from the 1980s.

Samantha describes Ace Hotel Brooklyn’s exterior facade as “a brutish mass of concrete, steel.” However, inside she is thrilled to say that the aesthetics are super-comfortable.

Most tables have been taken when I arrive, and there is a long wait outside for take-out. I can’t resist ordering a PB&J doughnut and a pastel de nata (both incredible).

In the lobby is a group of creatives huddled around MacBooks for a breakfast powwow.

This hipster hotel is a top pick.