For most people, Boston is a city of memories. This is where many of the places you studied in colonial American history still stand and where you perhaps went to college. Its compact downtown has so many gorgeous edifices that despite their pedigree—or perhaps because of it—they seem tailor-made for Instagram, which is to say easily consigned to the digital rearview mirror. For me, however, the Athens of America will always be my place of original defection because at the earliest opportunity I traded freeways and strip malls for cobblestone streets and North End bakeries and, though in time I would defect again, predictably perhaps, to Manhattan, at least a quarter of my heart will never be anything but Bostonian.
And proudly so: No matter how depressing the political climate in this country (thanks, DC!) nor how crass the culture (here’s looking at you, Hollywood), this overgrown bayside village will always rise above. Its inhabitants were the first to rise up against the stuffy British; its intellectual life and sporting spirit are without peer; and damn, is the food good. I can remember as a grad student at Boston University practically living on the offerings of Finagle-A-Bagel and Pizzeria Regina, and quite happily. The spanakopita at Steve’s Greek Cuisine in Quincy Market bests any I’ve had in Greece itself. When I think back to the vanilla chocolate chunk scoops I would gobble at Emack & Bolio’s Ice Cream, my mind’s menu gently weeps.
Boston is not a city given to easy transformation but then the mere change of seasons is so poignant and resolute that it almost comes as an exemption from the perceived exigencies of urban renewal. Ruby-slipper red leaves in fall yield to white velvet winters, which, though long, make you appreciate the symphonic eruptions of tulips in the Public Garden, come April. And when you’re not noshing or studying or layering, there’s the Museum of Fine Arts, the gas-lit byways of Beacon Hill, the perennial Yankee charm of Fenway Park. Yes, Boston is fertile terrain for grazing and rumination and a great ball game, too, but no matter what activity you elect, at the end of the day you’re going to need a place to stay and that brings me to Boston hotels.
I have a special place for Boston lodgings in that fourth of my heart given over to nostalgia for this place and that’s because I got to know so many of them by dint of my parents coming to visit me when I was going to B.U. They would choose a different hotel each time, and for a couple of days I could escape dorm life and hang out in style. One thing common to all of them I remember well is that they blended elegance with sense of New England place; call it a relaxed refinement that you really don’t find in many cities. Precisely this sensation swept over me as I wearily approached the impressive grand entrance of what was formerly the headquarters of the Boston Police Department, but is now the Loews Boston hotel. It’s located on the south side of Back Bay, which with its stately avenues and delightfully ornamented Gilded Age row houses is probably the most cosmopolitan of Boston’s neighborhoods.
But there’s more to like about Loews Boston than its prime location, such as a very affable staff who know the city well and a variety of guestrooms (222 in all) that cater to every kind of traveler. My premium king room featured an exceptionally comfortable bed and sumptuously indulgent linens as well as a great workspace and roomy bathroom. I also spent some quality time in the ground-floor lobby space called the Apothecary, with an automated coffee bar for 24/7 sipping. Guests and locals are drawn to Precinct Kitchen + Bar, where classic American dishes are given a tasty, innovative makeover for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Look carefully and you’ll see photos that speak to the unique heritage of the building and some pioneering members of the force—such as Irene McAuliffe, whose career with the Boston police started in the 1920s and spanned nearly four decades.
As I mentioned, Boston is a great foodie town, and thanks to the Flavor by Loews Hotels food and beverage experience you can savor some great hyper-local tastes right on the spot.
“Each partner offers something unique that will enhance our guests’ experience at Precinct Kitchen + Bar and our hotel,” says Executive Chef Olivier Senoussaoui. “We even created The Most Flavorful dessert, combining all three of our partners with sea salt dark chocolate ice cream from Little G’s, sweet roast almonds from Q’s Nuts, topped off with Boston Harbor coffee liqueur.”
As part of the House Arrest Package, in addition to a $150 food and beverage credit, guests receive as a welcome amenity a charcuterie board featuring Flavor partner Q’s Nuts. And check out the new Stress Less, Play More package that, with one night’s stay, includes a bottle of wine on check in, complimentary parking and a $50 American Express gift card. You can book this from now until Jan. 13, 2018, for travel dates from Nov. 19, 2017, to Jan. 13, 2018. For more information on Loews Boston and their current offers, visit: loewshotels.com/Boston-Hotel.