Rendering courtesy of The West Hotel
The West Hotel
A new boutique hotel is making its way to the North Loop in downtown Minneapolis. Salt Hotels is adding The West Hotel, a property sitting near the riverside front of the North Loop, to its roster.
The West will house 123 luxe guest rooms, leased retail outlets, a fireside lounge, library, a stone cellar cocktail bar and rooftop bar, communal work spaces, and a new restaurant by James Beard award-winning chef Tim McKee (whose credits include La Belle Vie, Solera, and Barrio to name a few).
Salt’s nationwide hotels bring a breath of fresh air to the buildings their enterprises inhabit, with properties in Los Angeles, Miami, Nantucket, and the Hudson Valley. The West will be Salt's first Midwest venture, continuing the brand's legacy with the restoration of four historic, 19th Century downtown Minneapolis buildings on 1st Street and 2nd Avenue where the Commutator building (which opened as a hotel and was a longtime brass foundry) sits.
“My partners and I are elated to bring these iconic historic buildings back to life, while setting a new standard for superb design and hospitality excellence in Minneapolis,” David Wilson, a partner of Minneapolis-based developer Commutator, LLC, said in a press release. “With Salt Hotels’ gracious management style, The West will be a welcoming community gathering place for locals, and an inspiring destination for visitors from around the world.”
The hotel’s exterior is being designed by the firm Snow Kreilich Architects, while the interior architecture and furnishings are being crafted by the internationally acclaimed Neri&Hu, completing one of their first hotels in North America. Each guest room will offer a compilation of custom wooden cabinetry and furnishings, commissioned original artworks, lush fabrics, and amenity-filled bathrooms. And a short elevator ride will invite visitors into one of the hotel’s most intriguing elements—McKee’s new restaurant.
Although few facts have been firmly established surrounding the acclaimed chef’s upcoming spot, it’s been confirmed that the eats will be fully Basque-inspired and revolve around the cuisine of Northern Spain, with a specific focus on San Sebastián, Bilbao, and Pamplona. Everything will be cooked over charcoal, and there will be an extensive vermouth program and Gin and tonic program. But beyond that, the Spaniard-inspired cuisine remains a mystery.
“Maybe I’m broken and I can no longer function the way I’m meant to function, but I need the mayhem of restaurants. I love them, I miss them,” McKee said in an interview with Mpls.St.Paul earlier this year while teasing the restaurant.
Chef McKee will also be launching an Eastern Mediterranean-inspired bakery featuring a wood oven, and he will be operating the culinary program of both the event spaces and the in-room dining program of the hotel.
“We’re eager to expand into this vibrant city and collaborate with these amazing and talented partners,” Salt Hotels CEO David Bowd said in a statement. “I fell in love with Minneapolis the first time I visited. The people are incredible, and the beautiful architecture, along with its strong creative culture and appreciation for service and design—both cornerstones of Salt Hotels—solidified Minneapolis as Salt Hotels’ latest venture. We’re excited to be expanding here during a time when such transformational developments are taking place.”
All will be revealed when The West opens its doors in the summer of 2023.
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