The Langham, Chicago
A pristine stunner in the heart of Chicago.
75/100 | A TIER
See my detailed evaluation here. Learn more about my methodology.
Introduction
The porte-cochère at The Langham, Chicago.
In late January, I ventured to freezing cold Chicago to stay a few nights at The Langham, Chicago. The Langham is a Hong Kong-based hotel chain with roots dating back to their original 1865 London property. Having done research on the property beforehand, I had high expectations going in as many across the internet claimed The Langham, Chicago to be one of the best, if not the best hotel in the United States.
I arrived at the hotel around 7:00 am (well before the official check-in time) exhausted from a sleepless 4 hour redeye from San Francisco. As we approached the hotel, doormen came out of the building (presumably hiding from the harsh cold until they see guests coming in) to greet us. As they helped us with our bags, they informed us the main lobby was located on the second floor. Interestingly, they knew who I was without me having to mention my name. I assume this is because I had informed the hotel about my very early arrival a couple days before. As all the bags were loaded onto a trolley, one of them asked if we would like to be shown to check-in. I refused his offer and he told me he would have the bags right up.
Luckily, the hotel allowed us to check-in far before the published time. We were given Langham branded water bottles and were sat down for a quick briefing of our Fine Hotels and Resorts benefits.
Below are pictures I took the minute we stepped into the room.
As soon as we entered the room, I called down to order some room service “lunch” as I hadn’t eaten since 6pm the night before
Pictured on the right is a wagyu burger with fries and a pasta dish. They were both good, but nothing special. I remember asking for a medium-rare patty on my burger and received a rare piece of meat, but it wasn’t a big deal.
After a nice nap, and a much needed meal, I went out to explore the surrounding area. The Langham, Chicago is located on 330 North Wabash Avenue, in what was formerly known as IBM Plaza. This building was designed in the early 70s by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, who unfortunately passed before construction was completed. The Langham, Chicago is located in the first 12 stories of this landmark building, and was completed in 2013. Even though the building is more than 50 stories tall, it doesn’t really stand out in Chicago’s skyline as it seems almost every building is a thousand feet tall. An easy way to locate the building is by spotting its next door neighbor, the Trump International Hotel and Tower, which is the 4th tallest building in the United States and almost 1400 feet tall.
The building on the left is 330 North Wabash, where The Langham, Chicago is located. The building on the right is Trump Tower Chicago.
After a brief walk in the disgustingly cold Chicago outdoors, I decided to head back inside to hibernate. I must’ve been very tired, because I was woken up by a knock on the door by an employee attempting to deliver a welcome gift of a bottle of wine, Acqua Panna still water, and a note from the General Manager of the hotel welcoming us for the three night stay. Also note how night had fallen in the picture on the right- this meant I was asleep for maybe 6 hours.
I think a great way to distinguish whether or not a hotel’s service is truly the best of the best is by paying attention to whether or not a housekeeper (or really any hotel employee) knows whether or not you’re in the room. On this visit, I received many knocks with requests to clean the room, restock the minibar, provide turndown service, etc. Although the Do Not Disturb sign was not engaged, at the best hotels I’ve been to the housekeepers operated like ninjas, knowing exactly when we were in or out of the room and performed their duties when we were outside. Of course, this is an incredibly high standard and not at all a big deal.
Anyways, after we returned from dinner that night a very nice turndown service was performed. The beds were made, slippers & water bottles laid out, cables neatly organized, bathrobes hung next to the shower, radio turned on to some relaxing music, and ice bucket filled. It’s so nice to come back to such a relaxing environment!
The next morning, I headed down to Travelle, the hotel’s main restaurant, to indulge in arguably my part of staying in a hotel: breakfast. Each morning, I had the “Wabash” breakfast which includes a pastry basket, fruit bowl, coffees/teas, juice, and entree of your choosing. If I had the wisdom to take before and after pictures, you’d see I barely made a dent. It was sooooo much food. I had a different entree every day so I’ll add the a la carte prices for each. Note the one entree you couldn’t pick was the Travelle Benedict, which included lobster and was a $35 dish.
In case anyone’s curious, here’s a direct link to Travelle’s menu. Travelle serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
That night, we enjoyed some post-dinner drinks at the Travelle Bar. Prices are as you’d expect at a Forbes Five Star hotel in a city like Chicago.
Pictured on the left is the London Lover (served in the champagne glass: Vanilla Infused Belvedere Vodka, Passionfruit, Créme de Pêche, Prosecco, $20) and unfortunately I forgot to note what the other drink is.
With an abundance of free time the next day, I decided to check out the wellness facilities. I had scheduled an appointment for a massage at their Forbes Four Star Chuan Spa, but ultimately decided to cancel as the treatment would set me back around $300 for a fifty-minute massage. I’d pay that much for an experience at a Five Star spa, but not a Four Star.
Pictured on the right is the pool area at The Langham. Presumably, this area had poolside service with attendants able to deliver food from the Travelle restaurant below. While I was there, not only was there no one in the pool area, but there were no employees either. This place was also uncomfortably hot. It felt like a sauna.
Summary
Overall, I definitely enjoyed my stay at The Langham, Chicago. The service, while nothing really stood out, was mostly up to par with what I expect from a world-class Asian hospitality brand like The Langham. I definitely agree with the assessment that this property is one of the nicest hotels in the country. However, if this hotel was placed in a major Asian/Middle Eastern city, it would have tough competition around it (especially at the rate of $600 a night.) I’ll include various random pictures below of the hotel and the surrounding areas.
Finally, be sure to check my YouTube review done in the style of Mr. Kesavaraj! Thanks for reading!
Final Rating
Final Rating
Service: 22/30
Standards: 14/20
Arrival
✓ Greeted at entrance
✓ Doors opened
✓ Bags taken
✓ Refreshments offered
✓ Introduced to hotel facilities and room/suite
Intimacy
After interaction with staff, do they remember your preferences?
After interaction with staff, do they remember and address you by name?
Housekeeping
✓ Turndown service
Aware of whether or not you’re in the room
✓ Concierge
Attitude: 8/10
Rooms: 19/25
Quality 4/5
Views 2.5/5
Cleanliness 4.5/5
Standards 8/10
✓ Entry room larger than 500 square feet
✓ Electronic controls for room functionality
✓ Separate bathtub
✓ Rainfall shower head
Reputable brand of amenities
✓ Pillow menu
✓ Nespresso or equivalent coffee machine
Balcony
✓ Welcome amenity
✓ Multiple welcome amenities
Facilities 16/20
Public space design
Lobby 4/5
Pool 4/5
Other Areas 4/5
Quality and Cleanliness 4/5
Food 10.5/15
Standards 2/5
✓ Multiple restaurants
One prestigious chef owned restaurant
Breakfast buffet
✓ a la carte option with breakfast
Asian, Local, Juice, Pastry, and Western sections in buffet
Quality 9/10
Location 8/10
Standards (3 points possible, 1 point each)
Walking distance to a major mall
✓ Walking distance to at least 4 restaurants (less than 5 minutes)
✓ Walking distance to at least two major attractions (less than 10 minutes)
Safety 2/3
Walkability of surrounding area: 3/4
