Icon Hotel

07/08/08

Customer service out the Whazoo!!

by Amy3377

A few months back, I attended the opening of the hotel's new restaurant, Voice, and with my free food & drink, I also received a goodie bag! Inside was a voucher for a free weekend night's stay good through the end of the year. To be honest, I thought "what's the catch?" but decided to save it for when my boyfriend came to town so that we could have a worry-free downtown night.

Fast forward to July 1st. My boyfriend was coming in to town for the fourth of July extended holiday weekend and I decided to take my chances with Hotel Icon's availability. Skeptical, I called and asked the reservations desk if they had any availability for Friday the 4th. When they confirmed availability, I was sure that they were going to sing a different tune when they found out about my free voucher. I was pleasantly surprised that the reservations operator gladly acknowledged my voucher, assured me that there was no "catch" and told me they were looking forward to my stay! Wow.

Two days before our anticipated downtown stay, I received a phone call while at work. The gentleman on the other end identified himself as "Freddy" from Hotel Icon. My stomach turned because I thought for sure he was going to say my voucher was no good or that I would have to incur some new expense if I used it. Freddy, the head concierge, was simply calling me to ask if there was anything he could do to prepare for my arrival and to make my stay an experience to remember. He wished me well and told me that he was looking forward to meeting me. Wow again.

Once we arrived at the hotel on the 4th, the valets were perfect gentlemen. The front operations manager, Gilbert, was charming and friendly, welcoming and accommodating. The unmistakable Freddy was genuinely excited to see me! The bar staff (Robert and Niki) were amazingly attentive and friendly as well. Wow, wow and wow some more!

The room was perfect. The service was perfect. Everything was perfect. We will return again and again!

• Pros: Customer Service, Location, Restaurant
• Cons: None

08/19/08

Great for Main St bar hoppers

by rwe0006

I stayed here with several friends to celebrate birthdays, and the best part of the hotel is definitely the convenient location. If you are going out downtown, all the bars and restaurants are literally steps away. The decor is also very appealing. The elevators are extremely small, but that's a small, easily overlooked inconvenience. Pretty much the only bad part of our experience was that one of the beds was not made when we checked in, and the front desk told us it was probably just turn down service... but for only one of the beds, and at 4 PM??

• Pros: Decor, Location
• Cons: Dirty beds?

08/09/08

great hotel!

by VW83

I also stayed at the Hotel Icon while taking the Bar exam - although the Bar exam was horrible, this hotel was fantastic. Beds were comfortable, the room stayed cool, room service was prompt, the front desk staff were so friendly and understanding, the bar downstairs is really nice, and there is fast and free internet service! You really couldn't ask for more. For me, the best quality is the beautiful bathroom and fabulous Molton Brown bath products.

• Pros: beautiful and comfortable rooms, bathrooms, M&Ms and Skittles in the lobby
• Cons: no ice machine

08/09/08

Great, professional service

by belmontranchtx

I stayed 3 nights at Hotel Icon so I wouldn't have to drive while taking the Texas Bar Exam at George R. Brown. The rooms were immaculate, the bathrooms were very nice, and the bar downstairs was impressive. The customer service was top notch and all of the employees were very friendly and professional. We used the hotel's car service to get to the convention center every morning. The drivers were always punctual, friendly, and understanding of our need to get to our destination quickly. I would recommend this hotel to anyone coming into Houston, either on business or leisure.

• Pros: Staff, rooms, and car service.
• Cons: No ice machine.

07/08/08

5 Star Service!

by saidagive

The only thing I knew about this hotel was that my girlfriend was present for the opening of the Hotel's restaurant Voice a few months back. She was given a free stay coupon that we would use at a later date. July 4th came up and I came in for an extended weekend and we chose the 4th for our night to stay. From the moment we pulled into the garage we were treated in a comfortable and friendly manner. It wasn't pushy and it wasn't stuffy; we were treated like regular patrons. My girlfriend said a few days before I got into town that she had been contacted by the concierge about dinner, shopping etc. I didn't know where in downtown it was and he had reccomended a few restaurants. We ate at one of his suggested restaurants and had a great time. We went up to our room which was very nice with lots of ammenities. We popped down to the bar and had a drink before heading out to our dinner reservation. Friendly bartenders. The old bank lobby is handsomely decorated and again comfortable. We spoke of how this could become "our hotel." We bounced around Market Square after our meal and after a few hours we found ourselves drawn back to the hotel bar before retiring. We again had a great time. The other guests also looked happy. We made fast friends with a few of the bartenders. The management has done a tremendous job cultivating a professional and friendly spirit amoung their staff. We had a great stay. Next time I am in town we plan to eat at Voice as the menu looked very inviting; we didn't eat there as she had already been. This little hotel has so much to offer. Please do yourself a favor and book a weekend and catch the Astros or take the rail to the museums or even catch the Texans in the fall. The rail is a block away allowing you to get practically anywhere you want to go. We loved this place!

• Pros: Friendly staff, close to rail system, close to bars and restaruants
• Cons: NONE

07/01/08

Beautiful and bad...

by JRandGlenn

There were 3 of us celebrating a birthday and had a martini in the bar. The problem we had was our Martinis had way to much vermouth after we asked for very little. Our server remade them 3 times and still were not right. He did apologize each time but for this type of upscale establishment I expected a manager to come over and offer to pick up the tab after the third attempt. None did. We are willing to give the hotel bar another chance some time since it is a nice place to have a drink but will stay away from ordering Martinis.

• Pros: Very nice atmosphere
• Cons: Drinks not made to customer's request

05/07/08

Swanky downtown spot

by JET71

The Hotel Icon is a great place to stay with outstanding customer service. I brought my girlfriend there for a birthday surprise and we were thrilled with our stay. She loved her swedish massage. Dinner at Voice was amazing.....the presentation of the Chef's 5 course dinner is worth a look. Their new bar is a swanky spot to relax after a superb dinner!

• Pros: customer service, decor, value
• Cons: parking

Sophistication, luxury, fine amenities and outstanding service are hallmarks of this downtown neo-classic hotel.

by Joshua Hinsdale

In Short
Hotel Icon is located in the beautifully restored Union National Bank building, constructed in 1911. Each of the 135 guest rooms is appointed with elegant, bold colors and high-quality furnishings, huge bathrooms, free wireless Internet access, flat-screen TVs and free local calls, as well as Molton Brown toiletries and premium bedding.

03/28/07

Great Service!!!!

by gilbertmora

So friendly and sent me a birthday cake when I mentioned we were celebrating my wife's birthday. Great follow up. Will return again.

03/28/07

Hotel Icon

by 1babe

Great place to stay. Customer service outstanding. Rooms are very inviting and comfortable. Great overall experience.