July 14, 2009

Beyond Boundaries

Of all the real estate projects in the area, the Marriott Residence Inn is the only one that survived. After the tumult of going through the permitting process that the city mandates and the downturn in the economy halting all those big-budget condo plans that were whacked in the process, it's amazing that the Marriott quietly went about its business, succeeded in building the hotel and completed the project without fuss and fanfare.

I was pulling out of a parking space at the end of Middle Street near Franklin yesterday when I noticed the Marriot windows in the distance were all curtained and looked like there was life around the building.

So I drove down there and saw that the hotel was open. The brick façade of the building is hardly remarkable, if not boring and predictable, but the end section of the hotel with its glass wall of floor-to-ceiling windows is an anomaly to the plain front around the corner.

I parked at the entrance and walked in to see a thoroughly modern space, very cool and sleek and strikingly architectural with its soaring ceilings and spare contemporary décor. This lobby is probably one of the most captivating spaces in the state of Maine, which tend toward the pseudo-colonial, if not traditional leftovers in vintage buildings.

I didn't see any of the rooms, so I can't comment on that. Though with a quick Internet search I saw what other Marriott Residence Inn rooms looked like and they're nothing more than standard fare. Maybe the Portland branch will have an upgrade.

Hotels in Maine are attractive generally for their locations not their ambiance per se. The newly revamped Inn by the Sea is an exception: it's a great success, with a wonderful restaurant, very attractive public spaces and guest rooms that are as design-conscious as any boutique hotel in Boston or New York. Elsewhere in Maine, with some exceptions here and there, other hotels and inns are alluring because of either great waterfront locations or quaint mountain, lake or country settings.

So far the Marriott is pure urbanity, if not the most urbane building erected in Portland in decades.

The Marriott has a few floors open for guests but it's still short of being in full operation. Off the lobby is a small dining room, very attractive with white-tablecloth-topped tables and in the distance the makings of what looks like a sophisticated, high-style bar area.

I asked the manager if there was going to be a restaurant in the hotel. And his answer was a little surprising. Basically, no. The dining room is for guests to have breakfast and casual meals. But the management felt that with all the Old Port restaurants nearby in abundance, there was no need for a public dining venue attached to the hotel.

Yet, this really goes against the grain of hotel dining where the trend is to install a serious restaurant on premises as a draw for both locals and visitors. Boston, Chicago, LA and New York have this in abundance, with highly regarded restaurants on premises in cities that are jam packed with them elsewhere.

Any of our local restaurant successes looking for larger space could be beautifully accommodated by the abundant glass-fronted retail space that abounds at the hotel. One could see the likes of Five-Fifty Five, Hugo's, Back Bay Grill, et al, moving or expanding to larger quarters there. Even nearby Fore Street could resurrect its fabulous Scales restaurant that existed in the Portland Market until its demise.

The Portland Harbor Hotel has an ambitious restaurant off its lobby. I haven't visited it yet with their new chef in place, but reports are that it's turning out very creative fare. The Regency on Milk Street with its 20 Milk Street Restaurant is one of my favorites of hotel dining rooms in the city and I'll go there when I want a good meal served in elegant, comfortable surroundings.

What's particularly intriguing about the Marriott is the neighborhood. It looks like no other district in Portland. It doesn't really relate to the Old Port at its fringe but rather a whiff of the seaport pervades the air, and a sense of newness and things about to come are at play instead.

Eventually all those condo projects on hold will materialize and the new Eastern Waterfront neighborhood could emerge as a unique spot in a city that could use some new life beyond the tried and the true.

Two ambitious restaurants have opened nearby recently in nontraditional restaurant locations: one being Grace on Chestnut Street in the former United Methodist Church off Congress Street, which I haven't visited yet, and the other being the Salt Exchange on the southern end of Commercial Street, which looks quite intriguing inside. The chef hails from the White Barn Inn , which is good enough in itself, and there appears to be some enticing fare delivered as small-plate menu items meant to help people eat fabulously for less because portions are small. I'm not so sure I'm really a fan of small-plate tapas-style dining substituting for a full meal. Give me a well rounded plate with everyone on it and I feel well fed. If I were looking to economize I'd stay at home. Still, I think the restaurant warrants attention and after several visits I'll report back.

In the meantime visit the Marriott. Once they have their liquor license the bar will be open, and maybe if there's enough demand they'll see that a restaurant leasing one if its retail spaces might do very well indeed.