One could be forgiven for thinking that all hotels in Dallas would be the same. The city is, after all, the heartbeat of Texas, a place whose mere mention conjures images of city cowboys, oil barons and good ol’ J.R. Ewing. Even the states motto that “Everything is bigger in Texas” would seem to suggest that all the hotels would be of the corporate chain variety, with little to distinguish one neutral colored room from then next except for the logo on the stationary. If that is your image of Dallas then please turn away now, because you could not be more wrong.
When it comes to hotels in Dallas you do not get more historic or unique than the Adolphus. It is the kind of hotel where even the story behind the construction ventures away from the norm. The Adolphus was built in 1912 at the behest of beer pioneer Adolphus Busch. Busch had moved to Dallas from his home state of Missouri and decided his adopted home did not have a hotel that was to his liking. The Adolphus was born.
What came out of Busch’s vision was a 21 story baroque themed masterpiece that in the eyes of many goes without parallel. Commentators of the day called the Adolphus “the most beautiful building west of Venice.” Busch was an American with a piece of his heart very much in Western Europe, the result of which is a hotel oozing with European elegance and charm. The list of guests of the Adolphus has hosted through the years include Donald Trump, U2, Babe Ruth, and even Queen Elizabeth II.
On the premises, if you are in an extravagant mood, you can splash out in one of the three restaurants. The signature eatery on site is the award winning French Room. In addition to being named the number 1 hotel restaurant in the 2008/2009 Zagat Survey, the French Room has been described by the New York Times as “a Louis XV fantasy on the prairie…indisputably the most striking and sumptuous restaurant in Dallas.” The Bistro is the Adolphus’s ode to a European coffee house, where the only thing missing is the passionate conversation in Italian from the next table. If you have had your fill of Europe in the luxury of the hotel itself, and want to feel a little more like you are in the Lone Star State then the Walt Garrison Rodeo Bar and Grill will be much more to your taste. The grill serves steaks and classic south-western fare in a rodeo themed restaurant filled with memorabilia and collectables from the most Texan sport of all.
The setting of the Adolphus could not be more perfect. Staying here puts you right in the middle of downtown, mere miles from all the tourist attractions, dining, and shopping Dallas has to offer. The hotel also offers plenty of meeting and event space in a setting that is different from anywhere else you will find in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex.
The Adolphus is not the cheapest hotel you will find in Dallas. However, with an early reservation and a little searching before booking it was possible to find rates as low as $130 per night, which is fantastic for a four star hotel in any city. When you compare the feel and atmosphere of a hotel like this to a comparably priced chain hotel it is more than worth the little extra money you pay. After all, what price can you put on saying you have literally spent the night being treated like the Queen.
Photo via garyhymes
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