This place seems to pride itself on being a bar and restaurant THEN a hotel. The bar and restaurant are right on the beach, the bar has great drinks, the food is good and it is a fun place to people-watch. However, the hotel is seriously lacking professional courtesy and service. It seems to be understaffed. We arrived early to the hotel on a Sunday, expecting that we would not be able to get into our room but that the staff would at least attempt to check-us in slightly earlier than the guaranteed 4pm check-in. The one staff person seemed to be insulted that we arrived early (11:30 am) and treated us coldly and unprofessionally. We left our bags at the front desk. She said she would call us if our room was ready "before she saw us again" but, of course, she never called. We went on a two-hour bike ride while we waited and our room still was not ready, so we went up to the Tower Deck. There was no staff to be found and the towels on the lounge chairs looked like they had been used. The 70's rock the restaurant was playing was blaring through the speakers on the deck, even though my husband and I were the only people up there. Finally, a server from the restaurant came up after about 15-20 minutes of waiting and after my husband asked around to see if the deck had drink or restaurant service. The server lackadaisically greeted us and handed us a menu. He did bring us drinks, though, which seemed to be a tall order at this place. Then he proceeded to just stand out on the deck for awhile and stare out at the ocean like he would prefer to be surfing (yes, we get it...but this is your job!). We finally made it to our room (which had an excellent ocean view and patio overlooking the boardwalk and ocean).
However, we really did not encounter anyone during our two-night stay who proactively greeted us or asked us how we were doing. When we left the hotel at 5:30 am to catch an early flight, the valet was nowhere to be found. My husband was told that security would escort him down to our car. Really? Tower 23 does not provide the level of service that you expect from a four-star hotel. When you pay a premium, you expect good service. I agree with previous reviewers--this is like a Best Western painted blue. While the hotel still looks nice now, I would not be surprised if it went downhill over the next five years.
With that said, definitely try the bar or restaurant. And, we did notice that housekeeping was excellent--the rooms were very clean and they did a turn-down service every evening.
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