The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville has announced that it will unveil two new dining outlets, a top-to-bottom design refresh of guestrooms and public spaces, and other signature touches, beginning in late October.
The centerpiece of the 122-room hotel’s multi-year project is Drusie & Darr, a new restaurant and bar from chef and restaurateur Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Scheduled to open in late October, Drusie & Darr is a convivial, contemporary restaurant and bar that will showcase Tennessee’s regional produce, some of which will be sourced from The Hermitage Hotel’s Garden at Glen Leven. The restaurant is named after brother and sister Drusie and Darr Hall, the children of the hotel’s former General Manager, Dick Hall, who lived, played and grew up in the hotel during the 1950s and ’60s.
Setting the stage for Drusie & Darr's spirited cuisine, The Hermitage Hotel’s former Capitol Grille dining room and bar are undergoing an update from interior designer Thomas Juul-Hansen. All furnishings, from the mother-of-pearl pendant lamps to the seating, tables and curved banquettes, will be entirely bespoke to the restaurant. A new, dedicated restaurant entrance will be directly accessible from Sixth Avenue, establishing the venue as a dining destination unto itself.
Opening in late fall on the corner of Union and Sixth Avenue, The Pink Hermit is a café and take-away conceived by Vongerichten and The Hermitage Hotel team. Designed by Juul-Hansen, the intimate space, clad in pale pink and gray marble, will welcome guests with cozy indoor and outdoor seating. The café’s concept will evolve throughout the day—from a coffee bar serving pastries in the morning, to a casual take-away for lunch, and later, a wine bar serving small bites, Champagne and craft cocktails in the evening.
Also debuting this fall will be a new ladies’ room, inspired by The Hermitage Hotel’s 1930s-era Art Deco men’s room (Nashville’s original “photo moment”). Taking its cue from the men’s room’s horizontal tilework in stripes of lime green and black, the ladies’ room will be decorated with striped walls of variegated pink marble, inlaid marble flooring, arched doorways, rose gold-framed mirrors and glamorous lighting throughout.
Considered one of Nashville’s architectural treasures, the Beaux Arts lobby of the hotel has been restored and updated. The original 1910 painted glass ceiling, ornamental plaster details and Tennessee marble, all designed by Tennessee architect James E.R. Carpenter, have been preserved, while the entire space has been brightened with an updated color palette and new furnishings in textured shades of blue and silver. The lobby refresh features all-new seating, lighting and case goods. Interior design firm Forrest Perkins is overseeing all design updates of the lobby, adjacent ballroom and all guestrooms and suites. The Hermitage Hotel Ballroom will be refreshed with new carpeting, updated lighting and artwork, all selected to complement the room’s Circassian walnut paneling.
The Hermitage Hotel’s oversized guestrooms—averaging 450 to 500 square feet—are undergoing a décor update. Desks will make way for tables that can double as workspaces or be used for in-room dining, and new millwork will conceal updated minibars and other amenities. Artwork is being sourced locally and will take inspiration from the history of the hotel and nature-inspired elements from the region. Redesigned guestrooms will be available by late 2021. Design updates to the hotel’s three Executive Suites and the Presidential Suite are set to conclude in early 2022.
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