Welcome back to Toronto, Four Seasons. Returning to the city where it all began, the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts unveiled its new property in Toronto and proclaimed the trendy hotel as the future for the company and the flagship location worldwide.
Scroll down to see a full photo story from the opening!
After closing its Avenue Road hotel earlier this year, the luxury chain today unveiled its 55-storey hotel just down the street from where it previous was located in Toronto’s trendy Yorkville district.
Before the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Four Seasons chairman and founder Isadore Sharp said, “The Four Seasons Toronto is in a category by itself, a true Four Seasons in our hometown, our flagship hotel. It is a landmark development for the city of Toronto.”
A throng of media, partners, developers and guests crowded near the entrance of Four Seasons Toronto to welcome the luxury hotel back to the neighbourhood.
“Four Seasons has been perfecting the art of hospitality around the world for more than 50 years, and now we’re applying all we’ve learned to showcase our vision for the future right here in our hometown,” says Regional Vice President and General Manager Dimitrios Zarikos.
The hotel officially opened to the public at 3 p.m. Friday.
Dazzling design
Inside the skyline-framed hotel, a dandelion motif invites visitors through the lobby. With interior design done by Yabu Pushelberg, the lobby features stylish book-matched wood panelling, hand-painted walls, precision-cut stone floors and bespoke carpet inlay. More than 1,700 works commissioned from Canadian artists are on display throughout the hotel.
The rooms, starting at $400/night, offer a 15-Minute Room Service menu, complimentary in-room wireless Internet, and iPads. Complimentary WiFi is also available in hotel cars and a dedicated Guest Experience Manager is responsible for making sure guests have a memorable stay.
Alan Menkes, one of the developers behind Four Seasons Toronto, said at the launch, “Designing and building a special project like this literally involves thousands of people.” Menkes says the hotel foundation is made up of 10,000 tons of concrete, and the lobby boasts walls made of 50,000 pieces of polished metal.
A floating marble staircase leads to Café Boulud, the latest cuisine destination from Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud.
Dining in style
Café Boulud’s space rises from billion-year-old stone floors quarried in southwestern Ontario, with local woods, warm textures and natural light surrounding the tables. With the ability to seat 156 visitors, the restaurant will feature a variety of French and seasonal cuisine such as black cod persillade, steak au poivre, crispy duck egg, and spiced quail sided with avocado chutney.
Boulud, considered North America’s finest French chef, has created a 14-restaurant global empire, with restaurants in New York, Singapore, Beijing, Montreal and many more.
At street level, dbar is a lounge designed with themes in materials such as rich walnut, black lacquer and warm plum fabrics. Four Seasons Toronto is promoting the chef’s new firehouse burger, inspired by the neighbouring fire station.
Resident Mixologist Albert Kirby created a signature cocktail for the opening, calling Le Tour CN: a mix of gin, maraschino, Champagne and blackberry puree.
Spa-tacular
The Four Seasons Toronto also celebrates its opening with a 30,000 square-foot spa aptly named, The Spa. A spa experience at the new hotel invites guests into one of 17 treatment rooms where 70 staffers are on-hand. “We’re calling it a ‘spa in the sky’ thanks to its lofty position above Yorkville and gorgeous views in all directions,” says Senior Spa Director Todd Hewitt.
An indoor relaxation pool, a whirpool, a nail bar, a boutique and a 3,500-square-foot fitness centre round out some of The Spa’s amenities.
A New Era
Since Sharp began Four Seasons in Toronto in 1961, the luxury hotel industry has irrevocably changed, and Four Seasons Toronto wants to supercharge Toronto’s tourism industry with this innovative property.
“This is a proud moment for everyone at Four Seasons – at the new Hotel, at our corporate offices, and certainly at all our locations around the world,” says Katie Taylor, president and CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. “The future is here now, in this new flagship, and in the thousands of employees around the world committed to raising the bar for luxury hospitality.”
The opening, in pictures:
