Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Hotel Congress

Welcome to the next installment of "As the Road Turns." After a six-hour drive, rest and relaxation beckon at Hotel Congress.

The Congress is a historical site. Pretty cool, eh?

Furnishings in the room are pretty basic. The radio is, well, old, but it works and that's what matters, right? The rotary phone sits to the left, and the front desk uses a plug-in manual switchboard (you know, the old-fashioned kind) to place and transfer calls.

The apples didn't come with the room, however. I just brought them along so I would have some snacks on the road.

Each room is decorated differently. So you could stay in a new room every night and yet still feel as though you are staying in a totally different hotel each night.

This picture hangs in Room 217. It's called "The Cowboy and the Looking Glass," by Judith D'Agnostino. Can you see the hand mirror he's holding? I wonder what he's thinking; is it, "Wow, I'm a handsome guy" or maybe, "Wow, that's a big zit on my chin"? These things keep me up late at night.

Fortunately, the pillows and quilt are quite comfortable, so sleep comes easily. If you need some rest though, I recommend booking a room that is not directly above the club.

If sleep evades you, you can always head down the hall to the common room, which features a TV and a computer with Internet connection.

The walls around the hotel rooms are hand-painted with these Southwestern designs. Did I mention that everything has so much character? I can only wonder what these walls would say if they could talk. But that might be weird. If the walls are actually talking to you, I'm not sure what to recommend.

The hotel features a restaurant, a bar and a club. The rooms are all open to the public, even when not in use. A peek into the club reveals the image of a bar ready for service...

...as well as detailed wrought iron designs.

The stage of Club Congress features the same detailing on both sides of the stage, punctuated by the red drapes.

Across the street. this cat is waiting (very early, I might add) for a show that starts in a few hours. I forget what show it was, but this was just the beginning of the red outfits.

The pink spikes really bring the outfit together, don't you think?
The upper wall to the right of the bar in Club Congress features this colorful mural.

From the reflection in the mirror (and look, remember this dress?), you can see the stage behind me and more of the wrought iron work.

The floor of the restaurant, The Cup Café, is covered with pennies. I bet there's at least a million dollars in the floor alone. Just kidding. The place isn't that big; there might be 40 tables, inside and out. I'm not sure how much square footage would be required to get a million dollars in the floor, but I know it's a lot.

(Edited to add: Per very reliable information from the awseome bartender, Tyler, the actual penny count in the floor comes to approximately 1700 dollars. So I'm way off. But Tyler is still awesome, so you should stop in and say hi and have a drink or two if you're in town.)

Look up from the floor, and you'll see these cool chandeliers. And I don't just think they're cool because they are made from wine bottles, though that doesn't hurt the cause.

I like to embrace form, function and recycling. This piece is an embodiment of them all.

The tables are casual, but don't let the lack of adornment fool you. The food is delicious, and the Happy Hour specials are more than well-worth the price. I was tempted to try the "Heartbreaker," but that may have just been because of the title. I ended up getting the hummus plate, which was more than enough food for dinner. The flavor profiles were right on, and I enjoyed all the combinations offered by the hummus, baba ghanoush and falafel with the vegetables and pita bread.

The chef came out as I was sitting at the bar, and I caught the tail end of his explanation of the special, which involved something with trout. I didn't try the trout that night, but I did a few nights later when I came back through town. I don't know the exact components of the entire dish, but the entrée featured two large fillets of the fish with a light, creamy sauce in the middle and wrapped entirely with bacon (When in doubt, go with bacon; you can never go wrong with bacon). I'm normally not a huge fan of trout, but this dish was pretty gosh-darn awesome and it may have converted me. A nice rice pilaf and grilled asparagus rounded out the meal. The plate was certainly enough for two people, and it was certainly reasonable for its $20 price tag.

After dinner and a long drive, a bath sounds awfully inviting. And as here, sometimes simple things are pretty, and pretty wonderful, just as they are. And the soap here smells divine. Just so you know.

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