Why The Waldorf Hotel is the hippest place in town

Anyone who’s been to the Waldorf in the past year will know that to describe it simply as a hotel would be a huge understatement. With a revolving cast of spectacular musical guests and live-in artists, the 63-year-old East Vancouver business is the hippest place in town, the place to be for parties and special occasions. It even has an in-house recording studio in the works.

Since its grand re-opening in October 2010, the unique space on East Hastings Street has become a breeding ground for creative types from across the city and beyond. There’s always something happening—from weekly events like the Monday night Ice Cream Socials and space-age themed Wednesdays in the Tiki bar, to concerts, art shows and private theme parties that run throughout the month.

“When we started, we just wanted to create a space where we'd have this high level of entertainment with hospitality, and artists would be treated with dignity,” said Waldorf co-owner Ernesto Gomez.

Gomez, a Vancouver restaurateur known for his popular Lebanese eatery, Nuba, teamed up with musician Thomas Anselmi to make that dream a reality. The two men were brought together by architect and designer Scott Cohen, who had previously worked on the design for Gomez’s Nuba restaurants.

“I wanted to do a music related project, and he introduced me to Tom who wanted to design a performance space,” said Gomez.

In addition to the authentic Tiki Bar, where DJs spin vinyl on a vintage analog sound system, the basement’s multi-room cabaret is ideal for musical and theatrical acts. With Anselmi’s music background and a broad creative network through others like brand manager Daniel Fazio, the owners boast a consistently impressive lineup of musical guests. Even Gomez gets in on the action, playing sets at the venue’s monthly Latin-infused “Tropidelica” nights.

Home sweet home

While visitors and media often marvel at the Waldorf’s spectacular parties and vintage charm, perhaps the most interesting thing about the place is that it’s not just a venue for creative events—it’s where the talent lives. Literally.

Out of the hotel’s 25 rooms, 10 were renovated and now rent out as regular hotel rooms while the rest serve a variety of other purposes, like housing. Fazio, the Waldorf’s charismatic brand manager, actually lives in a room upstairs, as do a number of other extended residents, artists and musicians. Room rates range from $500 to $1000 per month, and Gomez says they’re currently working on a communal kitchen for tenants. 

For artists, the hotel rooms provide not only a place to sleep, but also a place to produce and display their work, at in-room shows like the year-round “Black and Yellow” gallery put on in cooperation with The Cheaper Show. It brings a whole new meaning to the term “artist-in-residence”.

“This place started to attract people who were interested in exploring their creative side,” Gomez explained.

“I think this has become a bit of a cultural playground for the creative community in Vancouver. Not only a playground to have fun, but a playground to create.”

The Waldorf provides plenty of opportunity for creation, with in-house studios and even a screen-printing shop (where all their t-shirts and posters are printed by hand). And in addition to the live-in artists, they’ve also started a “chef-in-residence” program at the restaurant to bring in culinary pros from all over the world.

“Every three months we have a new chef from a different part of the world. Our first chef was from Spain, and we had him for six months. We try to focus on cuisine styles that are underrepresented in the city,” said Gomez, introducing the current chef-in-residence, Argentina’s Rodolfo Sanchez.

For Gomez, part of the joy of the Waldorf is surrounding himself with other creative and talented people—and there’s definitely no shortage of those in the neighbourhood.