Thompson Austin: Review.
Our check-in at the Thompson in Austin set the stage, and the rest of the evening fell in line with my remaining expectations.
I had booked the room several months prior using an advanced purchase rate (gasp). I don’t usually lock in my rooms this way, as I like to be flexible until the last minute, but in this case I wanted the cheapest rate, and I was able to get an additional discount with a limited-time Chase offer.
We arrived at around 4:30, and were greeted by Willy at the front desk. He immediately acknowledged our Globalist status and thanked us for our loyalty. I was pre-determined to accept whatever room I was given, even if not a suite. When he started talking about giving us a better view, I smiled in agreement.
I have a sneaking suspicion that my approach to the stay helped me, because Willy went back into the computer, and suddenly I was upgraded to a San Jacinto suite! Score!
Atop the upgrade, he also gave us three guitar picks, valid for free cocktails at the upstairs restaurant Wax Myrtles. I was pretty giddy at this point, and my entire interaction reminded me why I choose Hyatt for loyalty. I passed my complements to him, and he noted he wished he could give me the Thompson Suite, their best suite, but the guests had not checked out.
We offered to wait for that suite, but he told us he would call us if it became available. Unfortunately, it never did.
Willy also told us about our Globalist benefits, including free breakfast. Unfortunately we would have to leave before then. He also gave a glowing recommendation to The Diner Bar on the first floor, a recommendation that turned out to be on-point.
We went up to our room on the 8th floor and dropped our luggage. The room was elegant but a tad dark. It was spacious and relatively quiet.
Hardwood floors led into a cozy living space. There was a loveseat, large TV, Nespresso, and blackout curtains. There was a mini-fridge stocked with soda and spirits, in addition to a snack and alcohol tray on the countertop.
To the right of the entryway was a half bath.
In the bedroom, a comfortable king bed ruled most of the space. There were two nightstands, one with a Bluetooth Tivoli speaker. Additionally, there were earplugs provided to help with the outside noise. There were lots of bars down the road and the evening noise was quite noticeable. We used a white noise machine to alleviate this.
The bathroom was equipped with a giant shower, dual vanity, and an enclosed toilet space. There was shower gel, lotion and conditioner by Bowmakers. The sink also had some body cream by the same brand, and hand soap by Imperial.
After dropping our luggage, we went right back down to Wax Myrtles on the fourth floor. This restaurant and lounge space was expansive, with a bar, indoor seating, and a large outdoor terrace. Given the perfect weather, we opted to sit outside at the patio, and while heading out to our table spotted the nearby outdoor pool.
We ordered some bacon-wrapped dates and a few frozen cocktails and enjoyed the outside air. The drinks were solid, but as it turns out “free” might’ve not been the right description, as each drink was charged at $2 apiece.
We concluded our snack and went back up to the room to change for the pool. The rooftop pool was somewhat small, but we didn’t find it to be crowded, and the temperature on the warm May day was quite comfortable. We spent just 30 minutes or so there before going back to the room and getting ready for dinner.
The Diner Bar might’ve been the best part of our stay. Midway through the meal I found myself asking the server why they had no Michelin star, and found out the chef declined the opportunity to be rated. Crazy to be at a restaurant too good for Michelin!
This southern style cuisine hit the spot in every way imaginable, and we devoured all that was presented to us. From a delectable corn pudding that was more dessert than dinner, to a Ricotta Gnudi and the Day Boat Catch, along with some awesome desserts and a caviar platter, I couldn’t recommend this place highly enough.
On our way back to the room, we did some brief exploring and found a conference hall and some artwork scattered about.
We returned to the room with full stomachs to get some rest before our morning flight the following day.
Unfortunately, I was unable to take advantage of my Globalist free breakfast benefit this time around. I did, however, peek in the Grey Market and take some photos before we left in the morning.
Ultimately: Our stay here was too short lived. My expectations for future visits to the Thompson brand have been set high, and I hope they’re up to that challenge.