Pricey Japanese restaurant chain Nobu not only wants to feed you; it now wants to tuck you in after dinner.
In an ambitious bid to transform the brand into a hotel chain, Nobu plans to open a combined restaurant-hotel on the Las Vegas Strip next year.
Caesars Palace plans to spend millions of dollars on redesigning one of its towers into a 180-room Nobu tower, the Associated Press reports.
Casino and Nobu Hospitality execs announced the deal on Monday.
Twitter follower @hotelAGZ gives the concept a thumbs up.
"I like it... Roomies and Foodies get along."
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Nobu guests will have a separate check-in and room service from the restaurant. Caesars expects to close its Centurion Tower for renovations this summer.
Nobu Hospitality CEO Trevor Horwell says he hopes it's the first of many Nobu hotels around the world, the AP reports. The company has more than two dozen locations, including an existing Nobu at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.
Intriguing concept, isn't it?
I asked Twitter followers what they think about the idea of restaurant chains growing into hotel chains.
Twitter follower @SmithFamilyof6 said that it "depends on the quality of the restaurant."
Twitter follower @LinHumphrey expressed some doubt about this specific pairing, saying that "I could see a close partnership with a relevant brand like Mandarin Oriental."
Furthermore, he said, "you would need very high consumer involvement with a restaurant brand to drive high $ lodging choices."
Lin Humphrey's second comment made me think of the highly engaged fans of Starbucks, which - if this sort of a concept truly takes off - could be ideally positioned to launch a hotel. (See Starbucks post from April 2010.)
Readers: What do you think of this idea? And which restaurant chains (or brands) would you hope is developing a hotel chain concept? (Be specific. For instance, Cheesecake Factory? McDonald's? PF Chang's? Celebrity chefs such as Daniel Boulud?)
Posted Mar 8 2011 7:51AM
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