Sizing up the Opus Montreal
Sister hotel to the chic Opus Hotel in Vancouver, the intimate (136-room) Opus Montreal opened in the former Hotel Godin July 2007 and has been a welcome addition to the city's growing number of stylish, gay-friendly accommodations. The Opus, with its Art Noveau style, has a primo location on the edge of the Plateau (close to all those great restaurants on blvd. Saint-Laurent and blvd. Saint-Denis, and a reasonably short walk from the Gay Village). It's relatively affordable and with a helpful, friendly staff.
Pros:
- Cool, mod aesthetic - understated yet classy.
- Staff works extra-hard to be friendly and point visitors toward great restaurants and shopping nearby.
- Excellent location on the Plateau, close to Gay Village, McGill University, and downtown - extremely central.
- Pretty good prices for an upscale hotel (and it's pet-friendly).
- Wonderful "living-rooms-style" lobby that's a nice place to relax with your laptop, chat with friends, and sip wine in the afternoon.
Cons:
- The minimalist, poured-concrete building with its slightly austere rooms can feel a bit too cool, especially in gray winter weather.
- No pool.
- Fitness center is a bit small and with rather rather ordinary equipment.
The Vibe: If you're familiar with the Opus in Vancouver, this 138-room Opus may seem a bit familiar. Yet the Montreal Opus is also slightly less chic and a bit more affordable. The building dates to 1914, and it's a Montreal icon, although it doesn't necessarily stand out if you behold it from the street - Joseph-Arthur Godin designed the avant-garde structure in 1914, constructing it in poured concrete (it was the first-such building in North America). The art nouveau design leaves little room for ornamentation, and it can feel a bit cold, but fans of functional, sleek modern architecture are apt to find it perfectly inviting.
The Opus draws a stylish, trendy bunch - hang out in the inviting lobby with its low-slung chairs and free Wi-Fi (plus a wine-cocktail bar in the evening and complimentary coffee and tea during the day), and you'll see plenty of artists and creative spirits. The Opus actively courts the gay/lesbian demographic, just as its Vancouver branch does, and the on-site restaurants and lounges make it popular with nightclubbing sorts.
The hotel's hipster-driven Koko Restaurant + Bar (514-657-56566) is staffed with a resident DJ spinning trance-lounge tunes, and serves fusion-y East-West cocktails and nibbles (Asian beef tartare, hamachi sashimi, green-tea soba noodles). It opens daily at 5 pm and keeps buzzing till 3 in the morning, making it an excellent spot for late-night dining and lounging. It would be a stretch to call this an especially gay hangout, but like so many hot spots on the Plateau, Koko draws its fair share of gays and lesbians, especially on summer evenings, when the expansive patio is open.
The other dining/drinking venue at the Opus is Suco Resto-Lounge, a mellow boite serving a long list of splashy designer cocktails and a short but pleasing selection of contemporary, globally inspired tapas. Suco has more limited hours than Koko - it's open Tuesday and Thursday through Sunday, from 9 pm till 3 am.
The Details:
Address, phone, and web: 10 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montreal, 514-843-6000 or 866-744-6346; book online at the hotel's web reservations page.
Rates: Rates start around $150(CAN) nightly, depending on availability.
Rooms and notable in-amenities: 136 rooms and suites with contemporary decor, 27-inch LCD TVs with integrated computers, complimentary morning paper, high-speed Internet (for a fee, although there's free wireless in lobby), ergonomic chair, and glass-walled "rain" showers (some with soaker tubs).
Noteworthy hotel amenities: Full-service restaurant and lounge, fitness center (24-hour), meeting space, business center (24-hour), complimentary coffee/tea service in lobby, room service.
