Embassy Suites OKC NW

[Celebrator]

Went to an open house Friday which was very well-attended. They served lunch in the renovated ball room which looked incredible. This place had gone down so badly in recent years, this renewal is massive and looks great. We got a tour of some of the new rooms up on the 16th floor and the guest rooms look fantastic--fresh, classy, spacious. They have a breakfast area that will seat over 200 for Embassy's trademark made-to-order breakfast--which business travelers say is the best in the industry--a great value to be included in the room rate. The lobby is sleek and clean and the patio has been reworked, with the outdoor portion of the pool filled in and water and fire features added to enable outdoor events in a cool environment. Just like the Hilton/Crowne Plaza/Wyndham/Radisson hotel in the same neighborhood, this place was overhauled from top to bottom--which it needed. Champ Patel should be very proud of this investment his company has made. It is a complete 180. They are supposed to be open Dec. 20. Founders District will benefit majorly having both of these full service hotels in great shape.

[soonerwilliam]

When will Embassy Suite signage be added?

[Pete]

When will Embassy Suite signage be added?

Tomorrow it will start to go up.

[Pete]

Former Marriott set to reopen after $20 million renovation

When Champion Hotels purchased the hotel at 3233 NW Expressway in late 2017, it had already lost its Marriott flag and had been operating as the Tower Hotel since 2013.

New Embassy Suites hotel with McAlister's Deli under construction

After a massive renovation, the hotel will re-open December 20th as Embassy Suites.

When the hotel originally opened in 1985, it represented a massive investment in northwest Oklahoma City at a time the region was heading into a deep recession due to a slump in the oil patch.

Throughout the '80s and '90s, the Marriott Northwest was a nightlife magnet due to the popular Russell's Lounge and the full-service hotel itself which featured 13,000 square feet of quality meeting space.

Marriott from the 1990's; Old Russell's Lounge

But very few updates were made over the next decades and as the property grew stale, a surge in hotel construction throughout Central Oklahoma caused a large decline in occupancy and ultimately Marriott removed its name.

Champion then bought the property and planned a $13 million renovation, but once work started, that number soon climbed to more than $20 million.

The entire building has been remodeled inside and out. The old Russell's was demolished last year and the land fronting NW Expressway was sold to McAlister's Deli which will open early next year.

The old indoor/outdoor pool will now just be indoor with the outdoor area reworked into a patio with gas firepits.

The step-down lobby has been remade into a one-level space with new marble flooring and all new woodwork, furniture and lighting. Embassy's own bar has been incorporated as well as a large breakfast room.

The huge amount of meeting space has also been completely redecorated but still can be partitioned for large and smaller events alike.

On the upper floors, 354 rooms have become 215 suites of varying sizes, all with great views of Northwest OKC and downtown beyond or Lake Hefer to the north. The rooms feature marble shower surrounds and modern features that carry through to the bedrooms and seating areas.

Outside, the old beige facade has been freshly painted with a white and gray scheme and the huge parking area to the north has been completely repaved and the entire property has received new landscaping. New signage will be going up this week.

Champion Hotels is owned by Champ Patel and operates dozens of hotels in Oklahoma as well as surrounding states. The company recently opened the first TRU hotel in the U.S. On S. Meridian Avenue. TRU is a new brand by Hilton Hotels.

Meeting area entrance on the northeast corner of the hotel



Lobby area



New bar



Lobby area looking towards entrance



Indoor pool



Courtyard



Meeting rooms circulation area



Meeting space



Typical bathroom



Typical bedroom



View from 16th floor

[Plutonic Panda]

Would be nice if there were kore landscaping features but the interior is very nice. They exterior of the building needs signage and a couple lighting elements as well.

[Pete]

Signage is going up this week.

They don't open for 10 more days.

[Bill Robertson]

I would love to see the 7-11 on the corner go away to un-clutter the space. But I don’t see that happening because the store is insanely busy. Which is good for them I guess.

[Plutonic Panda]

“Un-clutter”

What do you mean by that?

[Pete]

From yesterday (Sunday); note how fast McAlister's Deli is moving:

[Pete]

[HangryHippo]

They should move the 7-11 entrances/exits into the one with McAlister's.

[Martin]

They should move the 7-11 entrances/exits into the one with McAlister's.

i agree that it would be better to have fewer curb cuts, but given the retaining wall i suspect that there is a bit of an elevation change between the two lots.

[HangryHippo]

i agree that it would be better to have fewer curb cuts, but given the retaining wall i suspect that there is a bit of an elevation change between the two lots.

Yep, noticed that myself when I looked again. Still, one can dream, ha.

[bbhill]

I'm surprised they didn't go with any type of backlit or illuminated signage for this building. Looks a bit odd at night. . .

[Plutonic Panda]

i agree that it would be better to have fewer curb cuts, but given the retaining wall i suspect that there is a bit of an elevation change between the two lots.

I suspect it could have worked. More than likely it is a result of planning or lack thereof. OKC has way too many curb cuts.

[poe]

I'm surprised they didn't go with any type of backlit or illuminated signage for this building. Looks a bit odd at night. . .

Perhaps it is the graphic designer in me, but I think the letters look strange period. Maybe they'll put the Embassy logo in that space next to them?

[shawnw]

This is apparently open now...

https://twitter.com/davidfholt/statu...72587315523584

[Celebrator]

They've been open since right before Christmas, this was just the formal ribbon cutting with dignitaries and speeches and all.

[OkiePoke]

They've been open since right before Christmas, this was just the formal ribbon cutting with dignitaries and speeches and all.

Hmm... Didn't realize you can have the "Grand Opening" after something is already open and functioning properly (cough, OKC Boulevard)

[baralheia]

The property was open but the renovations were not totally complete until very recently. A small social convention I attended at the end of January was originally booked for this hotel, but we got moved to another property because the renovations wouldn't be finished in time. I assume they were still finishing either the ballrooms or the meeting rooms.

[Pete]

The opened in December (see my article above with all the photos) and it's typical for businesses to open and then hold an official grand opening event/ceremony sometime later.

[Pete]

[Celebrator]

My understanding is they are closed through May. Tough year to get this property back up and running.

[Pete]

It makes sense for bigger hotels to close for a while, especially the full-service ones.

So many employees are needed it can't be worth it for just a handful of guests.

[Richard at Remax]

So are they ever going to put a logo up there or leave that spot blank?