Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you already know that the W Hotel is opening next month (Aug. 13, to be exact) in the Foshay. What you may not realize is how hip it’s going to be. I know, I konw—first it was the Graves 601, then the Chambers, the Westin, the Ivy, and soon Hotel Minneapolis. These have notable perks, like gourmet dining, rockstar suites, spa clubs, special mattresses, and fresh-baked chocolate cookies.
In this girl’s opinion, however, the W will have the perk of perks: a partnership with Denny Kemp Salon and Spa. Although most W’s have a Bliss Spa, our W will offer guests the option of recieving the salon’s services in one of the hotel’s onsite treatment rooms (there’s no spa facility, per se), or traveling via a chauffer-driven car to Denny’s glamorous new digs in northeast Minneapolis. Service offerings will include hair styling, massage, facials, mani/pedis, and body treatments—most notably, Shu Uemura body rituals, which no other Twin Cities salon offers. The concept is part of W’s “Whatever/Whenever” commitment to service, which promises guests whatever they want, whenever they want it, by pressing a Whatever/Whenever button on their hotel phone.
After spending a recent afternoon at Denny Kemp, I can tell you that whoever presses that button is in for a treat. First, because the salon is breathtaking: bold, bright, and black and white all over. Second, because Denny and his staff (all of whom are tragically hip and remarkably friendly), are so enthusiastic about this partnership—even if it might mean getting up at 4 a.m. to do a blow-out on demand. My guess is that they know what I know: that once visitors experience the W + Denny Kemp, they’ll wish they lived in Minneapolis. I wouldn’t blame them one bit.
