Hotel Blake, Ascend Hotel Collection
Hotel Blake is a boutique property in the South Loop, part of the Ascend Hotel Collection, a short walk from Grant Park and the Loop's main attractions. It leans upscale for a motel-adjacent stay, with a full-service front desk and bell staff rather than a bare-bones check-in counter. Reviewers describe long-tenured staff, some with the property for decades, and a lobby set up for lingering rather than just passing through. The building sits a little further from the main tourist strip, which guests note trades some walkability for a quieter block.
What people praise
- Front desk and bell staff called out by name repeatedly across reviews
- Rooms described as spacious and consistently clean
- Easy access to CTA and public transit
- Housekeeping praised as thorough and unobtrusive
- Attached to Meli Cafe for breakfast
Worth knowing
- No pool on site
- Set slightly back from the busiest tourist corridor
Our take: Hotel Blake earns the top spot on the strength of its 4.6 rating held across a real volume of reviews, and guests keep returning to the same detail: staff who remember their names.
