Baccarat Hotel and Residences
The Baccarat tower by SOM is a 605-foot, mixed-use building located on the 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City, directly across the Museum of Modern Art. The project consists of exclusive condominiums, a luxury hotel and a public library. The hotel’s interiors were conceived by the French design duo Gilles & Boissier to combine the classic elegance of a Parisian hotel with the contemporary aesthetic of its midtown New York City location.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Gilles & Boissier designed many of the hotel’s furnishings including commissioning several never-before-seen works from the Baccarat factories. Classic pieces were also curated from the brands’ archival and contemporary collections for the public spaces and rooms. Additional features include: the beautiful parquet wood flooring, woven rugs, hand-pleated silk wall coverings and stainless ribbed ceilings, mica-coated ceilings and mirror and marble wall treatments. Seventeen custom chandeliers hang throughout the property – many suspended by rough cord rope – while one stand-out chandelier is made exclusively out of wood and hangs in the second-floor bar.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
French curators Stephanie and Frederic Chambre assembled the hotel’s art collection, which includes works from important movements over 250 years since Baccarat’s founding. Commissioned original art and one-of-a-kind furniture from renowned French artists Francois Houtin and Armand Jonckers can also be found throughout the hotel.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Each of the hotel’s 114 guest rooms and suites feels like a private pied-a-terre. Room categories start with the generous Classic King and ascend to the Baccarat Presidential Suite, the hotel’s ‘piece de resistance’. All rooms feature floor-to-ceiling windows, sitting areas and custom jacquard linens by Mascioni. Hidden from the sleeping area by hand-painted French doors, white marble bathrooms boast glass-enclosed showers with oversized shower heads and exclusive amenities were created for the hotel by Parisian perfumer Francis Kurkdjian.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
A tablet equipped with state-of-the-art technology controls all aspects of the room, including temperature, lighting and room service. A custom-designed Baccarat red enamel mini-bar offers delights from the French gourmet house Fauchon. On the telephone handset, a button marked ‘Champagne’ allows guests to order a bottle of their favorite vintage to their rooms accompanied by signature Baccarat fluted glasses. Guests of the luxury suites will have the added feature of complimentary La Mer skincare products and nightly salon services. All guests complimentary use of the house car, a vintage Citroen, for transport within 15 blocks of the hotel.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Located at street level, the signature contemporary French restaurant Chevalier takes its name from Baccarat’s longtime and most beloved creative director, Georges Chevalier, who was responsible for ushering the crystal company into the modern age. The restaurant redifines the brasserie de luxe in New York City, referencing the original brasseries of Paris, while also showcasing the reinterpreted and updated French classics. It will be opened for dinner, lunch and breakfast, including a European-style morning meal at its front bar. Guests may reserve the restaurant’s private dining room La Cour for up to 25 persons, featuring a seasonal chef tasting or bespoke menu paired with sommelier-selected wines.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Consummate host Charles Masson, late of the beloved Midtown Manhattan French institution La Grenouille, will serve as Chevalier’s Restaurant Director. Executive Chef Shea Gallante, who earned a Michelin star for his work at the Manhattan restaurant Cru, helms the kitchen. Gallante will also oversee the menus for the Grand and Petit Salons, the Bar and seasonal outdoor terrace overlooking MoMA, en-suite dining and the Harmonie Room, the hotel’s private-event space. On the hotel’s second floor, the Grand and Petit Salons offers light breakfast fare, afternoon tea, small plates and evening cocktails.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
The hotel’s bar, inspired by the stables of Versailles, serves hand-crafted cocktails, aperitifs, fine wines and a light bites menu. Throughout the hotel, guests sip drinks from a kaleidoscope of more than 15,000 pieces of mixed-and-matched Baccarat crystal stemware. The Baccarat Hotel and Residences exhibits its elegance and luxury in the tower podium where guests and residents have access to a variety of distinct amenities: bars, event spaces, lounges and a world-class spa and fitness center.

photography by © Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Project Info:
Architects: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Location: New York, United States
Year: 2015
Manufacturers: Kuraray, Beaubois, Decor Walther, Fantini, VALVO
Photographs: Albert Vecerka/ESTO
Hotel Interior Architect of Record: Woods Bagot
MEP Engineer: Cosentini Associates
Acoustics: Shen Milsom & Wilke
Structural Engineer: WSP Cantor Seinuk
Hotel Interior Design: Gilles & Boissier
Landscape: Harrison Green
Residential Interior Design: Ingrao Inc.
Lighting Designer: Isometrics, Wald Studio
Expeditor: Jerome S. Gillman Consulting
Geotechnical: Langan Engineering & Environmental Services
Residential Interior Layouts: SLCE Architects
Library Interior Architect: TEN Arquitectos
Construction Manager: Tishman Construction Corporation
Vertical Transportation: Van Deusen & Associates
Design Partner: Gary Haney
Managing Partner: T.J. Gottesdiener
Project Manager: Brant Coletta
Technical Director: Nicole Dosso
Senior Design Architect: Aybars Asci
Design Architect: Elizabeth Boone
Technical Enclosure Specialist: Christopher Olsen, Benjamin D. Reich
Technical Coordinator: Daniel Olic
Facade Maintenance: Lerch Bates
Wind Tunnel Testing: Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel Laboratory
Hardware: Ingersoll Rand
Building Maintenance: Lerch Bates
Food Service: Clevenger Frable LaVallee
Pools: Joel Trace Architects
Fireplace: Jansons Associates Inc.
Energy Consultants: Viridian
Telecommunications: Van Deusen & Associates
Security: Van Deusen & Associates
Acousitcs: Van Deusen & Associates
IT: Van Deusen & Associates
Signage And Wayfinding: Lebowitz Gould Design
Client: Starwood Capital Group Baccarat Hotels & Resorts + Tribeca Associates LLC
erda_dokaj
Erda Dokaj is an experienced intern architect and dedicated editor for Arch2O. With a strong foundation in architecture and urban planning, she brings a blend of technical expertise and artistic vision to her editorial work. Erda is known for her meticulous attention to detail and a commitment to producing high-quality content. Holding an Integrated Master’s Degree in Architecture from the Polytechnic University of Tirana, she continuously strives for perfection and is passionate about learning and applying new skills to enrich her creative projects. Through her editorial contributions, Erda inspires and educates fellow architects and design enthusiasts.