The George Hotel in Tel Aviv: A scene from the Jetsons - review

By DAVID BRINN APRIL 6, 2024 23:49

Lots of old sci-fi shows and stories, as well as that accurate predictor of the future, The Jetsons, envisioned a time when humanity would live under a bubble, and work, sleep, eat, and play basically under the same roof.

Those seers might have been thinking about The George Tel Aviv, touted as Tel Aviv’s first lifestyle destination.

Opened at the beginning of February and still accelerating to full operation, the establishment (the management won’t call it a hotel), boasting 130 rooms plus 40 suites and junior apartments designed for extended stays, in a spacious 14,000 sq. meters, has a lofty aim of satisfying what the management calls SevenEx – seven urban experiences that focus on the needs of both locals and temporary residents: Live, Work, Meet, Celebrate, Dine, Stay, and Relax.

The George is the first endeavor of Elco Hospitality, a subsidiary of Elco – one of Israel’s leading public holding companies and owners of the Electra brand, as well as the ill-fated 7-11 chain. They brought in Michael Chai, with a wealth of experience in building and managing boutique hotels in Israel and around the world, to run Elco Hospitality and manage the establishment.

“We’re a hotel, for sure, but we’re much more than that,” explained Elco Hospitality’s VP of Brands, Partnerships, and Community, Eyal De Leeuw.

SCENES FROM The George Tel Aviv, which opened in February 2024. (credit: AMIT GIRON)

Embracing the growing global trend of members clubs within hotels, The George isn’t only open to guests, but to local members, enabling them to partake of the SevenEx experience.

For a monthly fee (approximately NIS 850), members can use one of the many work zones The George provides, complete with the fastest wi-fi, sparking kitchens, sleek workstations, and four spacious, fully equipped conference rooms and events rooms. They also have full access to the relaxation zones on The George’s wellness floor – a spa and treatment rooms, pilates lessons, dry and wet saunas, a pool (opening soon), and a fully equipped gym with professional training sessions by Boost studio.

“To become a member, it’s not about what you do, you just need to have two recommendations from existing members. That way, it’s very organic,” said De Leeuw. “It becomes a community.”

Entertainment and culinary-wise, there’s always something cooking at the hands of celeb chef Barak Aharoni (formerly of the Norman) – between the soon-to-be-opened Pardes restaurant (the only eatery of the establishment that will be open to the public at large), the already up-and-running Loft which serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner to club members as well as guests, a Deck Bar next to the pool, and a jazz hall featuring music most evenings. None of the restaurants have kashrut certification and they are all open on Shabbat. However, a soon-to-open farm products deli will possess a Zohar kashrut certificate.

For greater Tel Aviv residents, it sounds ideal. Located in the heart of the city, in the middle of a gentrifying area that was full of, and still houses some chop shops and scrap metal yards, The George is a five-minute walk from the bustle of Rothschild St. and a two-minute walk to the Carlebach light rail stop, which puts the rest of the city at your fingertips.

The kind of place you do not want to leave

But for guests, like I recently was, it’s even better – a place you never want to leave. With mesmerizing architecture and design by Lazaro Rosa Violan, The George features over 1,000 works by Israeli artists, curated in collaboration with the Gordon Gallery. There’s nary an open space or a wall that you won’t stop to gape at, sometimes in wonder.With members stopping by for a drink or a cocktail or finishing their work day at the health club, there’s a feeling that guests are inhaling the Tel Aviv cosmopolitan vibe through osmosis. It’s fun and contagious.

The rooms are meticulously designed with every inch used to create a cozy but elegant ambiance. The corner room we stayed in wasn’t big but was certainly adequate. And the bathroom and shower were something to write home about – elevated and cordoned off from the living area.

We had dinner and breakfast at Loft, a spacious, dimly lit venue that exudes Tel Aviv chic. I could have sworn that the woman dining with a companion across the room was Bar Rafaeli, but my wife told me to stop dreaming and look at the menu instead.

Offering a combination of leafy, healthy salads, pizzas, pastas, burgers, chicken, and steak, Loft’s menu covered most of the bases, and the food was beautifully presented and tasty (and the entrees came out of the kitchen together, not something to be taken for granted at Israeli restaurants.)

Rather than the bountiful buffet breakfast that is omnipresent in Israeli hotels, The George offers sit-down service with a menu featuring a generous number of entrees. Each dish comes with a basket of freshly baked bread and pastries and was more than ample. I was able to get up without feeling stuffed – as usually happens after one of the buffets.

Last but certainly not least, there’s ample underground parking (for payment), which is something you can never take for granted, especially in Tel Aviv.

If I lived nearby, I’d surely befriend some members so they could vouch for my membership. Luckily, though, with nightly rates comparable to most Tel Aviv hotels, I can still return as a paying guest anytime.

The George Tel Aviv5 Israel Tal St. Tel Aviv03-3104400thegeorgetelaviv.com/

The writer was a guest of the George Tel Aviv.