A Dramatic Overhaul of Montreal’s Five-Star Vogue Hotel

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VOGUE HOTEL MONTREAL DOWNTOWN, CURIO COLLECTION BY HILTON

Location: Montreal

Designer: Sid Lee Architecture

On Offer: When Sid Lee Architecture set about to rethink the common spaces of Montreal’s five-story Vogue Hotel, founders Jean Pelland and Martin Leblanc wanted to integrate the heritage of the hotel’s new Turkish owners with the heart of its location, the buzzy Golden Square Mile. The best way to do this, the pair figured, was to blur the lines between inside and out: first, they flipped the lobby’s axis horizontally, installed a floor-to-ceiling glass façade by Lemay Michaud, and tucked reception into a hallway to serve as a portal to the private areas. 

A front desk of Turkish travertine seems to rise out of floors of the same material. Deeper still, guests encounter the Cabinet of Curiosities, a library beneath an oculus that offers books and art objects curated by ImageMotion art director Priyanka Jhamb. Near the street, banquettes and curved sofas in cinnamon Ultrasuede offer open reading and social spaces, illuminated by Lambert & Fils’ Sainte sculptural lighting and a free-floating, mirrored bronze fireplace.

Standout Features: Aligned with the glass façade, chef Antonio Park’s intimate Café Bazin offers coffees and bites. But the real draw is YAMA, Park’s fine dining approach to Nikkei cuisine. Sid Lee Architecture custom designed the large central dining table in bleached white oak, and the tweed booths, not to mention the monumental, oblong Turkish travertine bar serviced by a custom wine cellar opposite the front desk. On warm nights, the place to be is the terrace, resembling a metallic pod. But if it’s booked, never fear—the façade’s walls are actually operable floor-to-ceiling windows, vanishing the separation of the hotel from the world outside entirely.

(All photography by Alex Lesage.)