CHICAGO—First Hospitality assumed management and operations of Hotel Ardent, Dayton, Ohio; Lively Hotel, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and opened Tempo by Hilton Louisville Downtown NuLu, bringing the number of lifestyle properties to 25+ in its overall portfolio of 70 hotels. First Hospitality is set to open and has assumed management of seven new restaurants, bringing the total number to 30+ restaurants in the portfolio, including its first international property, Carnivale Bahamas located on Paradise Island.
First Investors, an affiliate of First Hospitality, continues investments in two new development projects; the Tempo by Hilton Louisville Downtown Nulu, which opened its doors on May 1; and Hotel Ardent in Dayton, Ohio, which is slated to open this fall.
Tempo by Hilton Louisville Downtown NuLu is a 130-room hotel that echoes the surrounding NuLu neighborhood with settings for social gatherings and events for locals and travelers alike, as well as spaces to rest. The hotel has two dining options—Moonsong Bar + Café on the first floor and High Stakes Grill, a full-service rooftop restaurant offering indoor and outdoor dining and bar experiences plus an event space.
Hotel Ardent, located in downtown Dayton, Ohio, is slated to open this fall. A Tapestry Collection by Hilton property, Hotel Ardent is a 118-key boutique hotel. First Hospitality will also manage Bistecca, a Tuscan steakhouse in the hotel that will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner, taking inspiration from Florence, Italy with handmade pasta and a wood-fired grill.
First Hospitality will manage each of these hotels and restaurants.
In partnership with Veritas Development, Gatehouse Capital is leading the development of Lively Hotel at OAK, scheduled to open in late August. The 132-key boutique hotel is a component of OAK, a new mixed-use community in Oklahoma City. Lively Hotel is First Hospitality’s first Oklahoma property and will become the first Tapestry Collection by Hilton in the state. The hotel’s restaurant, Cloud Puncher, is also managed by First Hospitality and will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner and provide poolside service.
“It’s exciting to see the growth of lifestyle developments in both our hotel and restaurant portfolios, especially in new markets,” said David Duncan, CEO of First Hospitality and First Investors. “With the expert skill set of our teams and proprietary technology and operating platform, First Hospitality is well positioned to continue to expand in lifestyle accommodations and restaurants as we approach our 40-year company milestone.”
Duncan added that the company assumed management and will be opening Carnivale Bahamas, its first international venture. “Carnivale Bahamas will bring a new energy and the ‘wow factor’ to Paradise Landing and Hurricane Hole Superyacht Marina and will open early fall.”
Carnivale Bahamas will follow the operation of the original Carnivale in Chicago. Serving a similar pan-Latin cuisine and specializing in craft cocktails, Carnivale Bahamas will have 15,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor spaces and will include fine dining, casual outdoor food and drink, live entertainment, and spaces for private events.
First Hospitality also recently added Coa and Assembly American Brasserie to its restaurant management portfolio. Coa, located at The Drake Oak Brook in Oak Brook, Illinois, another First Hospitality-managed property, opened on March 25 and serves Spanish tapas with Latin flare. The restaurant also serves more than 40 tequila and mezcal varieties. Assembly American Brasserie, which opened its doors in late January in downtown Toledo, Ohio, has a 120-seat main dining room as well as The Drawing Room, a 16-seat private dining room, and The Foundry, a 45-seat semi-private dining area.
