The Pillars Hotel & Club

We had dinner at the Pillars Hotel, just drinks and a meal, and the place looked so inviting that we’re planning to book a stay for friends visiting from out west. The setting, service, and food were all topnotch from start to finish, with a great classic “South Florida” feel. We look forward to coming back. Highly recommend.

The new dinner menu at the Secret Garden Restaurant and Dining Club was a nice way to enjoy another lovely visit to the Pillars Hotel and Club. The pasta additions work well, along with several other new items, including meatballs. I especially liked the Penne a la vodka, which came with a generous helping of shrimp. The crudo featured flounder this time and was delicious, with a lovely presentation. Branzino prepared in the traditional Mediterranean style is still my personal favorite, and the best in Fort Lauderdale. Dining at the Pillars, and staying at the hotel, is second to none in Fort Lauderdale. So many restaurants have shifted away from the more sophisticated fine dining experience. Keep up the good work, Pillars!

The people I spoke with when I called ahead were excellent, kind, and helpful. At the hotel, though, the service felt cold. Every question or request seemed to make me a big inconvenience, which was a bad feeling. For the price, I’d recommend spending a little more to stay down the street at the Conrad. There were some real positives: the location made it easy to walk to the beach, the pool area was beautifully landscaped, and the place had lots of charm and personality. It was a little loud, though. The room was nice and generally clean, but we found hairs from previous guests on the bathroom wall and counter. There were no privacy curtains, just a blackout curtain, so we had to choose between a dark room and leaving the blinds open for people in buildings across the street to see in. At check-in, no one told us about our Hilton benefits or checkout time. I called later because I thought breakfast might be included, and they confirmed the continental breakfast was included and checkout was at noon. The next morning, we ordered it, but the food was inedible: three mini pastries each, hard as rocks, two slices of toast with butter and jam, and a pot of coffee. When I reported the stale food, they offered to make something else. They brought two pancakes each, which weren’t good either, but at least were edible. I was surprised, since I thought the food here was supposed to be really good. Our room faced the road, so I expected some noise. We heard sirens and what sounded like drag racing at night, but the worst disturbance seemed to come from elsewhere in the building. It sounded like someone upstairs was dragging heavy furniture around in the middle of the night, so we played white noise to sleep. We asked for a late checkout and were told 12:30 pm was possible, which was fine. Then housekeeping started pounding on our door at 11:30. I opened it confused, since the front desk had said 12:30 after we’d been told noon at check-in. I explained, and she just turned and left. It was strange and off-putting.

Food and service were excellent, and the venue felt cozy inside its boutique hotel, making it a great spot for private events. The dining room sits right on the dock, with a gorgeous view across the intercoastal toward private mansions. The food is the best!