Glass Light Hotel & Gallery, Autograph Collection

The art throughout Glass Light is so beautiful, and it's a great spot in downtown Norfolk. We had the best experience: the hotel is amazing, the staff are welcoming, and our room was awesome with an amazing view. The restaurant downstairs deserves a Michelin star. They poached a pineapple and made the best short ribs ever. Sitting at the chef's table and watching how everything was made was so cool, and breakfast was incredible too. Run, don't walk, even if you're just going for dinner and drinks after work.

The bartenders were great, the food was delicious, and the location is hard to beat. Still, too many basics were missing for what this stay cost. The TV lagged and buffered so badly it was almost impossible to watch anything, and only one of the hotel's three elevator banks was running. One elevator never left the first floor, while another was visibly being repaired. Our room was spacious for a city hotel, but the bathroom setup was awkward: I don't want a pocket door or an opaque shower window. After we came back from a day out, the room had been cleaned but there was just one towel for two people. The shower gel dispenser had already been empty that morning, and it still hadn't been refilled. We called the front desk for a towel and soap, but nobody answered. My husband went down and was told they'd been very busy and there was no manager on duty. He left the room furious. I'm not sure I'd pay to stay at an Autograph hotel again.

The restaurant was a bright spot. The food we got was genuinely good, especially the chicken, though they were already out of the salt & pepper shrimp and fries just after opening at 5pm. Two appetizers, two entrées, wine, and a double bourbon came to about $200. The hotel itself is beautiful, but this was meant to be a special birthday stay and several things got in the way. I had booked a corner room with a city view and a tub because I wanted the three of us to bathe together, or my fiancé and me to have a bath while the baby slept. Instead, we were first assigned a 5th-floor room, then changed to the 12th floor in the elevator, which got us excited. The room had no tub and wasn't a corner room. Its view was a narrow strip of water, lower buildings, and several AC units. My fiancé is from Norfolk and hasn't stayed somewhere like this, and I wanted him to have that wow moment. We were exhausted in the newborn trenches, so I didn't ask to move, and I wish I'd taken a picture of the view. Check-in was supposed to be at 4pm, but the room wasn't ready until 4:40. I had to nurse and change our newborn in the lobby, which was frustrating since I'd planned around not nursing in public. Luckily the waiting area was empty. There's no microwave in the room either, and we waited about an hour for one to be brought up. It's a stunning place with good food, but the late room and wrong room features put a damper on the birthday. I'd double-check any specific room features before booking.

The glass art collection gives the hotel an elegant feel, and the location and romantic atmosphere were lovely. The downstairs bar staff were great, and the front desk team was kind and welcoming. We'd definitely come back, though we'd make a better plan for feeding our young child since the restaurant menu didn't offer much for her. The rooms are bright and cheerful when everything works, and the bathrooms really stood out. Our recurring problem was the electronic, WiFi-enabled blinds. They kept losing signal and becoming unusable, with no way to open them manually, so maintenance had to come twice. Valet was hard to reach and slow; more than one person at busy times would help.