EatWith, a San Francisco-based global platform that provides alternative dining experiences with local residents and chefs, has a private-dining venue in the city. Called Test Kitchen, the space seats as many as 24 guests or holds 40 for receptions; the site can also host cooking classes.Â
The Ink48, a Kimpton Hotel, in New York offers a host of astrology amenities for groups and meetings in its recently renovated Heaven Over Hell penthouse suite and event space. Activities include tarot card and palm readings, telescope rental, and a star-naming game (complete with a certificate personalized with the star name, date, coordinates, and a sky chart to pinpoint the exact location). Plus, the hotel will organize excursions such as a guided star observation hosted by the Columbia University Observatory and an astronomy lesson at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum complex. Pricing starts at $2,699.
One of the largest producers of organic extra virgin olive oil in the United States, McEvoy Ranch launched a new corporate and special events program for groups and outside companies in March. The 550-acre ranch in the San Francisco Bay Area's Marin County offers six customizable indoor and outdoor venues for corporate meetings, social events, weddings, and more. Event spaces include the indoor Victorian room and the Chinese-inspired indoor-outdoor Pagoda—connected by a courtyard made of repurposed slate from the San Francisco Ferry building—which both hold as many as 100 for receptions. The outdoor Frantoio patio holds 300 for receptions, and a courtyard holds 200 for receptions. Additional spaces include a Rustic Greenhouse that holds 100 for receptions and a tasting room that holds 20 inside and 60 outside. Other eco-friendly highlights of the property, which is certified by California Certified Organic Farmers, include its privately owned Norwin windmill, six rainfall collected irrigation ponds, and its 80 Acres Beauty Collection that offers products made with organic olive oil and infused with botanicals. The ranch also hosts a variety of breakout activities including wine and olive oil tastings, yoga, floral arrangement classes, and olive orchard and estate vineyard tours.
The Westin Denver International Airport hotel received Platinum LEED certification in March. One of only three hotels to achieve a Platinum rating, the hotel—which was designed by global architect Gensler and built by M.H.S.—has a design that reduces energy costs by 49 percent and energy use by 43 percent. The hotel also uses 30 percent less water than conventional designs, with features including high-efficiency mechanical systems, wall-to-wall windows in its 519 guest rooms and 35 suites, and a pre-conference foyer that maximizes daylight heat. Other sustainable design features include low-flow showerheads, demand-control ventilation, and load-shedding escalators. For meetings and events, the hotel has 37,500 square feet of space that includes 19 rooms, the largest of which holds 850 for receptions. Additionally, the hotel has a 60,000-square-foot plaza that holds as many as 2,500 for receptions.
The Monterey Conference Center in Monterey, California, is slated to debut its $60 million renovation this summer. The venue, which has been closed since 2015, is aiming to earn a Platinum LEED certification as part of the city's commitment to sustainability and the environment, which includes programs such as the Green Building Ordinance, free recycling, the Commercial Food Scrap Collection Program, and the Environmentally Preferred Purchasing Policy. Once reopened, the conference center will offer 40,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space that will accommodate as many as 3,200 standing.
