Waldorf Astoria New York

The first name of the hotel is ultimately derived from the town of Walldorf, which lies in the north of the German state of Baden-Württemberg, south of Mannheim and Heidelberg. The name of the town is derived from the German words , meaning "forest", and , meaning "village". Walldorf is the ancestral home of the Astor family, the prominent German-American family to which the two side by side original hotels belonged, the Waldorf and the Astoria. The hotels were soon joined by what was called peacock alley, and afterwards the hotel was known as the Waldorf-Astoria with a single hyphen, as recalled by a popular expression and song, "Meet Me at the Hyphen". The sign was changed to a double hyphen, looking similar to an equals sign, by Conrad Hilton when he purchased the hotel in 1949. The double hyphen visually represents "Peacock Alley", the hallway between the two original hotels on Fifth Avenue. The use of the double hyphen was discontinued by its parent company Hilton in 2009, shortly after the introduction of the Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts chain. ==History==

The original hotels on Fifth Avenue were built by feuding relatives. The Waldorf Hotel was opened in 1893, at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 33rd Street, on the former site of millionaire developer William Waldorf Astor's mansion. In 1897, Waldorf's cousin, John Jacob Astor IV, opened the Astoria Hotel on an adjacent site where his mansion had been. From the early 20th century, the hotel faced stiff competition from newer hotels in New York City such as the Hotel Astor (1904), St. Regis (1904), the Knickerbocker (1906), and the Savoy-Plaza (1927). By the 1920s, the Waldorf Astoria was becoming dated, and the elegant social life of New York had moved much farther north. The Astor family sold the hotel to the developers of the Empire State Building, closing the hotel in 1929 and demolishing it soon after. New York Central had promised $10 million toward the building of the new Waldorf-Astoria. The railroad and all the other investors decided to honor their commitments and take their chances with the uncertain financial climate. In October 1929, the Hotel Waldorf-Astoria Corporation obtained a 26-year lease from New York Central, and placed a $11 million first mortgage on the site. On March 24, 1930, the first steel column in the new hotel was installed, and stonework installation began on June 3. The hotel's construction required massive amounts of materials, including 10,000 metal door frames, 11 million bricks, of gypsum and terracotta partition blocks, and of concrete floors. The new Waldorf Astoria had gold-plated doorknobs on eight stories, and its guestrooms, totaling , made the hotel the most spacious in New York City. It used of steel, more than in the Woolworth Building. Several crews of workers labored simultaneously, and not all of them consulted with each other, leading to inconsistencies in the design. The hotel's steel frame topped out, above street level, on October 22, 1930. On October 1, 1931, the new building opened on Park Avenue, between 49th and 50th streets, following a soft opening the previous day. It was the tallest and largest hotel in the world at the time, covering the entire block. The slender central tower became known as the Waldorf Towers, with its own private entrance on 50th Street, and consisted of 100 suites, about one-third of which were leased as private residences. NBC received the exclusive right to broadcast events and music from the hotel and to book live entertainment there. President Herbert Hoover said on the radio, broadcast from the White House: "The opening of the new Waldorf Astoria is an event in the advancement of hotels, even in New York City. It carries great tradition in national hospitality ... marks the measure of nation's growth in power, in comfort and in artistry ... an exhibition of courage and confidence to the whole nation". There were radios in all 2,000 guestrooms and in 15 public rooms, connected by of wire. 140 suites on the upper stories had provision for privately owned receivers. Soon after the hotel opened, hotelier Conrad Hilton, almost bankrupt at the time, reportedly cut out a photograph of the hotel from a magazine and wrote across it, "The Greatest of Them All". Nonetheless, the Waldorf-Astoria did not begin operating at a profit until 1939. Early years and international politics Like the original hotel, from its inception, the Waldorf Astoria gained worldwide renown for its glamorous dinner parties and galas, often at the center of political and business conferences and fundraising schemes. Author Ward Morehouse III has referred to the Waldorf Astoria as "comparable to great national institutions" and a "living symbol deep within our collective consciousness". It had the "greatest banquet department in the world" at the time according to restaurateur Tom Margittai, with the center of activity being the Grand Ballroom. On August 3, 1932, some 200 people representing the "cream of New York's literary world" attended the Waldorf Astoria to honor Pearl S. Buck, the author of The Good Earth, which was the best-selling novel in the United States in 1931 and 1932. One dinner alone, a relatively "small dinner" attended by some 50 people in June 1946, raised over $250,000. During the 1930s and 1940s the hotel's guests were also entertained at the elegant "Starlight Roof" nightclub by the Waldorf-Astoria Orchestra and such noted musicians as: Xavier Cugat, Eddie Duchin, Lester Lanin and Glenn Miller. In the Wedgwood Room, guests dined during performances by entertainers including Frank Sinatra, Victor Borge, the Mischa Borr Orchestra, with John Serry, the Leo Reisman Orchestra, Annamary Dickey, Corinna Mura, Paul Draper, From March 27 to 29, 1949, the Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace, also known as the Waldorf World Peace Conference, was held at the hotel to discuss the emerging Cold War and the growing divide between the US and the Soviet Union. The event was organized by the struggling American Communist Party and was attended by the likes of Soviet Foreign Minister Andrey Vyshinsky, composer and pianist Dmitri Shostakovich, and writer Alexsander Fadeyev. It was picketed by anti-Stalinists running under the banner of America for Intellectual Freedom, and prominent individuals such as Irving Howe, Dwight Macdonald, Mary McCarthy and Robert Lowell. In 1954, Israeli statesman and archaeologist Yigael Yadin met secretly with the Syriac Orthodox Archbishop Mar Samuel in the basement of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel to negotiate the purchase of four Dead Sea Scrolls for Israel; Yadin paid $250,000 for all four scrolls. Among the hotel's notable events was the April in Paris Ball, a gala event whose mission was to improve Franco-American relations, share cultures, assist US and French charities, and commemorate the 2,000th anniversary of the founding of Paris. Established by the hotel's banquet manager Claude Philippe in 1952, it was managed mostly by socialites; the ball was hosted annually until 1959. Hilton acquired management rights to the hotel on October 12, 1949. Restaurateur George Lang began working at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in 1955, and on December 13, 1955, he helped organize the American Theatre Wing's First Night Ball to celebrate Helen Hayes's 50th year in show business. He did much to organize dinners at the Waldorf to assist with Hungarian issues and relief. On one occasion, an event was attended by Edward G. Robinson and pianist Doklady and some $60,000 was raised. Under Hilton's ownership, the lobby was refurbished in the 1950s and again in the 1960s. Time observed that the American public would simply not believe it was New Year's Day unless Guy Lombardo heralded its arrival from the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. In 1968, British rock band The Who checked into the hotel and were reportedly banned from the hotel for life; however, they were allowed to visit the hotel in 1990, when they performed at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction. In 1972, the Hilton Hotels Corporation bought the hotel outright from New York Central's successor, Penn Central. In the 1970s, the Waldorf Astoria continued to play an important role in international politics, particularly between the US and the Middle East. In November 1974, the hotel was placed on high alert when a "20-car motorcade, with eight shotgun-toting police marksmen aboard in bullet-proof vests" brought Palestinian Fatah party leader Farouk Kaddoumi to the Waldorf from John F. Kennedy International Airport. In December 1974, President Ford met with Nelson Rockefeller after he was voted vice president, and a 90-minute press conference was held in a suite in the hotel. In November 1975, the US government insisted that PLO leader Yasser Arafat stay at the Waldorf during his visit to America, against the wishes of the hotel staff; security was stepped up severely. On August 12, 1981, IBM unveiled its Personal Computer in a press conference at the Waldorf Astoria. The National Basketball Association held its first-ever draft lottery between non-playoff teams at the Starlight Roof for the 1985 NBA draft. Lee Jablin, of Harman Jablin Architects, fully renovated and upgraded the property during the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s in a $150 million ($ in dollars) renovation. The main lobby was renovated in 1986 as part of the project, and the hotel was also downsized from 1,800 to 1,700 rooms. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated the Waldorf Astoria's exterior as a New York City landmark in January 1993, which prevented Hilton from demolishing or altering the hotel's facade without the LPC's permission. At the time, Hilton did not have any plans to alter the hotel's facade. On May 7, 2004, a press conference was held by MGM, discussing Steve Martin's The Pink Panther of the Pink Panther series. The 5th Annual DGA Honors Gala was held at the Waldorf on September 29. In 2006, Hilton launched Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, a brand named for the hotel. Branches of the Waldorf Astoria were launched in Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, and Louisiana in the United States, and abroad in France, Israel, Italy, and Saudi Arabia. In 2006, Hilton was reported to be considering opening a new Waldorf Astoria hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. In 2008, the Waldorf Astoria opened the Guerlain and Spa Chakra, Inc. spa at the hotel, as part of the Waldorf Astoria Collection. The Waldorf Astoria New York is a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. "The Towers of the Waldorf Astoria" continued to operate as a boutique "hotel within a hotel". A Chinese restaurant, La Chine, opened at the Waldorf Astoria late the following year. Anbang's founder Wu Xiaohui wanted to convert the Waldorf Astoria into a five-star hotel with condominiums and large units, discussing with several local developers about the possibility of partnering on the redevelopment. On July 1, 2016, Anbang announced plans to refurbish the hotel and turn some rooms into condominiums, The Towers of the Waldorf Astoria. Under the plan, some of the hotel's rooms would be turned into condominium apartments, while the remaining guestrooms would be operated by Hilton. The final event in the Grand Ballroom, on February 28, 2017, was a charity gala celebrating NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital with Stevie Wonder playing. The hotel closed the next day, March 1, 2017. The restaurants, which were all closed, were planned to reopen when the renovation was completed. On March 7, the LPC voted unanimously to list the interiors of many of the hotel's public spaces as New York City landmarks, protecting them from major alterations; the designation covered about . Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) was hired to renovate the hotel's interior and preserve the landmark-protected rooms, and Suffolk Construction was hired as the general contractor. Public spaces like the Grand Ballroom and Peacock Alley were refurbished as part of the project. The hotel rooms were planned to be on the lowest 18 floors. redesigned the apartments and amenity areas, Pierre-Yves Rochon refurbished the hotel rooms, and AvroKO designed a new restaurant space. ArtCare Conservation was hired to redesign the hotel's murals, SOM estimated that 96% of the hotel's interior was replaced entirely, although the landmarked portions of the interior were refurbished. Completion of renovation and Hilton takeover In early 2018, the Chinese government took over the Waldorf Astoria and Anbang's other assets for one year, alleging economic crimes by Anbang. This prompted the cancellation of plans for the private club and gym. Following Anbang's bankruptcy in 2020, Dajia Insurance Group Co. took over Anbang's American assets, including the Waldorf Astoria. Sales of the Waldorf-Astoria's condos began that March. By late 2020, the hotel was set to open at the end of 2022; however, by March 2021, the timeline had been postponed to early 2023. The renovation of the Waldorf Astoria stalled in mid-2022 as the project exceeded its $2 billion budget, Further complications arose due to various workplace accidents, including the death of a worker. In March 2023, news media reported that the building would not reopen until 2025 at the earliest. Hilton Hotels & Resorts hired a leadership team in April 2024 in advance of the hotel's expected reopening later that year. In October 2024, the hotel's reopening was postponed yet again to early 2025. In addition, the chef Michael Anthony was hired that November to operate Lex Yard, the hotel's main restaurant. Hilton began allowing guests to make reservations the next month in preparation for the hotel's reopening, and the first condos went on sale at that time. The first buyers finalized their purchases in February 2025. The firm Douglas Elliman was hired to sell the condos. Jay Neveloff was hired as an adviser for the hotel's renovation and residential conversion, and Neveloff's law firm, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, handled legal aspects of the condo conversion. with 375 rooms. The hotel's meeting facilities and ballroom reopened on September 5, 2025, followed by the Guerlain Wellness Spa in October 2025. By late September, most of the guestrooms were open to the public, and over 30 condos had been sold. ==Architecture==

The hotel was designed by architects Schultze and Weaver and constructed at 301 Park Avenue, between 49th and 50th Streets, several blocks north of Grand Central Terminal. The hotel was developed atop the existing railroad tracks leading to the station as part of the Terminal City complex, using the air rights above the tracks. Travel America stated: "To linger in the sumptuous salons of the Waldorf-Astoria is to step back in time. Your trip down memory lane is a flashback to the glamor days of the 1930s when this Art Deco masterpiece was the tallest hotel in the world and the epicenter of elite society. A legendary limestone landmark occupying a whole block of prime real estate in midtown Manhattan, it's still a prestigious address that embodies luxury and power in the richest city on earth." Form and facade The 47-story, hotel, The massing of the hotel rises from a pair of 20-story-high slabs at the base, which run parallel to Park and Lexington Avenues. The slabs contain setbacks at the 18th story on their western elevation and at the 13th and 16th stories on the eastern elevation. The slab on Park Avenue contained a retractable metal and glass roof above the 18th and 19th stories, above the Starlight Roof nightclub. The slabs are covered with gray limestone and lack colorful ornamentation. The facade of the lower stories is divided vertically into numerous bays, which contain recessed windows and spandrel panels. There are three patterns of spandrels on the western and eastern elevations of the facade, facing Park and Lexington Avenues respectively. Gilded letters with the hotel's name are placed above the entrances on either avenue. On Park Avenue, the letters are flanked by representations of maidens. Above the 20th story, the hotel rises as a single slab to the 42nd story. This slab is oriented parallel to the side streets and is also faced in gray limestone. The 42-story slab is topped by a pair of towers. The tops of the towers contain bronze-and-glass lanterns measuring high and 15 feet wide. Many of the public areas used indirect lighting, with lightbulbs concealed in objects such as lamps and vases, "so as to create a restful atmosphere". Tours are conducted of the hotel for guests. Ground level The hotel is accessed by two foyers at ground level: one on Park Avenue to the west and one on Lexington Avenue to the east. Stairs on the east wall lead up to the Park Avenue lobby. The Lexington Avenue foyer is at the center of the Lexington Avenue elevation and also contains nickel-bronze decorations. The east wall has three vestibules with metal-and-glass doors leading to the street. The center vestibule is a revolving door within a curved frame, while the other vestibules have doors that swing outward. Above the vestibules are grilles, wood paneling, and beveled mirrors. The west wall contains escalators to the north and a stairway to the south, which ascend to the lobby level, as well as a hallway leading to additional spaces at ground level. A private driveway, measuring wide and long, was built from 49th to 50th Street. Similar to the old Waldorf-Astoria's 34th Street carriageway, this allowed private vehicles and taxis to drop off and pick up guests without blocking traffic. The driveway led to a parking lot with 300 spaces. Lobby level Unlike in other American hotels, the lobby story of the Waldorf Astoria is raised one story above ground level, which both created the impression of grandeur and allowed storefronts to be placed at ground level. Park Avenue lobby and colonnade On the west side of the lobby level is the Park Avenue lobby, also called the main foyer; it is accessed from the Park Avenue foyer and is illuminated by that foyer's windows. The LPC describes the space as being in the Pompeian style. The Park Avenue lobby is surrounded by raised terraces on the north and south walls, the Park Avenue foyer to the west, and the colonnade to the east. The north terrace connects with the Empire Room, while the south terrace connects with the Vanderbilt Room; both terraces have an alcove to the west and a stair to the east. The center of the Park Avenue lobby has a stepped ceiling, the terraces and Park Avenue foyer have painted panels on their ceilings, and the terraces' alcoves have metallic-trim ceilings. The west lounge is known as the Peacock Alley and runs north–south, connecting the Park Avenue lobby and colonnade to the west and the west elevator bank to the east. This space contains the Peacock Alley restaurant, which includes the main restaurant, a bar and lounge, and three private dining salons. The elevators are furnished with paneled pollard oak and Carpathian elm. Main lobby The main lobby, at the center of the lobby level, measures across and high. The lobby has four wood-paneled walls, all of which originally contained archways, but the archways on the north and south walls have been infilled. There are also square columns made of black marble, which support a plaster ceiling. The tops of the walls contain a bas-relief frieze, installed in a 1980s renovation. The lobby also contains Cole Porter's Steinway & Sons floral print-decorated grand piano on the Cocktail Terrace, which the hotel had once given him as a gift. The main lobby is surrounded on all four sides by a system of secondary corridors. The eastern corridor allowed direct access from Lexington Avenue to the various rooms on the third and fourth stories. The architects used different colors of marbles for the lobby-floor lounges to distinguish them from each other. The west lounge has French walnut burl panels separated by red French marble; the former north lounge had yellow Siena marble; the south lounge has white gray Breche Montalto marble; and the east arcade has serpentine cladding. East arcade and stair hall East of the main lobby is the main lobby hall, which leads to the hotel's east arcade and eastern elevator bank. The room includes wall panels made of burled wood, as well as bronze vitrines. The east arcade runs in a north–south direction, connecting the main lobby hall to the west and a stair hall to the east. Its design is similar to that of the west lounge. The east arcade has elevators with nickel-bronze doors that contain bas-reliefs of floral patterns and figures. The east arcade also contains Japanese-ash wall paneling; green-marble pilasters with Corinthian capitals; and metal-and-glass doors. The northern end of the east arcade has been divided into another room, while the southern end leads to a staircase that connects with the 49th Street Ballroom. The arcade also contains display cases and stores, although it originally functioned as a lounge. The stair hall consists of a pair of staircases leading from the first to the third floor, allowing guests to access the ballroom directly from Lexington Avenue. The staircases contain balustrades with frozen-fountain motifs and brass handrails, as well as marble statues. The plaster walls are painted to resemble travertine and contain grilles and mirrored panels, while the ceilings have stepped surfaces and crystal chandeliers. Other lobby-level spaces The lobby level contains the room registration and cashier desks, the Empire Room and Hilton Room, the private Marco Polo Club, the Wedding Salon, Kenneth's Salon, the Peacock Alley lounge and restaurant, and Sir Harry's Bar. From 1992 to 2013, Kenneth, sometimes called the world's first celebrity hairdresser, famed for creating Jacqueline Kennedy's bouffant in 1961, moved his hairdressing and beauty salon to the Waldorf after a 1990 fire destroyed his shop on 19 East 54th Street. The Library Lounge, which has functioned as the check-in area since 2025, is accessed from a porte-cochère facing 49th Street. Grand Ballroom The Grand Ballroom, measuring , measures high. The space could fit up to 4,000 people. The ballroom has a stage at its northern end, The Grand Ballroom is surrounded by galleries that connect the main floor to the balconies. The galleries contain carpets on the floors, grilles on the walls, and metal staircases. and the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner. The NASCAR Sprint Cup end-of-season awards banquet was held at the Waldorf-Astoria every year between 1981 and 2008;, mainly in the Grand Ballroom. Every October, the Paris Ball was held in the Grand Ballroom, before moving to the Americana (now the Sheraton Times Square). Bob Hope was a regular performer at the Ballroom, as was Guy Lombardo, who used to broadcast live on the radio there from the "Starlight Roof". Maurice Chevalier performed at the ballroom in 1965 in his last appearance. Louis Armstrong performed at the Waldorf for two weeks in March 1971 in his last performance. Since 1986, most Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies have been held in the Grand Ballroom. Other third- and fourth-story spaces The ballroom foyer, east of the ballroom, measures wide. There is an aisle to the east, separating the foyer from the ballroom entrance hall. The southern end of the aisle contains a staircase leading to a mezzanine and the fourth-floor balcony; the mezzanine and stairway have metal railings. The walls contain metal grilles, and the north and south walls also have marble piers. The north, west, and east walls have transoms with mirrors, while the south wall has marble paneling and mirrored doors. The ceilings are made of plaster, with crystal chandeliers hanging from a dome with plaster peacocks. The ballroom's entrance hall, also known as the Silver Corridor or Silver Gallery, bears a resemblance to the original hotel's Peacock Alley, but is shorter and wider. It measures almost long and connects the ballroom's foyer to the west with the stairways from Lexington Avenue to the east. This room has a vaulted ceiling with crystal chandeliers suspended from it. The walls and doors have mirrored panels, and the space also has grilles, molded frames, and murals. The elevator doors are made of nickel-bronze and depict two women, one each with a lute and a harp. The space includes oil paintings and a fireplace mantel salvaged from Basildon Park, a 17th-century English manor designed by John Carr. The oil paintings, designed by Angelica Kauffmann, The small eastern foyer, connecting the Jade Room with the Astor Gallery, contains grilles on the walls and ceilings, as well as doorways leading west to the stair hall. The Astor Gallery, at the third story's southeast corner, also measures 78 by 48 feet and is divided into three aisles, like the Jade Room. Most of the decorative features are similar to those in the Jade Room, but the south wall of the Astor Gallery also contains a fireplace. The Jade Room had green pilasters and gold window drapes. The Astor Gallery had silver-gray pilasters and rose drapes. Rooms and suites The hotel originally had 2,253 guestrooms, including 500 deluxe rooms and 300 parlors. The suites ranged from . The rooms retained their original Art Deco motifs, although each room is decorated differently. Many of the enlarged units are at least twice as large as the previous rooms, Upper-story suites and condominiums The Tower suites were divided into standard ones; The Towers Luxury Series, which have their own sitting room; the Towers Penthouse Series; the Towers Presidential-Style Suites; and finally the most expensive Presidential Suite on the 35th floor. The Penthouse Series contained three suites, The Penthouse, The Cole Porter Suite, and The Royal Suite, named after the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. They started at in size, with two or more bedrooms, and had a kitchen and a dining room which could accommodate 8–12 guests. The Towers Presidential-Style Suites were divided into the MacArthur Suite and the Churchill Suite, and had their own grand entry foyer. Like the Penthouse Series, they had their own kitchen and dining room. The penthouses, within the copper pinnacles, are duplex apartments covering and have private elevators. The top five stories were devoted to mechanical equipment. The hotel has its own railway platform, Track 61, that was part of the New York Central Railroad (later Metro-North Railroad), and was connected to the Grand Central Terminal complex. An elevator measuring , There is a pedestrian entrance from 50th Street, just to the left of the Waldorf Towers entrance, but it is rarely open to the public. ==Cuisine==

, Archbishop of York The Waldorf Astoria was the first hotel to offer room service 24 hours a day, An extensive menu is available for guests, with special menus for children and for dieters. Behind the bar were bronze statues of a bull and a bear, which represent stock exchange trends. The Inagiku, meaning the "rice chrysanthemum", served contemporary Japanese cuisine. Designed by Henry Look of San Francisco, the restaurant had four "distinctly different" rooms, including one which represents an old Japanese farmhouse, and the Kinagu Room, resembling a Japanese temple. Guests could reserve private orthodox tatami rooms. Tschirky was also noted for his "Oscar's Sauce", which became so popular that it was sold at the hotel. Another of the hotel's specialties was red velvet cake, which became one of its most popular desserts. Sir Harry's Bar was one of the principal bars of the hotel, situated just off the main lobby. It was named after British Sir Harry Johnston (1858–1927). In the 1970s the bar was renovated in a "plush African safari" design to honor Johnston, a notable explorer of Africa, with "zebra-striped wall coverings and carpeting, with bent-cane furnishings". It was later redecorated back to a more conservative design, with walnut paneling and leather banquettes, and featured a by ebony bar as of the early 1990s. Frank Sinatra frequented Sir Harry's Bar for many years. Current restaurants Following the 2020s renovation, the hotel has had three restaurants: the Lex Yard, Yoshoku, and Peacock Alley. The restaurant occupies two floors, with two private dining rooms on each level and an Art Deco bar on each level. Yoshoku, occupying a minimalist space in the Park Avenue lobby, In 1934, Crockett wrote a second book, "The Old Waldorf Astoria Bar Book", in response to the repeal of the Volstead Act and the end of the Prohibition era. He edited out most of the text from the first book. Drawing from his experiences as a travel writer, Crockett added nearly 150 more recipes, the bulk of which can be found in the "Cuban Concoctions" and "Jamaican Jollifers" chapters. These books became reference books on the subject of pre-Prohibition cocktails and their culture. In 2016, the long-time hotel bar manager of Peacock Alley and La Chine, Frank Caiafa, added a completely new edition to the canon. Caiafa's "The Waldorf Astoria Bar Book" includes all of the recipes in Crockett's books; many of the hotel's most important recipes created since 1935; and his own creations. In 2017, it was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Beverage Book. Other notable books with connections to the hotel include "Drinks" (1914) by Jacques Straub, a wine steward and a friend of Oscar Tschirky who had written about the first hotel's notable recipes. Tschirky compiled a list of 100 recipes for his own 1934 book "100 Famous Cocktails", a selection of favorites from Crockett's books. Hotel publicist Ted Saucier wrote "Bottoms Up" in 1951, consisting of a compendium of popular, national recipes of the day. ==Notable residents and guests==

Leaders and businesspeople , Princess Juliana of the Netherlands, Eleanor Roosevelt, Crown Princess Märtha of Norway, and Thomas J. Watson at the Waldorf Astoria in 1944. On the 100th anniversary of the original hotel in 1993, one publication wrote: "It isn't the biggest hotel in New York, nor the most expensive. But when it comes to prestige, the Waldorf-Astoria has no peer. When presidents come to New York, they stay at the Waldorf-Astoria. Kings and queens make it their home away from home, as have people as diverse as Cary Grant, the Dalai Lama and Chris Evert. Some of them liked the hotel so well, they made their home there." Over the years many royals from around the world stayed at the Waldorf Astoria including Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran and Empress Farah, King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark, Princess Astrid of Norway, Crown Prince Olav and Crown Princess Martha of Norway, King Baudouin I of Belgium and Queen Fabiola, Prince Albert and Princess Paola of Belgium, King Hussein I of Jordan, Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace of Monaco, Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, King Michael of Romania, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of the Commonwealth realms, Mohammed Zahir Shah and Homaira Shah of Afghanistan, King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit of Thailand, and Crown Prince Akihito and Princess Michiko of Japan, The great-great-grandson of King Joseph Bonaparte and many others. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip stayed at the hotel during their first visit to America on October 21, 1957, and a banquet was held for them in the Grand Ballroom. In the Bicentennial year in 1976, most of the heads of state from around the world and all of the Kings and Queens of Europe were invited to the hotel, and it also served the presidential candidates in the run up to the elections of that year. family with New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller at the Waldorf Astoria in 1959 In modern times, the clientele of the Waldorf is more typically wealthy politicians and businessmen than playboys and royalty. An entire floor was often rented out to wealthy Saudi Arabians with their own staff. Wealthy Japanese businessmen during their stay would sometimes remove the furniture and replace it with their own floor mats. Demands by people of prominence could often be exorbitant or bizarre. Fidel Castro once walked into the hotel with a flock of live chickens, insisting that they be killed and freshly cooked on the premises to his satisfaction, only to be turned away. While serving as Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger ordered all of the antiques to be removed from one suite and replaced with 36 desks for his staff. An unnamed first lady once demanded that all of the bulbs in her suite be changed to 100-watt ones and kept on all day and night to simulate daylight. She further insisted that there be an abundance of chewing gum available. lived at the Waldorf for 20 years, from 1944 until he died in 1964 while living in the hotel's Presidential Suite. Postmaster General James Farley occupied two adjoining suites in the current Waldorf Astoria during his tenure as the chairman of the board of Coca-Cola's International division from 1940 until his death in 1976, arguably one of the landmark's longest housed tenants. The Presidential Suite at the hotel come from when, during the 1950s and early 1960s, former U.S. president Herbert Hoover and retired U.S. General Douglas MacArthur lived in suites on different floors of the hotel. Hoover lived at the Waldorf Astoria for 20 years from after his wife died in 1944 until he died in 1964. Former president Dwight D. Eisenhower lived there between 1967 and his death in 1969. MacArthur's widow, Jean MacArthur, lived there from 1952 until her death in 2000. A plaque affixed to the wall on the 50th Street side commemorates this. John F. Kennedy was fond of the Waldorf Astoria and had a number of private meetings at the hotel, including one with Israeli prime minister David Ben-Gurion. From Hoover through Barack Obama, every president of the United States has either stayed over or lived in the Waldorf Astoria, although Jimmy Carter claimed to have never stayed overnight at the hotel. Carlos P. Romulo, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines and member of the UN had suite 3600, below Hoover's, for some 45 years from 1935 onwards. Former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos also spent much time and money at the hotel. Another connection with the Philippines is that many meetings were held here between President Manuel L. Quezon and high ranking American politicians and senators. Through the meetings, Quezon encouraged investment into the country and convinced General MacArthur to accompany him back to the Philippines as his military adviser. Nicaraguan president Anastasio Somoza Debayle and his wife Hope Portocarrero had a penthouse suite at the Waldorf Towers, where Somoza received political leaders. Celebrities The hotel has had many well-knowns under its roof throughout its history, including Charlie Chaplin, Ava Gardner, Liv Ullmann, Edward G. Robinson, Gregory Peck, Ray Bolger, John Wayne, Tony Bennett, Jack Benny, Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Muhammad Ali, Vince Lombardi, Judy Garland, Sonny Werblin, Greer Garson, Harold Lloyd, Liberace, Burt Reynolds, Robert Montgomery, Cesar Romero, and many others. Due to the number of high-profile guests staying at the hotel at any one time, author Ward Morehouse III has referred to the Towers as a "kind of vertical Beverly Hills. On any one given night you might find Dinah Shore, Gregory Peck, Frank Sinatra [or] Zsa Zsa Gabor staying there". Gabor married Conrad Hilton in 1941. During the 1930s, gangster Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel owned an apartment at the Waldorf. Frank Costello was said to have got his haircut and nails done in the Barber's Shop at the Waldorf. Around the time of World War I, inventor Nikola Tesla lived in the earlier Waldorf-Astoria. In 1955, Marilyn Monroe and her husband Arthur Miller stayed at the hotel for several months. Due to costs of trying to finance her production company "Marilyn Monroe Productions", only being paid $1,500 a week for her role in The Seven Year Itch and being suspended from 20th Century Fox for walking out on Fox after creative differences, living at the hotel became too costly, and Monroe had to move into a different hotel in New York City. Around the same time that Monroe lived in the hotel, Cole Porter and his wife Linda Lee Thomas had an apartment in the Waldorf Towers, where Thomas died in 1954. Porter's 1934 song "You're the Top", contains the lyric, "You're the top, you're a Waldorf salad". The Cole Porter Suite, Suite 33A, was the place where Porter lived and entertained for a period. Frank Sinatra paid nearly $1 million a year to keep it as his suite at the hotel between 1979 and 1988, which he called home when out of Los Angeles. Sinatra took over part of the hotel during the filming of The First Deadly Sin in 1980. Grace Kelly and Rainier III were regular guests at the hotel. At one time Kelly was reputed to be in love with the hotel banquet manager of the Waldorf, Claudius Charles Philippe. Elizabeth Taylor frequented the hotel, and would often attend galas at the hotel to talk about her various causes. Her visits were excitedly awaited by the hotel staff, who would prepare long in advance. Taylor was honored at the 1983 Friars Club dinner at the hotel. Brooke Shields has stated that her very first encounter with the paparazzi was in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf at the age of 12, stating that she "stood like a statue wondering why they were all hired to photograph me", and that she "debuted at the Waldorf". During her childhood in the 1980s and 1990s, Paris Hilton lived with her family in the hotel. One of the most prestigious debutante balls in the world is the invitation-only International Debutante Ball held biennially in the Grand Ballroom at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, where girls from prominent world families are presented to high society. Since 1954 the musical entertainment at the ball has traditionally been provided by the musicians of the Lester Lanin Orchestra. File:Cast from Parks and Recreation, Portlandia and Game of Thrones at the 71st Annual Peabody Awards.jpg|The casts of Parks and Recreation, Portlandia, and Game of Thrones at the 71st Annual Peabody Awards inside the Waldorf Astoria File:58th International Debutante Ball 2012, New York City (Waldorf-Astoria Hotel).jpg|The 58th International Debutante Ball, 2012, at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City ==In popular culture==

The Waldorf Astoria has been a filming location for numerous films and TV series. Ginger Rogers headlined an all star ensemble cast in the 1945 film Week-End at the Waldorf, set at the hotel and filmed partially on location there. Ayn Rand biographer Anne Heller wrote that the Waldorf Astoria inspired the "Wayne-Falkland Hotel" in Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged. ==See also==