Hotel Nia raises the bar on swank
Move over, Four Seasons, and watch out, Rosewood Sand Hill. Silicon Valley has a new hot spot in Menlo Park’s Hotel Nia, which had a swanky grand opening party. How swanky was it? Well, the invite-only, VIP party had a mermaid hanging out at the bath of the 11th-floor Nia Suite, where guests Thursday night were greeted with glasses of Veuve Cliqout Champagne and Belvedere vodka martinis.
The suite’s elegant design — including a brass-colored pot-belly stove fireplace — was almost enough to make you forget that the main view from the balcony was of Highway 101.
The rest of the 250-room, glass hotel also is designed in modernist fashion with glamour to spare.
The furnishings have that organic, natural feel that the movers and shakers of the valley love.
There’s a poolside courtyard — you can actually sit on a smooth rock that’s more comfortable than some chairs — that connects the hotel with the spacious Brilliance Ballroom, which includes a representation of the famous Menlo Park tree in the city’s logo.
A second floor meeting room, appropriately called “Vision,” seems like just the kind of place where tech titans would survey their empire. And you can imagine that many a deal will be made in the bar of the Porta Blu restaurant.
At least General Manager Simone Harms imagines that. She said that with its proximity to Facebook, the hotel is aiming to be a go-to location for corporate visitors. But, she added, it’s also an option for Silicon Valley residents looking for a luxury weekend staycation.
Hotel Nia earned a little community goodwill right off the bat, donating $25,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula.
NIGHT TO REMEMBER » The final numbers are in, and the Part the Cloud Gala at the Rosewood Sand Hill last month brought in more than $11 million to fund cutting-edge Alzheimer’s research.
That’s a record for the event, founded in 2012 by
Michaela “Mikey” Hoag with the Alzheimer’s Association. Hoag, and co-chairs Ellen Drew and Debbie Robbins. were joined by a crowd of more than 300 that included Garth Brooks, Ronnie Lott, Dagmar Dolby and her son, David Dolby, Patty Quillin and Reed Hastings, actress Kimberly Williams Paisley, ESPN’s Sage Steele, who served as emcee, and singer-songwriter Jay Allen, who was the headline performer.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE » Monique Abed, the events director for San Josebased NINICO Communications, was crowned as the Woman of the Year by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Silicon Valley last weekend. Abed, who raised more than $58,000 for the nonprofit
during the short campaign, got involved because her 4-year-old son, Liam, has been battling leukemia since he was 1. Thanks to his mom’s fundraising — and her major donors included the San Jose Sharks, the Britt George Foundation and the Silicon Valley Capital Club — Liam’s name will now be tied to specific research in continuing the fight.
And DGDG Does Good, the charitable arm of the Del Grande Dealer Group, gave a big lift to Make-AWish Greater Bay Area by partnering with Subaru’s Share the Love event to raise $32,000 for the agency that grants wishes to kids battling life-threatening medical conditions. The dealer group got to witness the results of its generosity, too,
as Capitol Subaru General Manager Jon Godinez got to reveal to a Make-A-Wish recipient named Adeline that her dream of a trip to Japan was being fulfilled.
CELEBRATING WOMEN LEADERS » Former San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer and former Santa Clara County Supervisor Blanca Alvarado will be among the honorees Saturday at “Hear Her Song,” a program celebrating women in leadership roles taking place at the Hammer Theatre Center.
It is the West Coast premiere of “Hear Her Song,” which made its debut last month at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C. The 7 p.m. concert will take place in Hammer4, and will feature mezzo soprano Carla
Canales, musical actress Margo Seibert, singer and musician Crystal Monee Hall and performance poet Jacqueline Suskin.
General admission tickets are $20 and can be purchased at www.hammertheatre.com.
GOT PHOTOS?» The Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce is holding a photo contest to see who best captures “The Look and Feel of Los Gatos.” Submissions can be made by amateur or professional photographers through May 31 in three categories: Architecture, landscape and people/ community. Get details at www.losgatoschamber.com/ photo-contest.