Scott H.
Yelp
Grand Hotel does a lot right, but it did one major thing wrong, so I won't be giving it 5 stars. I stayed 2 nights at Grand for a wedding near McKinney. We arrived on a Friday afternoon. The valet is a bit of a cluster*#@(, you basically leave your vehicle on Louisiana Street and the valet gets it and moves it. So, you're unpacking your vehicle while traffic pulls around you. There is a bit of street parking near the hotel, but the square is a pretty busy area, so I'd advise using the valet.
Check in was very quick, no issues there. This is an older hotel, so the rooms aren't uniform size. My room and bathroom was much smaller than other rooms I saw. But, the room was VERY comfortable. It felt like a real bedroom in someone's home, maybe more than any hotel I've stayed in. The bed was very comfortable as was the linens and bedspread. I got 2 very good nights' sleep while I was there.
Since the room was on the smaller side, space was at a premium. My room didn't have a work space, which wasn't an issue since I was in town for a wedding, but had I needed to do any work on a laptop I probably would have just sat on the bed. The wifi was spotty as well, so maybe this isn't the best hotel for a work trip.
The TV is small (but it's housed in this enormous armoire that seems to take up a quarter of the room by itself. Great piece of furniture but overkill) and didn't get many channels. This was a large disappointment, but you don't go to hotels to watch TV, so I can let this slide.
What I can't let slide, and the reason I docked the Grand a star, is the hot water situation. I waited at least 15 minutes on more than one occasion to get hot water in the shower. The day I checked out, I waited so long I finally gave up. I called down to the front desk once to ask about this, and I was advised it should come through after about 5 minutes. I didn't find this to be the case. Additionally, the water temperature was not consistent during showers. I get that it's an old hotel, but that needs to be remedied.
The restaurant in the Grand is Rick's, which is an above average steakhouse. There is also a lounge which had live music Friday and Saturday nights. Fun atmosphere and very friendly bartenders. Everyone I encountered at the Grand was great, I would absolutely return for another weekend in McKinney.