As part of its continuing restoration program, the Beverly Hills Hotel has reopened the 73-year-old Polo Lounge after a two-month month redesign.
Led by designer Adam Tihany, the subtle refresh to the Polo Lounge retains its relaxed atmosphere and familiar green and white stripes. But updated carpets, upholsteries and fixtures and an upgraded patio are part of the Dorchester Collection property’s ongoing renovation, which will be completed with all rooms and suites being updated by the summer of 2014.
The Polo Lounge has a rich history and storied past. Charlie Chaplin had a standing reservation for Booth 1 for decades; the table remained empty if he didn't show up. In the 1940s, Marlene Dietrich, a frequent hotel guest and one-time resident, eradicated the "no slacks for women" dress code when she refused to wear a skirt in the Polo Lounge. And in 1972, H.R. Haldeman, White House chief of staff to President Richard Nixon, and John Ehrlichman, assistant to President Nixon for domestic affairs, learned of the Watergate break-in while breakfasting here.