Hotel Reviews
Travel Tuesday: Caption by Hyatt Memphis Hotel Review
A few weeks ago, I had the chance to visit Memphis, Tennessee. Despite driving through the city a few times, this was my first proper visit (albeit one that was quite short). To mark the occasion, I decided to look for something that was convenient for me but that also seemed interesting to review. What I found was the Caption by Hyatt Memphis — which is apparently one of the very few Captions at the moment.
So, how was my stay at this Memphis location? Let’s take a closer look at the Caption by Hyatt.
Reviewing the Caption by Hyatt Memphis
Booking
As you’d expect, the Caption by Hyatt Memphis can be booked via a number of travel portals and third-party sites. Yet, I elected to book directly with Hyatt for this trip. More specifically, I was able to take advantage of a AAA rate.
With that AAA discount, my room was $176 for the night (after tax) for a City King Deluxe room.
Location
I chose the Caption by Hyatt because I found that it was just around the corner from the Orpheum Theatre — where I was set to catch a concert for work. Sidenote: does every city in America have an Orpheum Theatre? Pretty sure they do.
As great as this was for me, I imagine that the much bigger draw of this property is its proximity to the iconic Beale Street. While I wouldn’t say that Caption is ’10 feet off of Beale’… but it’s pretty damn close. About two blocks from the hotel, you’ll find the part of Beale that’s only open to pedestrian traffic. During my short stroll, I encountered plenty of live music, exciting culinary smells, and a ton of neon. And, just before this part of the street, you’ll find a statue of Elvis Presley himself.
Although I didn’t spend too much time exploring Beale Street due to my tight schedule, it was truly awesome to see it in person — even if I had the Marc Cohn song stuck in my head literally the whole time. So, if you’re looking to check out this area, Caption couldn’t be much closer.
Parking
Looking on Caption’s site, it notes that only valet parking is available. That’s true for the property — but I did notice a public lot across the street (I’m not 100% sure it allowed for overnight parking, though). In any case, I decided just to valet to make things easy.
One slightly confusing part of valeting at Caption is that the hotel’s site says parking is located “on the corner of Front Street and Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue.” As I approached the intersection in question, I noticed a “valet here” sign. Alas, after waiting for a moment, an attendant informed me that valet for Caption was actually around the corner (turn onto MLK and then right into the porte cochere area).
This wasn’t a huge deal but it was a bit confusing. The good news is that I found the real valet area for Caption easier to manage than what I thought the spot was.
Also of note, overnight valet parking is currently $33. While not cheap, I’ve certainly seen worse!
Checking-in
If entering from the valet, the check-in area is to the left. However, if you’re looking for a traditional desk setup, you won’t find one. Instead, there was a large table where a team member was working on a laptop. Yup, that’s the check-in desk.
As unorthodox as this was, it wasn’t any less efficient. After provided the typical ID and credit card, I was presented with my keys and given a brief rundown of the amenities. From there, I was off to my room.
Elevators
It’s been a while since I’ve mentioned elevators in my reviews. And I’m only mentioning them in this case because they seemed really, annoyingly slow. Thankfully, though, this wasn’t a real issue since the two elevators seemed to handle the hotel’s capacity just fine at the time of my visit. Hopefully that’s also the case in general.
The room (and other amenities)
The unique vibe of Caption was on display well before I even reached my room. Still, my sleeping quarters definitely continued with the theme. How would I describe that aesthetic? It’s hard to do — but some terms I’d throw in are economical, industrial chic, and dare I say playful. What I liked most of all, though, is that the decor included direct shout-outs to Memphis that went beyond just hanging a painting on the wall.
Starting in the bedroom, I was first taken with the unique lighting fixtures. Next, the luggage stand (which almost looks like a seat IMHO) and clothes rack caught my attention. The latter actually reminded me a bit of Tru by Hilton. On the other side of the bed was a small but usable table along with a dining chair. Next to the bed was another chair, but a plushier one that’s probably better for reading than eating.
Moving to the bathroom, this is where the Memphis references abounded. On the walls, you could find depictions of the Memphis Pyramid, steamboats, Stax, Sun Records, Beale Street (of course), and much more. I really loved these details — and, honestly, it doubled as a list of things I should have seen in the city if I had more time.
As for the bathroom part of the bathroom, I loved the rainfall shower head, the well-lit mirror, and the barn door on the room. Big thumbs up.
In terms of practical amenities, Caption has two: one common and one unique. First, the room does have a mini-fridge — which is great, but a microwave would also be nice. The other amenity isn’t technically in the room itself but in the hall. On each floor is a filtered water station (in addition to ice). Caption also provides you with a plastic cup in your room so you can go fill up a nice tall glass of water. I absolutely took advantage of this right before heading to bed so I could have some nice, non-tap water to sip when I woke up. Of course, your enjoyment of this amenity will surely depend on your proximity to it. I happened to be right across from it, which is nice for convenience but not for noise. Luckily, it didn’t sound as though too many other people on my floor utilized it, so this wasn’t an issue.
Speaking of noise, I do have one minor complaint. Each time the A/C would kick on, it would make a fairly loud click that was honestly startling. With it being a nice night, I was able to turn up the temperature and avoid this noise altogether, but it might get a bit annoying on a warm day.
Despite that small quirk, I really liked my Caption room. It was comfortable, functional, and sleek in its own way.
Dining
In the lobby of the Caption is a restaurant called Talk Shop. Their menu seemed to emphasize breakfast — but there were some all-day items as well. When I returned to my room after a concert (around 9 p.m.), I decided to try their chicken sandwich with hot honey sauce. The sandwich itself was quite tasty and hit the spot, but the house chips that came with it left something to be desired. That said, the menu didn’t even mention the inclusion of house chips, so I’ll take them as a bonus. Plus, dipping them in the hot honey sauce that dripped from the sandwich did help breathe some life into them.
Meanwhile, there’s a bar attached to Talk Shop, which seemed to be pretty popular. There’s also a grab-and-go selection near the porte coche entrance. However, I was a bit disappointed with the selection. Furthermore, it looked as though this was part of the restaurant itself, meaning that it likely wasn’t available 24 hours as one would hope with such an offering. That said, I did not have a chance to confirm this for myself.
Of course, beyond the hotel property, there’s plenty of dining to be found around Memphis and down Beale Street specifically. But, if you don’t feel like venturing far, it’s nice to know that Talk Shop has you covered.
Final Thoughts on the Caption by Hyatt Memphis
All in all, I was pleasantly surprised with Caption by Hyatt Memphis. This surprise started with how easy it was to navigate to the property (valet hiccup aside). Then, I was shocked to learn just how close I was to the legendary Beale Street. Those factors plus a unique vibe and aesthetic make this a hotel worth checking out.
Although I wouldn’t call it “upscale” as Hyatt does, the property and room were nice and had a style all their own. Not every part of that style will be for everyone but, on the whole, it works. So, if I were to visit Memphis again (which I hope to do), I’d definitely consider another stay at Caption.
Author
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