I came by in Sept 2006 for a conference with the plan to stay a few more days to see the sights. No way I could afford the $200/night prices of the typical downtown place for five nights...and that was discounted conference rate! The total would've been more than my monthly rent at that point and I live in LA! But then I found this gem in Chinatown at $55/night for a double! What a find! And correct me if I'm wrong, but there is really nothing downtown in the price range between this place and the $200/night places.

This is a basic hotel. No frills. You get a nice clean bedroom with a nice clean bed and a nice clean spare bathroom. The decor is uninspiring. There is no view. BUT what I really appreciated was that the walls were quite thick. The rooms were quiet, and I slept soundly at night, which is all I really need. It felt private. The water was hot enough. The rooms were warm enough. Not the most romantic of lighting, but I could study. Rooms were safe, secure, and our luggage was undisturbed.

The hotel is located in Chinatown. It has restaurants open late and there is dimsum in the restaurants on the weekends. There are panhandlers, but that's a fact of Chinatown and Chicago, not the fault of the hotel. They do lock the hotel at night for security purposes, but you can wake the guy behind the counter up and he'll let you in. The hotel is two blocks from the metro station and those two blocks are no worse (and no better) than any downtown Chicago block at 2am.

The place is a great value for its location. Sure, you could have all the amenities of a fancy hotel, if you can afford it. Sure you could have a slightly better hotel, Holiday Inn, say, at about $100/night, if you're willing to commute in from the 'burbs or the airport each day. But this place is designed for, and probably run by, the kind of people like my parents: old-school Chinese immigrants who just want the necessities. We don't need an elevator, we can walk. Why does each room need it's own hair dryer and ironing board and terrace and wet bar and whatnot? What a waste, they would say. We should just share those things. And you can get all of those things (kitchen stuff, hair dryer, ironing board) from the front desk. My parents used to bring along their own hotpot on trips to cook their own meals. That's how cheap they were (and still are). For me, that's a bit too much, but it's that kind of simple life that this hotel caters to. And hey, isn't it time we stopped buying magazines telling us how to live a simple life and actually started living one?

Okay, I digress. This hotel is simply a great value. And it's online!

Jenny K, Los Angeles, CA

First of all, call the place directly. I got a better price than the
internet rate. While I agree with one of the reviewers about the
street light and the cheap plastic blinds, the overall stay was not
bad. The suite had no view to speak of, but the living room area did have a fold out sofa, a love seat, micro wave, fridge, 36 in Sony, dvd player, vhs recorder, dinette and a Jacuzzi. The bedroom was pretty much dominated by the king size bed, but also had a smaller Sony, on a desk and an ok sized closet.
The bathroom was small with a shower stall, toilet and sink. Not much room to lay out yout toilette articles though.
I write all of this as I didn't know what to expect based on the
reviews and so I was pleasantly surprised at the size of the living area.
It is an old place and it only has three floors and the caveate is
that there is no elevator. My roon was on the seconf floor, but you
had to climb stairs to get to the first floor.
The room was clean and so other than the lights I have no complaints.
The staff was friendly and all speak with a rather pronounced Chinese accent. Some more than others. I didn't really have a problem with it, but I can see where same might.
The train station is a couple of blocks away. It is about a 15 min
ride to the Mag. Mile. Only problem there is the red line was going through construction and so coming back later in the evening was a bit confusing as you couldn't take the usual stations to return. Kind of nice that there are some Chinese restaurants close by to grab a late night bite. But that is all there is. Closest thing to American is Walgreens a couple of blocks away.
Overall, I would stay here again. But definitely get the larger suite
and maybe get some cardboard to block out the street light.
Check out the pics.

I had a 'deluxe' room here -- the window wouldn't close, and the plastic blinds over window were insufficent to keep out the bright yellow streetlight buring all night just outside the window. I was unable to sleep because of the light, and because of the hum of transformers on the power line just outside. I did not feel particularly safe here. The wifi didn't work, etc. Really a budget hotel, great for student or backpackers, not suitable for biz traveller or mcormick attendee. After one night (intended 3), switched to more conventional hotel 2m away at twice the price, just walking away from the other two nights charges at SRO.

Ignore all the bad reviews about this hotel - had a great time there.

Staff were friendly and it was right beside the L station.