The lowdown A decade ago, on a desperate hunt for decent coffee in New York, my wife-to-be and I finally found it in a cafe in the lobby of a hip and happening hotel in Midtown Manhattan. The hotel itself was beyond our budget, but we promised ourselves we’d stay in such a place one day. So imagine my delight at being invited to review Ace Hotel Sydney, the first outpost south of the equator from the brand behind our Midtown find.