Robert Pattinson, teen heart-throb and vampire-playing star of "Twilight," was just in New York City, plugging his latest (non-vampire) movie, "Remember Me." Where did he stay? Mandarin Oriental NYC, whose spa tops my list of best spas in NYC. How do I know? I was watching when Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show" asked him last night, imagining the scene that would have ensued if would had gotten out.
Pattinson told him, since he'd already checked out. (Though he did get a bit mixed up -- at first he said Mondrian, then realized it was in LA.) Hotels and spas never give out the names of their celebrity guests, but it's wonderful publicity if the star lets it drop. Alas, there was no mention of whether he tried "Warmth & Wellness," the spa's new 80-minute holistic treatment intended to detoxify the body, replenish the skin and clear the mind.
The new treatment was developed with Amala, a German company known for its organic essential oils and wildcrafted plant ingredients, and is part of the spa's efforts to become more green.
Warmth & Wellness includes a body polish with crushed olive pits and sea salt, a detoxifying body mask of white clay and body wrap accompanied by chakra-balancing energy work. After a shower you're massaged for 40 minutes with a body butter made of organic Mediterranean myrtle, fig and olive oil.
Mandarin Oriental NYC is known as the preferred hotel of the entertainment industry and sports stars. (I once saw Bernie Mac outside its doors) But it has a way to keep errant celebrity-gazers out. The lobby is on the 35th floor.
Photo by Getty Images: Michael Loccisano