I love what the patch of space encompassing Herald Square, North Chelsea and the flower district is turning into. Once gritty streets have been polished up to make way for contemporary restaurants and boutique hotels. Now, post work, company men and women are scurrying to these establishment’s bars and dining rooms rather than making a dash to the train for a sullen evening at home.

One of the most fetching brick and mortar structures is the Eventi, a Kimpton boutique hotel housing impeccably designed rooms and vibrant restaurants L’Amico, Lupulo and The Vine. Even if you’re not bunking here, the experience of sitting in the modern lobby alone is enough to make you swoon. Tufted leather seating and marbled tables are sumptuous  pieces as prominent as the towering Mondrian-inspired windows. Eames style chairs abound. Vintage typography surrounds you. The place beautifully balances the here and now with yesterday’s look and feel.

I slumbered at the Eventi for a few nights in April, when a presentation I needed to give at Columbia beckoned me to return to the city once again. This immediately commenced the day after my husband and I came back from a road trip to the South. I was wiped out, delirious, anxious and exasperated. So I didn’t feel the least bit guilty for being swathed in luxury.

The Eventi is posh but not in an obnoxious way. The style is so understated yet fashionable. I booked a a queen bedroom equipped with sweeping views of jagged buildings, including the ever dignified Empire State Building. Mini touches like a leather pillow and zebra printed robe made my heart go pitter patter. The marbled bathroom houses just the simplest of accessories, like a wooden bench and Barbara Nessim art printed on glass (her work is spotted all throughout the hotel). Atelier Bloem supplies the exotic toiletries: kadota fig body lotion, mandarin and citrus shower gel, oolong tea shampoo and geranium conditioner transport you to far-flung geographies.

I enjoyed breakfast at the Vine, the Eventi’s signature eatery. The smashed avocado and peas on multigrain toast tasted as amazing as it looked. Cables dangle from the ceiling and intertwine with each other to create an abstract display. One section of the restaurant resembles a cozy but fashion-forward library. Polka dotted walls line the bar area. It’s like dining in a museum.

With all its gorgeous decor and elements, the Eventi property could very well be listed as a Manhattan tourist site for all to gawk at. It certainly gives this hardened part of town a glamorous spin. Finally, the neighborhood gets a wake up call.