My favorite hotels are ones with stories to tell. When I walked into the historic Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, I had no clue how many stories I’d encounter in a short time. The elegant hotel has a history steeped in booze, literature, and gangsters. My favorite part of the hotel combines all three in a hidden Louisville speakeasy in the hotel basement where F. Scott Fitzgerald, Al Capone, and Paul Newman once drank.
Please note that this post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my honest recommendations, at no additional cost to you.
Louisville’s Grand Hotel
When I travel, I often pop into a historic hotel if only to check out the lobby for a few moments. I love admiring the architecture and materials of another age and thinking about who may have passed through. On a visit to Louisville, Kentucky, I dragged my friends into the Seelbach Hotel for a cocktail and ended up running throughout the property when I heard about its history from veteran concierge Larry Johnson.
Known as “Louisville’s Grand Hotel,” the Seelbach Hotel was built in 1905. On opening day, it attracted more than 20,000 people to admire it. The Beaux Arts Baroque hotel was built by Bavarian brothers and restauranteurs Otto and Louis Seelbach and designed by Frank Mills Andrews and William J. Dodd. The Seelbach Hotel is famous for its luxurious design and unique history. Its opulent interiors included marble from around the world, Turkish and Persian rugs, Irish linens, and more. I marveled at the lavish marble lobby, but the basement took my breath away.
Now Entering the Rathskeller
Don’t get distracted by the gilded Grand Staircase in the Seelbach Hotel lobby. What you’re looking for is behind the staircase. Follow a set of stairs down to the basement and enter the Rathskeller.
The Seelbach Hotel was such a hit when it opened that the brothers needed to expand it immediately. The Rathskeller is part of the expansion completed in 1907.
The surprising sight of a room with vaulted ceilings covered in colorful tiles might leave you speechless. The serene space accented by spotlights gives off an almost church-like sense of awe. This is the Rathskeller.
“The new rathskeller of the Seelbach Hotel is perhaps the most notable use of decorative tile in this country, if not anywhere.” – The Mantel, Tile and Grate Monthly, January 1908.
Rathskeller is a German term for a traditional basement tavern in a civic building. The Seelbach’s Rathskeller is decorated in glazed tiles from Rookwood Pottery depicting pastoral German scenes of forests and castles. Look up at the leather ceiling with its handmade zodiac carvings. You’ll spot some pelicans around the room, a sign of good luck. The clock at the entrance is also by Rookwood, a $10,000 gift from the president of Seelbach Realty Co. The Seelbach’s Rathskeller is the only Rookwood room of its kind left in the world.
“A most alluring rathskeller … is, in a measure, a reproduction of the most famous rathskellers of Germany. The vaulted ceiling, flagged floor and heavy supporting columns, finished in Rookwood tile, give the room a quaint, medieval atmosphere. The design and arrangement has been largely copied by other famous hotels in this country.” – Industrial Refrigeration, 1915
A Louisville Speakeasy
After initially serving as a banquet hall, the Rathskeller was converted during World War I to a social club for soldiers from nearby Camp Taylor. F. Scott Fitzgerald was one of those young soldiers partying in the Rathskeller, and he was kicked out of the USO-style club on more than one occasion.
The Rathskeller’s speakeasy days arrived with the start of Prohibition in the 1920s. It’s no surprise that Al Capone visited Louisville during liquor runs to Chicago, and the Seelbach was a favorite stop of his. You can still dine in the Oak Room upstairs where he once played poker.
In the Rathskeller, Capone liked to eavesdrop with arches transmitting sound across the room. You can peek into the Rathskeller from a small room connected to it with a stained-glass window that opens. It served as an office, but one can imagine Capone overlooking the speakeasy and its players.
Today, the Rathskeller is used for special events. Pay the quiet room a visit and reflect on all the past parties it has seen.
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald didn’t just drink in the Rathskeller, he immortalized the Seelbach Hotel in The Great Gatsby. During his visits to the Seelbach while training at Camp Taylor, Fitzgerald met Cincinnati bootlegger George Remus. The flamboyant Remus was reportedly the inspiration for the character of Jay Gatsby.
The grand Seelbach Hotel was the preferred setting for Louisville’s high society events. The hotel even inspired The Great Gastby. Fitzgerald chose the Seelbach’s Grand Ballroom as the location for Southern belle Daisy’s wedding to Tom Buchanan in the novel.
Secret Tunnels
Al Capone and George Remus weren’t the only gangsters to frequent the Seelbach during Prohibition. Bourbon country also saw visitors like Lucky Luciano and “Beer Baron of the Bronx” Dutch Schultz.
One reason Capone enjoyed spending time at the Seelbach was his ability to make a quick getaway through secret passages! One wall of the Oak Room is covered in a long mirror Capone had installed so he could see every angle. The room also has panels concealing two secret passageways. A series of secret tunnels were added under the hotel in the 1920s for gangsters to evade police. One passage led to the street and the other went to tunnels under the hotel. The tunnels allowed gangsters to navigate from one block to up to a mile away without anyone above ground knowing.
According to Johnson, “Whenever the police came into the lobby, somebody would step on the button and the doors going into the poker room would automatically close and he would know to get out.” The legendary concierge wrote a book about the hotel’s history called The Seelbach.
Tale of a Cocktail
The Seelbach Hotel’s stories don’t end there. In 1961, the hotel was featured in the Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason film The Hustler. In the 1990s, a secret cocktail recipe was uncovered in the hotel bar.
In 1995, bartender Adam Sever discovered the recipe for a pre-Prohibition cocktail on an old menu that was once the hotel’s signature drink. Make the Seelbach cocktail with once ounce bourbon, a half ounce of triple sec, a few dashes of both Angostura bitters and Peychaud’s bitters, Champagne to the top of the glass, and an orange twist garnish.
There’s a twist to this story, and it isn’t the orange garnish. Two decades later, Seger admitted that the cocktail and the story were his invention. Digging through old menus, Seger searched in vain for a Seelbach cocktail. When he couldn’t find one, he created one complete with a backstory about a bartender spilling Champagne into a Manhattan.
“How could you have a place that F. Scott Fitzgerald hung out in that doesn’t have a damn cocktail?” – Adam Seger, New York Times, 2016
After several decades of serving the Seelbach cocktail, it’s become a tradition at the hotel despite its sketchy origins. Today, you can still order it at the Old Seelbach Bar, an authentically restored bar from the early 1900s. It’s been voted “One of the Top 50 Bars in the World” by the Independent, and with more than 150 bourbons to choose from, we know why.
From Southern society to literary legends to gangsters, the Seelbach Hotel has seen its share of intriguing visitors over more than century in operation. I hope I’ve inspired you to become part of its story on your next trip to Louisville.
Checking in at the Seelbach Hotel
If you’re looking for a historic hotel in a prime location, the Seelbach Hilton offers an ideal downtown setting. The four-star hotel is a member of Historic Hotels of America. It’s located on 4th Street in downtown Louisville’s dining and entertainment district.
At the time of publication, rooms start at $193 per night. Here are handy links to check the latest rates for the Seelbach Hotel on Booking.com, Hotels.com, and Expedia.
You don’t need to be a guest of the Seelbach Hilton to visit some of the public spaces like the Rathskeller and the Old Seelbach Bar. If you’re visiting Louisville and want to research hotels and vacation rentals, this map can help you compare the other available options.
Getting to the Seelbach Hotel
The hotel is conveniently located for several modes of transportation. If you book a flight to Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport and need a taxi or car service, you can also book an airport transfer. It’s only a ten-minute drive from the airport on I-65 N. Take exit 136B for Brook St. and turn left on Muhammad Ali Blvd. To take public transit from the airport, board the 93 bus Downtown via UL by walking to the bus stop at Crittenden at Dakota and exiting at Chestnut at 5th St.
To park at Seelbach, you may valet for $36 or self-park for $30. Alternatively, you can self-park at a nearby garage using SpotHero or a similar service.
Seelbach Hilton
500 S. 4th St.
Louisville, KY 40202
Sources
- “The Secret Life of the Seelbach Hotel.” Wave 3, NBC, 29 Sept. 2004.
- “The Seelbach Experience.” The Seelbach Hilton.
- “The Seelbach Hilton Louisville.” Historic Hotels of America.
- Simonson, Robert. “That Historic Cocktail? Turns Out It’s a Fake.” New York Times, 31 Oct. 2016.
- Tanzilo, Bobby. “Urban Spelunking: The Rookwood Rathskeller at Louisville’s Seelbach Hotel.” OnMilwaukee, 27 Apr. 2021.
Jessica Mlinaric founded Urban Explorer in 2010 to inspire curious travelers by highlighting history, culture, and hidden gems in Chicago and beyond. She is the author of ‘Secret Chicago’ and ‘Chicago Scavenger,’ and she has contributed to several travel guidebooks. Jessica has visited 20+ countries and 30+ U.S. states. She has more than 16 years of experience as a marketing strategist and works as a freelance writer and photographer.
