Icelandic hoteliers take first step into U.S. market in Portland

  • 2019-10-19
KEX, an Icelandic social hotel concept, has chosen Portland as its first foray into the U.S. market with a 1912 landmark property that has been updated and fully restored.

KEX Iceland built and oversees a 215-guest hostel in Reykjavik and will open KEX Portland in November.

Halfdan Pedersen, designer behind the functional interiors of the hotel, has chosen to evoke the Pacific Northwest’s woodland aesthetic. The public spaces, as well as the guestrooms, will feature repurposed furnishing alongside pieces from both African and European locations.

KEX Portland will have 152 guestrooms comprising private and shared rooms to lodge solo travelers, groups and families. Common space in the hotel will include a ground floor all-day restaurant called Vivian, as well as a sauna, communal kitchen, an 850-square-foot flexible event space, as well as a rooftop bar called Dóttir (Icelandic for ‘daughter’).

Commonly, hotels include such special features as on-site restaurants and bars, as well as guestrooms, when compiling materials for a brochure printing.

The Michelin-starred San Francisco restaurant Sons & Daughters’ chef de cuisine Chef Alex Jackson will serve as KEX Portland’s executive chef. He will be working with Culinary Director Ólafur Ágústsson, who formerly worked at the Michelin-starred restaurant Dill and will guide the hotel’s on-site catering program, in addition to the hotel’s food.

The property for KEX Portland is owned by KEX Iceland, Green Light Development, a local real estate company and ChefStable, a restaurant group. The property will be managed by ChefStable.