🏨 Westin Stories ← brooksgroves.com

Brooks Groves · 1997–2018 · Private Archive

Stories from the Westin Seattle

Twenty-one years as bell captain at one of Seattle's landmark hotels. These are the stories that didn't make it into the official record — the ones that happened in the service corridors, the Cantina, and the lobby at 2:17 AM.

13 Stories
01
Westin Stories Seattle 1990s Bell Captain
🎒 How I Got the Job
Walking into the Westin Seattle in 1997
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02
Westin Stories Bell Captain Radio
📻 940 to Base — Radio Check
The language of the bell desk
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03
Westin Stories Saudi Arabia VIP
🐪👑🧸 The Saudi Beanie Baby Mountain
The Saudi royal family arrives
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04
Westin Stories Graveyard Licensing
☕ The Coffee License Fiasco
What it takes to make coffee at the Westin
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05
Westin Stories Bell Captain Live Animal
🐊 Gator in a Box
A package arrives at the bell desk
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06
Westin Stories Books Graveyard North Cascades
☕ Coffee, Kerouac, and the North Cascades
Reading on the graveyard shift
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07
Westin Stories Room Service Licensing
🥤 The Milkshake License Incident
Room service at 3am
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08
Westin Stories Books Literature Graveyard Shift
📚 Tolstoy at 3am
War and Peace on graveyard
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09
Westin Stories New Years Eve Service Express
🥂 Turn and Burn
New Year's Eve · 900 rooms · one night
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10
Westin Stories Music 1990s Modest Mouse
📻 Graveyard Radio
The 2:17 AM moment. The Modest Mouse connection. Seattle 1997.
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11
Westin Stories Bell Captain The Cantina
🤼 Monday Night at the Cantina
Marco, the volume knob, and the night accounting came downstairs
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12
Westin Stories Bell Captain 1990s Seattle
🛎️ 901 — Elmo
53 years at the bell desk. Nobody ever used a last name.
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13
Westin Stories VIP Seattle 1990s
🐕 Mrs. Love (There Is No Dog)
A VIP 8. A multi-page packet. Ten rules about a dog that did not exist.
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A note on these stories

These are personal memoirs drawn from memory of events that occurred between 1997 and 2018 at The Westin Seattle. Names of colleagues have been changed or omitted. Some details have been compressed or reconstructed from memory. These stories reflect my own recollections and perspectives — they are not statements of fact about any institution or individual, and are not affiliated with or endorsed by The Westin Hotels & Resorts, Marriott International, or any related entity. Any resemblance to specific individuals beyond the author is coincidental.