For Hotel Greene, a 7,139-square-foot space also in the former Hotel John Marshall, the duo had a location and space secured, but they needed a concept and inspiration. Inspiration came at an auction when they found a circa 1900 oil painting of a lion that once hung in the lobby of Hotel Iroquois in Michigan.

“It all started with the lion,” Gottier said. “He has such a sweet, solemn face.”

Three words came to Gottier’s mind when he saw the lion: romance, mystery, unease. Inspiration was born and, from there, a story — the story of Hotel Greene.

It is 1932. That’s the year you’re transported to when you step inside Hotel Greene, which is the name of a fictional hotel built in 1915 that’s since fallen on hard times. But it’s holding on to its fading glory. You can see the former splendor in the velvet sofas situated in front of a (working) fireplace, above which a lion sits watch. Or in the Masonite tiles that gleam throughout the hotel spa that you walk through on your way to your “room.” Or on the polyester lapels of the bellhops who check you in.