According to Wikipedia, "Southern hospitality is a phrase used in American English to describe the idea that residents of the Southern United States are particularly warm and welcoming to visitors to their homes, or to the South in general.­

I’ve had the pleasure of spending a good deal of time in the South, either visiting friends in their homes or on business in fancy hotels. It’s only after 36-hours at the Intercontinental Buckhead, in downtown Atlanta, I believe I’ve finally come to understand the meaning of "Southern hospitality." Not to mention something running like a “well-oiled machine.”

"Other features of Southern hospitality include proper local etiquette (i.e., calling one "Sir" or "Ma'am," opening doors for ladies, inviting one to church functions, etc.)"

Hotels tend to an indelible impression within minutes of my stepping outside of the taxi. Are the bellmen friendly and helpful? Is the hotel’s reception genuinely happy to see me? I was pleased to find that the well-trained staff at the Intercontinental was unusually welcoming. (I’ve since begun to wonder how so many hotels of a certain calibre get away with the forced niceness brought on by a bored or impatient staff).

While no one at the Intercontinental invited me to church on Sunday morning, I experienced a genuine warmth and professionalism I’ve found only at exceptional hotels. This commenced from the moment I walked through the doors on Saturday afternoon, and continued until the moment I got into a return taxi to the airport the following day.

Of course, I didn’t fly to Atlanta just to hole up in my hotel room, and I was curious to explore if this “Southern hospitality” extended outside the perimeter of the Intercontinental Buckhead. Shortly after checking-in, I was happily shuttled in a Cadillac Escalade to The Phipps Plaza Mall, just a few miles away. (The Intercontinental Buckhead provides free shuttle service within a two mile radius of the hotel).

I should note that I could have easily hung out all day with the hotel’s driver, Willie Maclin. Mr. Maclin had an unusual knack for making conversation with the handful of international guests on their way to power-shop the two nearby malls, Lenox Square and the Phipps Plaza Mall. And how did he make a bunch of strangers feel comfortable as we carpooled to the mall? He sang along to the Motown classics playing on his stereo. Of course, he opened the doors for all the ladies.

I spent the next four hours at Phipps, roaming Nordstroms, Saks, Barneys, Intermix, and the legendary Jeffrey Atlanta in a state of bewilderment. It wasn’t just the sheer volume of specialty stores, which were conveniently enveloped in an air-conditioned mall, with comfortable benches for resting and a food court for refuelling. The service really was truly phenomenal. The saleswomen at Nordstroms arranged to ship two boxes of shoes home, so that I wouldn’t have to check luggage on my return flight. An associate at Barneys (whom I later spotted in the Atlanta magazines’ party pictures) was benignly truthful about which cocktail dresses flattered and which didn’t. I never wanted to leave the mall.

The malls are closed on Sunday mornings, since, according to Mr. Maclin, “Sundays are for church and football.” In the end, I do wish someone had invited me to a church function that weekend. I woke up on Sunday tossing and turning with sinful thoughts of greed and desire. Thankfully, I had a chance to visit Wellness Spa and Fitness Club by Jurlique, located on the second floor of the hotel. My tranquilizing spa experience might have been the only way to distract myself from not being able to spend another few hours at Jeffrey Atlanta, trying on shoes.

"A large component of the idea of Southern hospitality is the provision of Southern cuisine to visitors."

I know it’s pathetic, but I completely wore myself out shopping at Phipps, which prevented me from having a proper a proper meal in Atlanta. (I did have an opportunity to have my very first Chick-Fil-A chicken sandwich in the food court at Phipps, but I know that doesn’t count.)

Which is not to say that I went hungry. When staying at the Intercontinental Buckhead, book the rooms permitting access to the hotel's executive club floors, budget and availability of rooms permitting. At every opportunity, I visited the executive club floor lounge, where I curled up on the sofa and watched TV while nibbling on dainty white-toast sandwiches with its crusts cut off and washing them down with a glass of Chardonnay.

I've already established that the hotel provides exceptional service. Now I’d like to point out that there's hotel food service and then there's above-and-beyond hotel food service. Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, and evening hors d'oeuvres services on the club floor were ridiculously delicious, and assuredly bountiful.The staff on the club floor was probably wondering why they were seeing so much of me – it’s because I became addicted to the pastries.

When the executive floor closed at 10:30PM, I decided to watch rent a DVD from the lounge library and order room service. Despite the four (!) simultaneous weddings taking place at the hotel that Saturday night, my room service, promised in 30-minutes, arrived in 18-minutes flat.

"Although some customs may be seen as odd or even offensive by people not from the South, they are considered polite in local culture and usually meant as an expression of traditional warm greeting."

For those who are willing to wear something other than a bathrobe and order something other than room service, there are other civilized areas in the hotel to have a drink or a bite to eat at any hour.

The XO Bar located in the lobby of the hotel features more than 60 different XO cognacs. Then there's Au Pied de Cochon, located in the lobby, a "bustling French-style brasserie." It’s odd why a hotel or a restaurant of this calibre would choose to have a bright red awning announcing that it's open 24 hours. Is such an awning considered “polite in local culture”? Is it really intended as “an expression of traditional warm greeting”? Surely, Southern hospitality means different things to different people.Maybe it's the hotel's warm greeting to jet-lagged travellers, or just hungry people, 24-hours a day.

Upon returning to New York, I kicked myself for not having fortified myself with provision of Southern cuisine. Ironically, I ended up watching a Yankees game at a bar on the East side called Southern Hospitality. I ordered a plate of fried chicken, which arrived with a side of collard greens and mashed potatoes.

I’m pretty sure that my plate of chicken wasn’t as good as the stuff you’d find in Atlanta. I’ve therefore enclosed a list of restaurants from the chief concierge at the IC Buckhead, Richard Lara, perhaps as a reminder to myself.

Intercontinental Buckhead
3315 Peachtree Road NE
Atlanta, GA30326
Phone: (404) 946-9000

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com

Hyon Jung Lee is a New York-based freelancer who has also written for Forbes and Fodors.com.

Click here for recommendations from the chief concierge at the IC Buckhead, Richard Lara.

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