The Pacific Ocean is minutes away from the Kimpton Mirador Pacific Grove, and its presence helped instill the 99-room hotel on California’s Monterey Peninsula with tranquil vibes. Rooting the property’s interiors in this idyllic location was top of mind for San Francisco-based Narrative Design Studio. 

“Pacific Grove has always felt like a place waiting for its moment. It is set along one of California’s most spectacular stretches of coastline, yet it remains remarkably unpretentious,” says Shannon Niehenke, Narrative Design Studio’s founder. “It is an intimate enclave defined more by small bed-and-breakfasts than by large-scale hospitality.” Given that development has intentionally been limited in Pacific Grove, Niehenke and her team deemed it “essential that the hotel feel embedded within the town’s existing narrative, inviting locals in rather than setting itself apart,” she points out. 

This prompted a design scheme celebrating the monarch butterflies that hole up in Pacific Grove all winter long. “But we didn’t want to approach that literally. Instead, we pulled from the shape of their wings and the warmth of their coloring, using ochres and soft, layered patterns throughout,” explains Niehenke. “For example, the corridor carpet is actually an abstracted wing study, though it’s subtle enough that most people won’t immediately notice.” Curved mirrors in the muted guestrooms’ double vanity bathrooms are also an homage to the butterfly, while the rippled glass sconces paired with them reference the property’s proximity to water.

“We were also drawn to the idea of migration itself, in the way monarchs arrive and linger in the eucalyptus groves for a while before moving on,” adds Niehenke. 

This relationship between engagement and retreat is best embodied in the courtyard, the hotel’s social hub adorned with a fireplace and cozy furniture. 

After meals at the Caledonian, the restaurant crafted by New Orleans-based Farouki Farouki with plastered walls that nod to the hotel’s Spanish Revival-style architecture, guests gather here. Designed as “a natural extension of Pacific Grove itself; open, relaxed, and connected to the outdoors,” says Niehenke, “it captures the spirit of the project; that balance of calm, community, and a sense of pause.”