Before the Rooftops: The Story Behind the Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel That Changed Everything
The Morning I Finally Sat Down with Matthew Blesso
There are moments in this business you wait for, quietly, without forcing them, because you understand that timing matters more than access. This was one of those moments, one that ultimately led me back inside a Casco Viejo rooftop hotel that has quietly shaped the rhythm of the neighborhood.
For three months, I had been working through Grecia, Matthew’s assistant, trying to find the right time to sit down with him. Not for a quick exchange, not for a casual introduction, but for a proper conversation. When you’ve spent a lifetime in hotels, restaurants, and convention centers, you learn to recognize the people who have genuinely shaped a destination.
Matthew was one of those people.
The meeting was finally set for a morning last week, when Matthew was in Panama, and that’s when I had the opportunity to sit down with him.
It felt right immediately. No rush, no noise, no sense of interruption. Just a setting that allowed the conversation to unfold naturally, which is exactly what I had been waiting for.
Because I remember the night Tántalo opened.
I was there, walking into Casco Viejo when the streets were darker, when the area had not yet found its rhythm, and when you moved through it with awareness rather than certainty. It was not uncomfortable, but it was unfinished. You could feel the potential, but you could also feel that it had not yet been realized.
And then I stepped through the doors.
Inside, the shift was immediate. You landed in the restaurant, and there was a feeling that did not need to be explained. It was composed, balanced, and quietly confident. The kind of atmosphere that does not try to impress because it already understands itself.
But that was not the defining moment.
We were guided toward the elevator, and when the doors opened onto the rooftop, everything changed. I remember stopping, taking in the scene, and realizing that something had arrived in Casco Viejo that had not existed before.
There was energy, but it was controlled. There was movement, but it felt natural. There was a crowd, but it did not overwhelm the space. Everything worked together in a way that is very difficult to achieve.
It reminded me of a moment years later in Ho Chi Minh City. You climb a staircase that feels uncertain, slightly out of place, and you question whether you are even in the right location. Then a door opens, and suddenly everything makes sense. The space is refined, the service is precise, and the experience feels complete.
That moment stayed with me longer than I expected, and it’s one of the reasons I wanted to sit down with Matthew properly rather than just pass through and say hello. In hospitality, you see a lot of openings, and most of them follow a predictable pattern. There is a surge of interest, a period of momentum, and then a gradual leveling off as reality sets in.
Tántalo didn’t follow that pattern.
It established itself quickly, but more importantly, it held its position. That tells you something, because consistency in this business is far more difficult than creating a moment. Anyone can create a launch. Very few can sustain relevance.
Sitting there that morning, you start to connect the dots. The opening night wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t luck. It was the result of a very clear understanding of what was missing and how to deliver it in a way that people would respond to immediately.
That’s what I wanted to understand. That same sense of contrast and arrival was present that night.
Matthew had created something Panama did not yet know it was ready for.
Before Rooftop Bars in Casco Viejo, Panama
At that time, there were no rooftop bars in Casco Viejo, Panama, and there was certainly nothing that could be described as a Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience. There were places to visit, but they did not define the destination the way a true Casco Viejo rooftop hotel would come to do.
Casco Viejo had the architecture, the history, and the character, but it had not yet translated those elements into a cohesive hospitality experience. You could eat, you could have a drink, but you could not move through a space that felt complete from beginning to end.
That absence matters more than people realize.
Without a focal point, a destination struggles to establish identity. Visitors move through it without direction, and the experience becomes fragmented. There is no shared reference point, no place that people instinctively recommend.
There was no moment where someone would say with certainty, this is where you go.
Tántalo changed that.
It created a destination within the destination and gave Casco Viejo something it did not previously have, which was clarity.
Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel: The Night Everything Changed
The response to Tántalo was immediate and unmistakable. Within days, people across Panama City were talking about it. Within weeks, that conversation extended across the country. It quickly became part of the language of visiting Panama.
You have to go to Tántalo.
That kind of momentum cannot be manufactured. It comes from recognition, from people experiencing something that exceeds their expectations and feeling compelled to share it.
The rooftop became the focal point, but it was not the only reason people returned. Guests stepped out of the elevator and paused, not out of surprise alone, but out of recognition. They understood that they were in a space that had been thoughtfully created.
That reaction repeated itself consistently.
What made it work was not just the design, but the balance. The space did not rely on exclusivity or spectacle. It allowed people to settle into it naturally, which created a sense of ease that is often missing in new concepts.
It felt right from the beginning.
Who Is Matthew Blesso, and this Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel
Matthew Blesso does not come from a traditional hospitality background, and that distinction is important. His perspective was shaped outside of the industry, which allowed him to approach the project without the constraints that often limit operators.
He grew up in Patterson, New Jersey, in a family that valued education and discipline. That foundation carried him into university in New York, where he studied economics and built a career in banking. He developed relationships, managed investment portfolios, and operated in a world defined by structure and performance.
On paper, it was a conventional path. In conversation, it becomes clear that something else has always been present.
Matthew returns consistently to art. Not as a secondary interest, but as a core influence. He speaks about creating space for artists, about integrating creativity into environments where people can engage with it naturally, without separation.
He also brings something else that you do not always expect. He loves comedy. Not casually, but seriously enough to develop an alter ego that he performs on stage. Inspired by Saturday Night Live, he has been performing for years, stepping into a completely different role and expressing a side of himself that most people would never expect.
That matters.
Because it tells you something about how he thinks. It tells you that he is not confined by one identity, and that flexibility carries into how he builds.
When he arrived in Panama in 2009 and spent time in Casco Viejo, he recognized a place with depth but without full expression. The architecture and history were evident, but the experience had not yet been shaped into what we now understand as a Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience.
What also stands out when you spend time with Matthew is how calm and measured he is. He doesn’t fit the stereotype of someone who owns and operates within hospitality. There’s no sense of urgency in the way he speaks, no need to dominate the conversation, and no attempt to position himself as the center of what has been built.
He listens. He reflects. And when he speaks, it’s considered.
That personality carries through into the business. It allows the space to breathe, to evolve naturally, and to avoid the kind of forced decision-making that often disrupts good concepts. It also explains why the environment feels balanced. It is not driven by ego. It is guided by awareness. You see that in the details.
Why Tántalo Worked When Others Didn’t
Tántalo succeeded because it aligned itself with the environment rather than imposing an external concept onto it. It did not replicate another city, and it did not rely on a formula that had worked elsewhere. It responded to what Casco Viejo needed at that moment, and that approach proved decisive.
A Benchmark Few Recognized at the Time
Timing matters more than most people realize. When Ace Hotel was at its peak, it was widely considered one of the most relevant boutique hotel brands globally, defining a generation of design led, culturally driven hospitality. And yet, in Casco Viejo, Tántalo executed that sensibility in a way that felt more grounded, more connected, and ultimately more relevant to its environment, shaping what would become the Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience.
That’s not a casual observation. I’ve worked inside properties like The Garland in Los Angeles and was part of the opening team at Hotel ZaZa. These are hotels known for identity, atmosphere, and their ability to connect with a very specific audience. What Tántalo achieved belongs in that same conversation.
When Ace later entered Casco Viejo in what is now the American Trade Hotel, the outcome didn’t land with the same clarity. Whether that was a misreading of the market or simply timing is open to interpretation. But the reality is this. Tántalo had already understood the rhythm of the neighborhood.
It wasn’t importing a concept. It was interpreting a place, and that distinction is everything. What Matthew built was not a showpiece, but something people could step into and feel part of. That takes discipline, restraint, and a team that knows how to deliver consistently without forcing the experience.
That approach is what international lifestyle brands often struggle to replicate in Casco Viejo. The concepts looked right on paper, but they did not translate. They did not capture the rhythm of the neighborhood or the expectations of the audience. Tántalo had already done that.
It understood the balance between locals and visitors, between energy and accessibility, and between design and authenticity. It was not overdesigned, and it was not imitative. It felt grounded in its environment. That is why it worked.
More Than a Rooftop: The Hotel, Restaurant, and Experience at this Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel
What made Tántalo different from the beginning was not the rooftop alone. It was the sequence of the experience and how each element connected to the next.
Guests did not arrive at a single-purpose venue. They moved through a progression. From the street into the restaurant, from the restaurant into the elevator, and from the elevator onto the rooftop.
That sequence created anticipation.
At the center of that experience is a boutique hotel of ten rooms. The scale is intentional. It allows for intimacy, for personality, and for a level of attention that larger properties struggle to maintain.
Each room carries artistic influence, reinforcing the identity of the space and connecting it to the creative community of Panama.
The restaurant anchors the experience. It operates throughout the day, providing structure and continuity. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner create a steady rhythm, allowing guests to engage with the space beyond a single moment.
The Evolution Behind the Experience
What’s equally important, and often overlooked, is how Tántalo has continued to evolve without losing its identity.
Over the past year, much of that has been quietly led by Matthew’s wife, Ginger, a designer in her own right, who has been responsible for the soft and more significant renovations across the Tantalo Hotel, Alura Bar, Restaurant & Coffee Lounge, and the Rooftop. What stands out is not just the result, but how it was executed.
Just recently, the restaurant underwent a full renovation in three weeks, with teams working in shifts around the clock, and it’s also where the new coffee concept was introduced into the space’s flow. That kind of timeline in hospitality is almost unheard of, particularly without disrupting the guest experience. And yet, it was done seamlessly.
You walk through the door now and feel it immediately. There’s a sense of calm confidence, but also something else. It feels current. The colors are soft but vibrant. The textures carry depth. The fabrics feel considered, layered, and rich without being overstated.
It has that reaction you can’t manufacture.
You walk in and think, this is a cool place.
At the same time, there has been a quiet but important shift in leadership with the introduction of a new Hotel general manager, Rodrigo, who brings a depth of experience and a clear focus on food & beverage, presentation, and direction. There is an awareness of where hospitality is moving, particularly toward more sustainable, locally sourced ingredients, whether that’s fish, meat, or produce. That evolution matters.
Because it shows that Tántalo is not standing still. It is adjusting, refining, and moving forward without losing what made it relevant in the first place. It continues to shape what a Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience should feel like, and that balance is not easy to achieve.
Staying at Tántalo is a different experience from simply visiting the rooftop, and that distinction is important. When you stay in a property of this size, with ten rooms, you become part of the rhythm of the building rather than just passing through it. You wake up within the space.
You move through the restaurant in the morning, you recognize the staff, and you begin to understand how the environment functions across the day. By the time you reach the rooftop in the evening, you are not arriving as a guest. You are arriving as someone who has already been part of the experience. That’s everything.
It creates familiarity without losing the sense of occasion, and it allows the property to deliver something that larger hotels struggle to achieve. The restaurant plays a far more important role than most people initially realize. It is not simply a place to eat. It is the foundation that supports everything else.
Throughout the day, it creates continuity. It provides a point of entry in the morning, a place to return to in the afternoon, and a natural transition into the evening. The French doors opening onto the street bring the outside in, allowing the space to feel connected to Casco Viejo rather than separated from it. That connection is what defines a true Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience.
It prevents the property from feeling isolated, and it allows it to remain part of the neighborhood rather than standing apart from it. The rooftop completes it. That model is now familiar. At the time, it was not.
The Coffee Lounge That Completes the Day
The new addition of a dedicated coffee concept is one of the most important developments in the evolution of Tántalo. Located within the restaurant, with those French doors opening onto the street, it introduces a daytime dimension that aligns with how people now engage with hospitality spaces.
This is not an afterthought. It reflects a broader shift.
Guests expect continuity. They expect to move from morning coffee to afternoon conversation to evening energy without leaving the environment. Tántalo has adapted to that expectation in a way that feels natural rather than forced.
From the first coffee in the morning to the last drink on the rooftop, the experience now follows the guest rather than asking the guest to adapt to it.
That is what keeps it relevant.
The coffee concept reinforces that connection even further. It introduces a level of accessibility that draws people in during the day, not just at night. Locals pass by, visitors stop in, and the space becomes active in a different way.
That daytime energy feeds into the evening.
By the time the rooftop comes into play, the building has already been alive for hours. It does not switch on at night. It builds throughout the day, which is what gives a true Casco Viejo rooftop hotel its depth and consistency.
That is a more modern approach to hospitality, and it is one that aligns with how people now travel and experience cities.
The People Behind the Experience and this Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel
One of the most important aspects of Tantalo’s success is the consistency of its team. In an industry where turnover is often expected, Tántalo has maintained a level of continuity that is both rare and meaningful.
Many of the original team members are still there today.
That continuity reflects a culture where people feel valued and supported. Over time, those individuals have grown with the business. They have built lives, started families, and created stability within an industry that does not always offer it.
Even during Covid, the team remained connected.
No one was left behind.
That stability shows up in the experience. It creates confidence, ease, and a sense of authenticity that cannot be manufactured.
Looking Ahead: Costa Rica and the Next Chapter
When I asked Matthew what he was working on beyond Tántalo, his answer reflected the same thinking that shaped the original concept.
But before he even got into the details, there was something else that came through clearly.
Matthew is not someone who is tied to one place for the sake of it. He stays connected, he maintains relationships, and those roots still run through Casco Viejo and New York. But he is also the kind of operator who looks for where he can make a meaningful difference, where there is space to build something that matters.
Right now, that opportunity happens to be in Costa Rica.
He is developing a project there.
But it is not a replication of what worked in Panama. It is being approached as a broader lifestyle development, with a focus on sustainability, long-term experience, and how people interact with space over time.
That matters.
Because it shows that the thinking has evolved. It is no longer about creating a single successful venue. It is about understanding how people live, how they move, and how environments can support that.
It is a natural progression. And it reinforces something that was already clear.
He is not building for a moment. He is building for what comes next.
What is interesting about the Costa Rica development is that it reflects a broader shift in thinking. It is not focused on a single feature or a single moment. It is focused on how people live within a space over time.
That approach requires patience.
It requires a different level of planning, and it requires a willingness to think beyond immediate returns. It suggests a long-term view, one that is less about creating impact and more about creating sustainability.
That evolution feels consistent with everything that has come before.
Fast Facts for this Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel
- Location: Avenida B and Calle 9, Casco Viejo, Panama City
- Rooms: 10 boutique rooms
- Concept: Hotel, restaurant, rooftop bar, and coffee experience
- Dining: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner served daily
- Rooftop: One of the original rooftop concepts in Casco Viejo
- Team: Long-standing staff with strong retention
- Languages: Multilingual team
- Access: Easy drop-off and pick-up location
Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel, Questions & Answers
Yes. It is centrally located in Casco Viejo and is easy to access by foot, taxi, or Uber.
Yes. The area is well-trafficked and is one of the most visited parts of Panama City.
Yes. The team is multilingual and experienced with international guests.
Yes. The team is multilingual and experienced with international guests.
Yes. It is approximately 5 – 10 minutes from most major hotels.
Yes. That balance is part of what makes the experience feel natural.
Yes. It remains one of the most recognized rooftop experiences in Casco Viejo, Panama.
Yes. It includes a , restaurant, and coffee concept.
Yes. It operates throughout the day with food and coffee service.
It combines hospitality, art, community, and experience into one integrated environment.
Closing Thoughts on Mathew and this Casco Viejo Rooftop Hotel
Some places follow the growth of a destination. Others define it. Tántalo sits firmly in the second category. It did not wait for Casco Viejo to become what it is today. It helped shape it, and more importantly, it has sustained that relevance over time.
I consider myself fortunate to have sat down with Matthew and to have watched this project evolve. Over a decade later, Tántalo is still part of the conversation, not as a memory, but as something current and respected, a Casco Viejo rooftop hotel that continues to earn its place. I see that firsthand.
Through my relationships with hotels across Panama City, I regularly speak with front desk teams and concierges. When Tántalo comes up, the tone shifts. There is recognition there, not just of the venue, but of the consistency behind it. That does not happen by accident. It remains a defining part of the fabric of Casco Viejo, a place guests are confidently sent to and a place that delivers.
There is a phrase in the hotel world, contenders and pretenders. I do not use it lightly. I watch, I measure over time, and I draw conclusions based on sustained performance. Over ten years in, the result speaks for itself.
What stood out most in our conversation was not what was said, but how it was said. At no point did Matthew position himself at the center. Even when discussing milestones, the focus stayed on the team, from investment through to service. That tells you everything.
If you want to understand the Casco Viejo rooftop hotel experience, you can start there. But if you want to understand why it exists, you have to look deeper. Because this was never just about a rooftop. It was about a moment when everything changed.
Thank you for taking the time to read this piece. This one meant something to me. Over the years I’ve watched people quietly shape Casco Viejo into what it is today. Behind the color of Panama, there are stories that rarely get told. This is simply my way of acknowledging them.
This is part of a broader effort to document Casco Viejo as a living community, not just a destination. When you slow it down, you begin to see the character, the resilience, and the people behind it.
If this perspective has you curious, you may enjoy exploring things to do in Casco Viejo or experiencing the energy of Carnival in Panama.
- 🧵 Museo de la Mola — the artistry and cultural depth of Guna textiles
- 📍 Casco Viejo Boundaries — where the district begins and why it matters
- 🇵🇦 Panama Holidays and Celebrations — the rhythm of life throughout the year
If you’re visiting and want to experience Casco with clarity and context, I’m always happy to help you see beyond the surface.
Explore Casco Viejo
On Your Own Time
This self guided walking tour is designed to last up to four hours, but you set the pace. Do it in one relaxed half day, or break it into a few stops between coffee, meals, and photos.
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