Cocktails at the Morrison

{Artwork for the hotel was commissioned from Irish artists. Those blocks on the left were done by artist David Quinn.}

Last week, I stopped by the Morrison Hotel on Ormond Quay (hurrah North side!) for a few drinks and a little tour of the hotel’s recent renovation. It’s so fun to see the inside of Dublin hotels since we rarely stay in them. But I get a lot of emails asking for recommendations, so I like to know what the options are

{Above photos by Julie Matkin}

You might not notice the Morrison Hotel from the outside – it’s very understated. In fact, you might not even realize it’s a hotel! But the newly renovated inside is chic and bright, and feels very cosmopolitan. We were there on early on a Wednesday evening and the place was buzzing with a set of very cool customers.

We got a little tour of some of the rooms. The hotel has a music theme, so the rooms each reflect that – artwork that looks like sound clouds, white lantern lamps with bass clef cut-outs (above left), and even lyrics from Irish artists on the wall in each room. The theme was subtle but kind of lovely once you knew to look for it!

{Me, Alex, Rincy and Julie. Photo by me, obviously, and edited by Rincy!}

We also got a peek into their art gallery, which they use for functions (including weddings!). There was a huge mirror on the wall. Apparently it was the only thing that stayed during the original renovation of the space. I wouldn’t have wanted to move it either!  And then we had cocktails. They were delicious and pretty. Each week a member of the bar staff gets to come up with a new cocktail of the week – with a little friendly voting on Facebook to keep the bartenders on their toes!

If you make it to the Morrison, you have to order their deep fried olives. I’m not usually a fan of deep fried things, but they’re delicious green olives stuffed with cheese and lightly fried. But if you’re not an olive person (Michael, I’m looking at you), try the smoked salmon on house baked treacle bread – made with the chef’s granny’s recipe!

Morrison Hotel, Ormond Quay, Dublin 1