AN INSPECTOR CALLS
He pays his way... and tells it like it is
THERE’S a Premier Inn almost opposite Mollie’s Motel & Diner, just off the M5 south of Bristol. Both offer cheap, clean rooms but that’s where the similarities end.
Mollie’s is an offshoot of Soho House, the trendy members’ club with outlets all over the world — but you absolutely don’t have to be a member to stay here.
It’s the sort of place (like the first Mollie’s, which opened three years ago on the A420 between Oxford and Swindon) that makes you think: why didn’t someone do this years ago?
There are 123 rooms in two wings, with a grassy courtyard between them where guests staying the night can have drinks. The full-scale American diner is in a separate building.
We turn up at the retro-chic lobbycum-bar to check in — and like the idea of asking for a room key and a large gin and tonic all at the same time. We request a room as far away from the motorway as possible and, while having our drinks, I get a text message saying that our room is ready and our bags have been taken up there.
The room has a Scandi vibe, with fluted wood panelling, wooden floor, comfortable armchair and the sort of bed linen to which Soho House members have become accustomed. The basin is in the hallway, opposite the shower room, which is kitted out with Cowshed toiletries. There’s a Dyson hairdryer and a hair straightener, and you can link your phone to the TV to watch Netflix et al.
Two quibbles: there are no individual switches for the bedside lamps and the anti-theft hangers look out of place.
The diner is heaving and it’s a brilliant menu, fairly priced. ‘My name’s Dean and I’ll be looking after you this evening,’ says Dean. And he does. We could be in California. We order three starters: nachos with tomato salsa, guacamole, cheese sauce and sour cream; ‘Mollie’s mozzarella sticks’ fried in batter; and Caesar salad.
We follow those up with a burger and a half rack of ribs. Staff rush about with a proper sense of purpose. They’re all in black T-shirts with slogans: Chop Chop; Chef de Party; Cut the Mustard. There’s even more of a buzz at breakfast.
Mollie’s is clever. The plan is to roll out more. The likes of Premier Inn and Travelodge will have to raise their game. Mollie’s Motel & Diner
A4018
Cribbs Causeway
Bristol
BS10 7TL
Tel: 0117 3747740, mollies.com Doubles from £90
★★★★✩