Art Deco Heaven (The Brigstow Hotel)

Member Name: TigerTiger

Product:	The Brigstow Hotel
Date:	28/08/01 (668 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent service and facilities, fabulous restaurant menu, Very helpful staff

Disadvantages: Quite expensive, No parking

In the majority of cases getting lost is frustrating, annoying and just not what you want to be doing, however, just last week getting lost turned out to be the best thing my boyfriend and I could have done. Whilst looking for a hotel recommended to us in Bristol we took a wrong turn and ended up finding The Brigstow Hotel which is situated on the Welsh Back riverside area of Bristol, which is increasingly becoming very trendy and busy. For those of you with better knowledge of Bristol the hotel was once a business tower block situated behind "The Glass Boat" restaurant, yet on Monday 13th August 2001 it opened its doors as a fabulous 4 star hotel.

~~~Finding it & Parking~~~~~

We obviously didn't set out to find the hotel, however, after spending the weekend there we discovered how easy it was to re-find it. If you follow signs for Bristol City centre, heading for the main carparks you will pass it on the left hand side as crossing the river. The only real downside out of the whole stay, and I hate starting with this, as overall I was so impressed and amazed by the service and hotel as whole, was the parking. Basically the hotel has no parking of its own. There is the small cobbled street out front, where you can park for limited time out of peak hours. Yet as we found out you have to get up at 6.30 am to move your car which really isn't worth it. The only other option though is to park on the NCP carpark behind the hotel, however, this just happens to be *the* most expensive car park in the whole of the city. If you can avoid driving then this is an ideal place. To be honest it isn't as if you need a car as you are right in the centre of things, with the main Corn street area just over the road.

~~~~The Hotel: First impressions~~~~

First impressions so do count and we walked in through the glass doors into a light, minimal reception. You could tell the place was new from the smell and the fact everything w
as so shiny and gleaming. The hotel in fact is a flagship for the chain and has all been carefully decorated and furnished in an art deco style.

~~~~Facilities~~~~~~~

The hotel doesn't actually have any leisure facilities, they are trying to aim themselves at the people who don't really use or value them in a hotel. Business men who don't have time in the week for example. I spend quite a lot of times in hotels and I have to be honest that I rarely use the pool, gym or other leisure facilities, so this didn't matter to us. However, if this is important to you, then note there are none!

On the ground floor there is the main bar and restaurant which are all glass fronted looking out across the river. The bar you will be pleased to hear is open 24 hours and serves most things that you would like, including a wide selection of wines and champagnes. With every drink we were presented with a little pot of olives. ok, I can't actually stand them personally, but if we are talking about the little things which add to a stay in a hotel that is one of them! I have to be honest and say that the drinks were not cheap and for 2 drinks it cost us £10 on average.

The restaurant was also very impressive. With the high ceilings and glass it all comes across as being very open and spacious. As a vegetarian I sometimes despair at restaurant menus, with the options of veggie lasagne and an omlette, however, I was very impressed with the Brigstow. There were 3 designated vegetarian main courses, as well as some other things you could have. All the dishes were a little unusual and all seemed mouthwatering. My only problem was choosing which one to have. There was also a good range of fish and seafood dishes which pleased my boyfriend.

Breakfasts were also a complete delight at the Brigstow. Breakfast comes in on the price of the room and is served between 7 and 10. There is such a lot to choose from. The weekend on whic
h we stayed here as the hotel was so new there were only 5 rooms occupied, so we got so much service it was unbelieveable, nothing was too much at all (I just hope it stays that way!). There is a wide slection on the continental breakfast buffet, including a fruit salad which contained all types of exotic fruits. There were also many cereals, pastries and yoghurts. In addition there was the option of cooked food, and once again they made some provision for us vegetarians. Both mornings I left breakfast about a stone heavier as the food was fantastic and they just kept serving it!

~~~~The Rooms~~~~~

I saved the best bit to talk about for later! I have never fallen in love with a hotel room in my life before, or felt that I could stay there forever, however, the rooms at the Brigstow felt like home the minute I walked through the door. Walking to our room we loved the decor. It was all floor boards and brightly coloured walls with mirrors. The rooms continued this theme. There was floor boards running all the way through with gorgeous thick rugs on the floor. In art deco style the room was all curved and the furniture fitted into this, including the bed. Our bed was rounded and it was the perfect centre piece to the room. It was covered in cushions of all shapes and sizes, in fluffy touchy feely materials. There were also a number of blankets and throws on the bed in similar fabrics. For those of you to which this may appeal there were spot lights pointing on various points of the bed and these can all be dimmed according to the mood. It kept us entertained for hours anyway :O) (Figuring the lights out that is!).

The rooms all come with trouser press, tv with satelite, a data point for your computer, and a mini bar. Once again the mini bar is pretty expensive. They also leave a full bottle of white and red wine with some wine glasses and a sign saying that it could be yours for £X. I am not keen on this type of approach, however, I guess i
f you don't want you can just leave it alone.

The bathroom in the room was a whole other story! It was very spacious and once again had many lights pointing in every direction. There was a large bath which had a plasma screen tv in it. This caused great excitement and although I am not a big fan of baths (I'd rather use the shower), I felt that I needed to experience this. In addition there was a large corner shower cubical, which could probably accomodate 4 people! Along with the heated towel rails, there were piles of towels and fluffy bath robes.

The rooms were so beautiful and cosy that I have dreamt about being back there since leaving and there is no way we will ever stay anywhere else when in Bristol for now on.

~~~~The Staff~~~~~

The staff of the Brigstow most certainly deserve a mention as they were fabulous. I do appreciate that it was the first week of opening and they were all freshly trained and keen, but nothing was too much trouble and they were all chatty and friendly. The people working in the bar were especially great and they even sorted us out a restaurant in town, booked the table and cab. The next day they remembered us and asked how it was and if we enjoyed it. Everyone showed a genuine interest. Additionally, the man on the door watched out car all night for us and didn't seem to mind.

~~~~The prices~~~~

I guess this is going to be the deciding factor for many people debating whether to stay at the Brigstow. Yes, for all this you do have to pay £140 a night, although there are often promotions and you do get a discount for staying more than one night. For this we got a double room and breakfast all in. For £10 more you can upgrade to a waterfront room, however, we chose not to do this as we planned to be out most the weekend and so wouldn't have appreciated it. We have stayed at both the Mariott hotels in Bristol, which are supposed to be a similar standard, but to be h
onest after seeing this hotel we will never go back to either again. If you want a weekend away in a lively city yet staying somewhere really lovely then I strongly recommend this. The overall package was excellent and you will have a stay to remember.

Summary: