Retro UK motels get the Soho House treatment
By Sonia Taylor
The Soho House group made a name for themselves through their network of exclusive members-only venues aimed at the world’s creative class. They’ve long since expanded from clubs, bars and restaurants into achingly expensive hotels.
So their latest venture Mollie’s might not be what you’d expect – a British revival of the vintage American-style roadside motel and diner, complete with an affordable price point and high-spec, minimalist rooms.
The motel chain has been given the Soho House treatment. Pictured: Mollie’s Bristol.
At Mollie’s Oxfordshire location, a 20-minute drive from University village Oxford, a stylish set of charcoal and timber angular buildings with glowing red neon signs greet guests driving into the space, complete with electric vehicle chargers.
The vaulted lounge, bar and reception area is replete with vintage and Soho Home furniture and wares, a bar stocked with both liquor and boutique sweets like Candy Kittens and Tony’s Chocolonely, signage with retro typography, and floor-to-ceiling glass walls overlooking a manicured garden with crunchy stone pathways. You can check yourself in on the tablets and help yourself to bottomless tea or coffee at the station, before heading to your room.
Dreamt up by Soho House founder Nick Jones and his creative design team, Oxfordshire was the first Mollie’s location to open in 2019, with Bristol hitting the scene in 2021. Both Mollie’s are located just outside city centres, but the model’s success has seen the group change tact, starting with a “mega” Mollie’s in Manchester, slated to open late 2024. It will include more than 200 rooms, three restaurants and a rooftop pool and bar.
Oxfordshire, pictured, was the first Mollie’s location to open in 2019.
Darren Sweetland, managing director of Mollie’s, says Manchester will be a blueprint for future city centre locations.
“It spans a huge 100,000 square feet in the 1950s Manchester Granada TV Studios building – the first purpose-built television studio in the UK. The innovative design will make playful nods to the building’s vibrant history,” says Sweetland. That history includes where both The Beatles and Sex Pistols made their first TV appearances.
Guests at the Oxfordshire location are greeted by neon red signage and electric vehicle chargers.
Plans are already underway for a further 10 new hotels over the next 10 years, expanding on the features that have anchored the brand’s success: digital check-in, EV chargers, designer rooms with a characteristic Soho House look and affordable prices, starting from $140 (£72) a night.
For those usually priced out of the Soho House group’s other concepts, like exclusive members-only clubs or swish boutique hotels, the Mollie’s brand is a way to get a taste of their distinct vintage-Scandi style but with a relaxed, easygoing atmosphere – and room configurations to suit multiple travel styles, including twin, bunk, double and connecting family rooms, as well as accessible rooms on the ground floor.
Beds are Hypnos, famously a favourite of the royal family.
At Mollie’s Oxfordshire, there’s a clear level of understated refinement. Beds are Hypnos – a brand that’s been supplying mattresses to the royal family and their palaces for over 90 years. The atmosphere is sleek yet warm, with wall-to-wall oak timber slatting, tones of blue, teal and mustard, thick blackout curtains, sound-insulated windows and terrazzo bathroom countertops. Considered details, like the dedicated Dyson and GHD hair straightener alcove or the app-controlled TV, are much appreciated. All natural toiletries are by Soho House’s Cowshed spa and there’s complimentary tea and coffee.
Guests range from business travellers to families and weekenders, but there’s a contingent of road trippers who detour for the elevated diner grub.
The diner is classic Americana cool, with Cadillac banquette seating.
The Diner is classic Americana cool, with soaring vaulted ceilings anchored by bold black-and-white tile flooring. Cadillac banquette seating and a swish chrome bar complete the nostalgic scene. Round-edge tables topped with cute tomato-shaped sauce bottles add a kitsch touch.
The buzzy open kitchen slings out all-day eggs and a decent flat white, plus classics like burgers, crinkle-cut fries, hot wings, a fabulous mac and cheese, shakes and soft-serve sundaes. Another big hit is the pork belly ribs and there’s a menu section dedicated to salads, with the green goddess the standout.
While Mollie’s might not be the UK’s first roadside motel transformation, a winning formula of quality food and elegant, hip rooms is set to make it the favourite.
The writer travelled as a guest of Mollie’s Motel Oxfordshire. See mollies.com
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