Manchester met Manhattan as the highly anticipated Hotel Gotham welcomed guests for the very first time this weekend.
Fashionably situated on King Street, nestled between the regions finest eateries and designer showrooms, the hotel’s swagger and buoyancy almost makes you wonder how the city has thrived without it.
With 60 rooms named after iconic Mancunians like Morrissey and Foo Foo Lammar, the city’s newest five-star boutique hotel now boldly stands in the place of the 80-year-old art-deco Edwin Lutyens building.
Robin Sheppard, chairman of the Bespoke Hotels chain, revealed the story behind the name of Manchester’s most exclusive hotel at its official launch on Friday.
“I had the great pleasure of first seeing this building three years ago as soon as I saw it I thought ‘I’m in old New York’,” he said.
“When the idea of naming it Gotham came up, with my Christian name being Robin you can imagine some of the responses I got.
“We put the idea out on social media and half of the responses said ‘that’s a stupid name’ and the other half said ‘I love it’.
“So we went for it.”
Walking through the seven-storey building, it’s clear to see where Bespoke Hostels have tried to retain the former banking house’s original features.
The original oak doors and detailed coving adds a rich history to the building that was formerly the HSBC and Midland Bank building – making Hotel Gotham less Batman and Robin and more Wolf of Wall Street.
Maids on a mission..let’s get this place shining like a diamond… pic.twitter.com/ABmBZyRdNJ
— Hotel Gotham (@HotelGotham) March 17, 2015
Proud salutes are given to the building’s banking legacy through the playful use of gold ingot toiletry stands, moneybag designed laundry bags and typewriter embossed walls.
Accents of old money are found in each room where overflowing drink cabinets that would even make Jordan Belfort double-take, are filled to the brim with cognac, spirits, artisan soft drinks and premium glassware.
An overwhelming bout of luxury charges through the hotel’s five super luxurious inner sanctum suites located at the core of the hotel.
To enjoy a night where faux fur throws, croc leather clad walls, a floor length ‘wonderwall’ cinema system, fully marbled bathrooms as well as other lavish quirky trinkets, will set you back £1000.
Unfortunately, a cool 1k won’t buy you a view of the Manchester skyline from the sanctum suites, in fact it won’t even buy you a window — a major compromise of the room’s central building location.
Included in the hotel dubbed the ‘King of King Street’, where prices start at £150 a night, is the Honey restaurant that sits on the sixth floor and is open for public bookings throughout the day
Just a floor higher is Club Brass, a swanky private members bar which you enter through a set of steel vault doors that lead to a rooftop terrace showcasing views of the city.
Image courtesy of Hotel Gotham, with thanks.
