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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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The Iron Society cocktail: Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey, Aperol, strawberry shrub, lemon, and orange citrate bitters (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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The rooftop charcuterie plate with mustard and pickles (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Manchego cheese with a chutney of Marcona almond and apricot (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Salmon rillettes with dill and red onion (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
Grab your shades, maybe some sunscreen and absolutely a cocktail because Quirk Hotel's long-anticipated rooftop is now open downtown.
"If you're not the kind of person who wants that white-tablecloth experience, you can still experience Quirk in all of its idiosyncrasies up here," Kate Brown, director of sales and marketing, says from one of the space's pristine white lounge chairs.
With sweeping views of Richmond, the hotel's new rooftop bar and terrace do offer the Quirk experience of boutique cocktails, not to mention a curated menu from executive chef David Dunlap — who oversees Maple & Pine Restaurant in the lobby — although everything up there feels a bit more casual, and a bit breezier, so to speak. Leave it to Quirk to find tasteful and stylish Hawaiian shirts and other vibrant patterns, which the staff wear coolly as they mix your unique-to-the-rooftop specialty drinks, all priced between $11 and $14, or pour your Quirk Cream Ale, a new Hardywood Park Craft Brewery beer made just for the venue. (And while supplies last, you'll find Hardywood's highly sought-after Foolery imperial stout on draft, too.)
As originally planned, Dunlap hopes to launch culinary pop-ups such as oyster and champagne events on the rooftop, which opened Saturday, as well as a larger menu upon completion of the space's kitchen. The 21-and-up, roughly-2,000-square-foot rooftop may also be home to brunch service on weekends and early-morning yoga classes during the week. For now, it opens daily at 5 p.m. and closes between 9 p.m. and midnight, weather permitting, with eight specialty cocktails and a brief selection of small plates such as charcuterie, salmon rillettes and marinated olives. Space is limited; the bar seats 15 to 18, and the main rooftop's capacity beyond that is around 130. Below, the adjoining terrace lounge can hold roughly 70 and can be rented for private events. Guests have guaranteed entrance to the rooftop bar and need only show their room key to enter. As for the rest of us, I advise getting there early and staking out a spot; it's bound to be one of the city's most popular — and scenic — destinations in the months ahead.
Quirk Hotel is located at 201 W. Broad St. Its rooftop is now open daily beginning at 5 p.m.
