Ash Bar

We stayed at the Ulysses for Valentine's weekend and had a reservation here for dinner. The servers and bartenders were friendly and attentive despite being super busy on a Friday night. Drinks were strong! Although we weren't hungry and mostly had snacks, the food was quite satisfying and delicious. We also had a couple mochas in the morning before heading out for breakfast. The space is beautifully decorated with vintage brown accents and lots of plants added for coziness. The space is great to lounge around before checking in or after checking out.

So I have traveled for business my entire adult life and dined in 100's of hotel based restaurants. The Ash bar brunch this week was fine but definitely not what a traveler in town for the weekend would consider was a winning complement to their stay. Ambiance: 5 stars! If I could give it 6 I would. The redevelopment of Ulysses property was wonderful. The Ash Bar ( and its companion Blooms) are decor snapshots from the 1930's. Food: Brunch was sort of a mess. Pastries were mostly out of stock. They has a brunch but the quiche was also out that day. The salmon and other basics were fine ... but nothing special. Prices were fair so that's good .. but honestly I would pay more for better quality. Service: Friendly and accurate but needs staff augmentation professional oversight. The waiter was really nice ( that can't be trained!) but he was dressed like he was going to the hardware store not serving in a boutique hotel dining room. I don't need them in bow ties but ripped jeans and untucked shirts seem blow standard. He just needed training. The food runner was really useful because there was only one server for the 10+; 3-4 seat tables. Hey.. its hard to staff and operate a restaurant profitably. But The Ulysses has a captive audience. My advice... stay in the hotel, drink in Blooms.. but find somewhere else to eat in Mount Vernon.. there are tons of places.

Stopped into Ash Bar for Sunday lunch on a whim with a group of friends. It was super convenient to be seated so last minute with a fairly large group of six. The inside is just as beautiful as ever and the service was fantastic. Our server was really friendly and despite the lengthy order, everything came out correct. That said, I felt like the flavor of the dishes fell short. I ordered the soft scrambled eggs on sourdough toast topped with creme fraiche, smoked salmon, and capers. Unfortunately, the eggs arrived cold and it was a small portion size. I also got a side of the pressed potatoes and bacon. The bacon was not like any bacon I've experienced before... and not in a good way. It had the consistency of cardboard and almost no flavor to it - perhaps it had been reheated several times that morning? I didn't finish it which says a lot since I will always finish a side of bacon. The pressed potatoes, however, were delightful. They really were the star of the show and I'm glad we decided to get so many for the table to share. I will say that my friend got the chicken caesar salad which, while pricey, seemed to be worth it as is came with a good quarter of juicy chicken. That actually seemed to be the best dish out of anyone's orders. Overall, I probably wouldn't return for a meal here but given the great service and the lovely interior, I wouldn't mind coming back for a cocktail or coffee.

Ash Bar was the first stop for my best friend's birthday. We came in at 5:00 si we caught Happy Hour and ordered a bunch of appetizers and a couple of drinks. She loved her French 75 and I enjoyed the White Sangria. Our spread of appetizers included the Pickle Selection, Maryland Crab Dip, Daily Bread with a shoyu butter, and Ramp Butter Mussels. I wish I had a pound of the shoyu butter. The golden beets were the star of the pickle selection for me, but the pickled pepper was amazing too. I was disappointed in the size of the mussels. The flavor was delicious, but I would not order again because of how small they were. The crab dip had a good flavor and came out sizzling, but it was enough lump crab for me. My bestie loved her oysters. We also ordered a House Salad that was delightful. Our server was great! She had a lot of knowledge on all the menu items.

Ash bar is such an aesthetically pleasing place! Loved the colors. Picture perfect decor, very uncomfortable seating if you're sitting at a 2 or 4 top table. Between the four of us we tried The Vesper (my favorite by far), French 75's, Sangrias, and Sidecars. Everyone loved their cocktails and opted for seconds, some of us thirds. We tried the bread basket of the day (sourdough) with whipped butter. It had a nice sweetness to it, almost like honey wheat. We enjoyed it. We tried the 24 hr potatoes fried in duck fat it was a total flop for us. We needed salt, they were greasy, pass for me. We tried the crab dip. It was only okay, rather watery. For entrees two of us tried Shrimp Diablo (not listed on the website but on the physical menu at the restaurant). Loved it! I had the Steak Frites, really tender and tasty, huge and thick. 3 people ate from that steak. I enjoyed it but wouldn't get it again. We loved the fries. My other friend ordered the Caesar salad and added a chicken cutlet. It came out fried hard and a price tag of $34 bucks. Tasty Caesar though. For dessert, two of us ordered the Ginger cake - tasty. Two of us ordered the Hazelnut Brownie. LOVED! I'd go back to that alone. Highly Recommend! Get cute and go!

Ash Bar is a really stunning bar. Now I've been to the cocktail bar Blooms on numerous occasions for drinks or a quick meet up with friends, but yet to try Ash Bar. Came this past Sunday for brunch with two friends. I will say the service and ambiance was fantastic. We had an early brunch, and our server Brandon( who was new) was so gracious and helpful. I was kind of skeptical because the menu was a lil sparse, but quickly changed when we ordered our food. Everything was delicious. We started with the bread and butter, I ordered a English muffin, my friend ordered the French baguette. Each comes with whipped butter and fresh preserves. My other friend ordered the ricotta fritters. Those were amazing and fresh out the fryer too. For breakfast I did the French toast with a side of bacon, my friend ordered the soft scrambled eggs on toast with a side of bacon and my other friend ordered the eggs Benedict. Everyone enjoyed their food. I wish I took photos, because the food looked amazing. I will definitely be returning for happy hour, dinner or brunch again.

I went here on a cold Monday night with some girlfriends. It's a great option because since it's inside a hotel they are open when other restaurants are usually closed (Mondays), but also because it's delicious!! It was fairly empty at 8pm on a Monday, and we were seated immediately without a reservation. Our server was friendly and was pretty on top of things. We ordered the steak, the mushroom risotto, and a number of appetizers for the group. The clear winner of all of the dishes was the mushroom risotto, *chef's kiss* it was sooo good! The whole place is pretty instagramable too with the pink lights everywhere. I also love that the table cloths are paper and they will give you crayons to draw with. Yes, I'm an adult, but sometimes it's nice to act like a kid. It's on the pricier end of things, but the food is pretty good and it feels like a nice spot for a date.

It's a sexy, cool spot for a drink. Stylish spot for a date. Great bartenders who combine mixology and conversation. Recommend.

The lighting really sets the mood. It's lit dimly with the perfect amount of dim lights. The furniture and wallpaper were very unique. The floor work in addition to the crown molding on the ceiling gave it a really elevated look. The staff was extremely friendly-I was greeted warmly not only from the hostesses but also from other staff that were walking around the lounge area. The chef even spoke with me as he passed by and gave me a recommendation. Due to the glamour of the location I felt extremely underdressed (as I went straight after work with casual attire), but the staff assured me that everybody is welcome and that there's no dress code - and sure enough other people rolled in dressed down but definitely will come back dressed up! Leroy and Jessica were my servers and they were an amazing team. They were very attentive and held conversations with me. They do have happy hour if you're interested in trying samples of food. For appetizers I had the 24hr pressed potatoes which tasted like a very elevated hash brown. The garnish on top was an exciting twist of flavor and texture. For entrée I had The pan roasted chicken which the chef recommended and it was exceptionally good! Very flavorful and a great portion. I also had some of my friends dish which was the crab and it might have been the best crab cake I've had in a while. It was truly LUMP crab and a huge portion with flavor to match. The coleslaw paired really well with it. For dessert I had the Mille Feuille which tasted like a fancy toaster strudel with mango and pineapple filling wrapped in a sugar cookie. The bar was exquisite and the drinks were large and STRONG. Highly recommended this location.

Another gem of a bar in Mt Vernon. Hotel Ulysses has two bars - ash and blooms. They are both fantastic and I would highly recommend them. Ash bar is slightly larger and they have food options. Blooms on the other hand is more intimate and just has small bites. If you're going with a larger group of people (say more than 4), Ash bar might be a better options. Service is fantastic and the ambience is on point. Lots of wonderful cocktail options, and priced reasonably. We went with a group of friends, some of them grabbed a table to eat dinner while the rest of the us lounged on their sofas and had drinks. Worked out well for us! We went on a Friday night without a reservation and were immediately seated. I don't know how busy it gets but if you're going with a large group might be worth getting a reservation. We will definitely be back for more!