Olaf Growald
Hotel Dryce
Swing by the Lobby Bar of Hotel Dryce, where locally famous mixologist Pam Moncrief regularly whips up original and unmistakably Fort Worth-esque cocktails, and you’ll undoubtedly run into a diverse and influential cast of characters. While the space undeniably embraces its Funkytown roots, it’s not entirely a juxtaposition to what you might find in the Stockyards; the hotel and bar manage to embrace all aspects of our city. And the lobby’s fresh feng-shui, eclectic interior design, and collection of local art give the space a particular distinctiveness not yet seen in our city. Whether this peculiarity is due to no business wanting to fully explore the diverse aspects of Fort Worth and incorporate it in their interior design, I don’t know. Yet, it’s easy to see why those who spend an incredible amount of energy promoting the city would feel right at home in the Lobby Bar.
And to co-owners Jonathan Morris and Allen Mederos, it’s all going according to plan. Locals and out-of-towners are flocking to Hotel Dryce because Morris and Mederos feel the space is filling a void that once existed in Cowtown.
“One of my favorite things about this process is determining how we tell an authentic story about Fort Worth without doing it the way that it’s been done over, and over, and over again,” Morris, co-owner and co-founder of Hotel Dryce, says. “So, people who experience the city in the way that I do will recognize it and say, ‘Oh, yeah. That’s my Fort Worth.’”
Of course, Hotel Dryce isn’t just a bar, it is also — as its name suggests — a hotel. At 21 rooms, it is small — even for a boutique — but the no-nonsense, utilitarian rooms — as well as its proximity to everything happening in the Cultural District — can provide out-of-towners with a great slice of the city while also providing Fort Worthians with the perfect staycation spot.