The Molly Bloom and the Blaze Boyland. Two new Valentine's Day-inspired cocktails for you to try at Blooms. Photo by Cameron Snell.
The Molly Bloom and the Blaze Boyland. Two new Valentine’s Day-inspired cocktails for you to try at Blooms. Photo by Cameron Snell.

Valentine’s Day is more than just romantic exercises and gestures. It can also be a day for self-reflection and self-love. This is a time when you can celebrate being in love with someone else, or simply cultivate a more profound love for yourself. Ulysses offers a new opportunity for Baltimoreans to immerse themselves in luxury without traveling outside the city. The hotel opened on September 21 in Mount Vernon, in the former Latrobe building, and is the fourth property designed by ASH NYC.

We invite you to imagine yourself in this photo essay by Cameron Snell. Start with dinner at Ash Bar, and try one or a few cocktails at Bloom’s. Ulysses is beginning to roll out creative programming in Bloom’s. Brandon Woody and Troy Long will play jazz on Tuesday nights from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Make a reservation to avoid long wait times. 

Champagne and baked alaska at Ulysses. The last course before you stumble over to to Blooms, their decadent cocktail bar.
Champagne and Baked Alaska at Ulysses. Photo by Cameron Snell.
Baked Alaska at Ash-Bar at Hotel Ulysses. Photo by Cameron Snell.
A menu, calling card, matches, and orchids on the mirrored bar at Bloom’s. Florals provided by Pomona Floral. Photo by Cameron Snell.

If these images inspire you, and you’d like to stay at the hotel, Ulysses has offered a 20 percent discount to our readers. On Valentine’s Day, Pomona Floral will have bouquets for sale at the front desk. Stop at Bloom’s for their new romantic cocktails, ask for a calling card to write a message to someone, and maybe you won’t end the night alone. If you’d like to make these cocktails at home, the recipes are below. Ulysses staff created these two drinks especially for this photo essay. 

Thank you to Jessi Rutherford of Thrill Joy PR, Pomona Floral, Hugo Vicente, Ulysses, and the ASH NYC Staff.   

Ulysses, 2 E Read St, Baltimore, MD 21202

 An after-dinner coffee at Ash-Bar at UIysess. Photo by Cameron Snell.

 An after-dinner coffee at Ash-Bar at UIysess. Photo by Cameron Snell.

RECIPES: 

These two cocktails complement each other and are meant to be shared. When you visit Ulysses, the drinks are made and then topped with Bugey-Cerdon sparkling rosé in front of you and your guest. The cocktails taste their best when they’re topped with sparkling rosé. Like lovers, they are two things that are better when paired together. 

Molly Bloom

1/2 oz Meletti 1870 Aperitivo

3/4 oz lemon juice

3/4 oz simple syrup

7 drops rose water

5 dashes Angostura bitters

Instructions: Shake with ice, strain into a chilled coupe, top with Bugey-Cerdon.

Blaze Boylan

1 1/2 oz Suntory Whisky Toki

1 1/2 oz Cocchi Americano Aperitivo

1/2 oz green tea syrup

Instructions: Stir all ingredients over ice, strain into a Collins glass with fresh ice, add approximately two ounces of club soda, and top with Bugey-Cerdon.

To make the green tea honey syrup, brew a cup of your favorite jasmine green tea, pour a measured amount (say a 1/2 cup) into a small bowl, and stir in an equal amount of honey until dissolved.

The Molly Bloom at Bloom’s. Photo by Cameron Snell.
The Blaze Boylan at Bloom’s. Photo by Cameron Snell.
The mirrored wall of Bloom’s cocktail bar in Ulysses. Photo by Cameron Snell

Teri Henderson is the Arts and Culture Editor of Baltimore Beat. She is the author of the 2021 book Black Collagists. Previously, she was a staff writer for BmoreArt, gallery coordinator for Connect +...