Ollie’s

I’ve been to ollies now a few time and I’ve really enjoyed both nights! The first was nearly a year ago before it got done up. It was a Saturday night and it was a friends birthday, we went up about 10.30 and the queue was long enough but luckily it went down quite quick. The bouncers are iffy about who they let in. So I would definitely advice dress smart, nice shoes and maybe stay clear from wearing trainers.
When we got in and the girl at the door told me it was £10 in and I thought she was taking for me and a friend but she wasn’t, I really couldn’t believe a club would charge so much in but anyway I paid it (which really broke my heart)
When I finally got through the door the club seemed really dark which I really liked, a lot of people didn’t though. The place was busy but a really good busy (if that makes sense) the bar from me was the only let down. As there is only one bar and takes along time to get served. And with zero drink promos the wallet can take a big hit as its not the cheapest. The music is good and the dancefloor gets full very quick! And it can get a bit sweaty.
I came back on Monday just passed there and it was really different. It was a student night and was only three pound in. The dress code is a lot different it’s very causal trainers etc. It was far busier which wasn’t great. Very hard to move and a lot harder to get a drink. It took me nearly 20 minutes to get a drink which isn’t great. But what can you expect when the drinks are £2.50. None the less it was a fantastic night. Smoking area is good with live acoustic set which was a really nice touch.
So I would definitely say there is a big difference in the nights so don’t judge one without trying the other.
On anther note you might even bump into a few celebrities. I met Stephen Davis professional footballer for Southampton and more importantly Our Wee Country! He was lovely fella and took time out of his night to have a lengthy discussion on footie. I also know friends who have met Ed Sheeran and Rory Mcilroy. So that just says what type of club it is!

Very good! Great music GREAT STAFF! Which is very important for night clubs and all ollies staff were 10/​10, however drinks are a bit expensive but overall a great spot on a Saturday night!

Friday night saw myself and colleagues out for some drinks in aid of saying goodbye to one of our own.
We started in a beer garden nearby but decided to take ourselves off to ollies to continue the night, as there were vouchers on the tables for cheap entry.
On my way in I got handed with a VIP ‘bracelet’, not quite sure how. So we made our way into the very important persons area. Dark, smelly and very sweaty. Well at least the queue for drinks would be less. right? wrong. The VIP area was allotted the corner of the main bar.
Never mind, it’s a good night with all your friends surely… No. This place was so dark we somehow all managed to get lost. Literally. I found nobody ever again after a wrong turn.
Luckily I found a good friend so managed to see out my evening with unintended company.
Overall I just don’t see the appeal. There are so many better places to go in Belfast now. What was once the modern and exciting club has now become a waste ground.
Ps good luck getting a taxi

I think Ollies is one of Belfast’s best bars /​clubs, I don’t know why people are giving it such low reviews on here. Maybe in the past you had to pay £20 in but I have been several times in 2012 and all I had to pay was £5. Mind you they did charge £2 extra for having the pleasure of minding your coat.
Music has always been good, and I have yet to experience a bad night there. Toilets are clean and bar services is pretty quick now that they have opened a further 2 bars,
1 thing that annoys me is the man in the toilet who tries to charge you money for towells /​aftershave etc which I don’t agree with.

My Friends and I had gone to Belfast with the plan of going to Social 21 or Laverys. After trekking all the way to Laverys only to be told that it was full we headed into town to Social 21 but it was the same story as laverys,
«Sorry Lads, not letting in any more!»
The booze was starting to wear off and we were quickly becoming disillusioned with Belfast that’s when one of my mates suggested Ollies, at first I wasn’t too keen as I had read on here that it was a bit expensive and more than a bit pretentious. But we went there anyway in the search of some booze. It was a Saturday night and the fact that this place was not full up at 12am sort of tells you that it is not overly popular. Anyway the admission was £10 which was a bit ridiculous to be honest considering its popularity. We begrudgingly paid the admission, I say begrudgingly because the girl at the door had to prize the £10 note out of my hand.
When we got in I had a look around and to be honest it seemed like a bit of an older crowd, I do not think many 18 year olds would feel comfortable here but it is certainly good if you are over University age and have a wee bit of stubble.
As everyone else has said the drinks prices were extortionate but we managed to get a bottle of beer at the Bar for under £4 which I suppose is not the worst thing in the whole world.
Anyway we ended up having a pretty funny night but I think this was more due to the company rather than Ollies. But I do not think it all that bad, the music was pretty good, fair enough it was expensive but it was a decent crowd with a friendly atmosphere. Ollies definitely serves its purpose in Belfast but would certainly not be my number one choice. Lesson learnt though, drink up and head into Belfast City Centre early on a Saturday.

Ollies is the nightclub part of the merchant hotel and with that comes high prices and dress codes I’m afraid! I’ve never come here out of choice (birthdays or work do’s) and although the nights were good I felt a little claustrophobic in here! The club is really interesting and was once an old bank vault! It has loads of corridors and nooks and crannies and feels a bit like a labyrinth! The drinks are expensive too (Merchant) but the dance floor is pretty adequate. The have a VIP are where it is possible to do a bit of celeb spotting as they normally stay i the Merchant (Russell Brand = God) and I suppose that’s why it feels a tad pretentious! I must say its definitely worth a look if you don’t mind the prices and want to check the place out as its kinda cool but very warm! Ive always had a good laugh in here though, no bad experiences!

Ok, positives first. I love the idea of this club — deep down under a plush hotel, used to be a bank vault, walls covered in red brick and velvet. It’s all very glamorous.
However.
The bar is waaay too expensive, it takes forever to get served, the aforementioned velvet on the walls just makes the place warm, sweaty and smelly, the music is a little schizophrenic and the crowd is just too tanned for my liking!
Also, they have a «Platinum Entry» system where you can bunk the queue if you contact them in advance and pay an extra 50% on the door price. To my mind this appeals less to an exclusive crowd and more to a «more money than sense» crowd! But to each their own, I suppose, and to be fair, the queue on a Saturday night can stretch the whole way down Waring Street and beyond.
At the time of writing, Ollie’s is closed for refurbishment, so I’ll maybe go back and write another review later. Unless nothing’s changed, in which case I stand by every word!

Ollie’s is trying its best to set itself apart from the rest of the nightclubs in Belfast and it certainly does that, but not always necessarily in a good way. I really like the setting of this place — it once upon a time was used as bank vaults and because of this design it has nice intricate corridors and enclaves to wander around when trying to find your mates after getting the round in!
Speaking of the round though — this is where my qualms with tthe place begin. I spent nearly £30 on a round of five drinks — typically a few pints, a few spirits with mixers and an alcopop and this to me was quite absurd. I dont mind paying expensive prices for quality drinks but when its this much of a mark up in price for a round I could get for a tenner cheaper in the nice pub just round the corner then thats when I question exactly who and what kind of clientele they are trying to attract.
To pay £7-£10 at the door is standard for nightclubs in Belfast but to be confronted by customers who are seemingly more bothered by how their designer clothes are sitting on their falsely tanned bodies or about how their £200 hair-​dos are looking is a little off putting for someone like me who is looking for a relaxed, easy going, NON-​PRETENTIOUS atmosphere to spend my hard earned money in.

Oh so swanky, well, it’s trying to be. And it does a decent job. Most places like this that open up in Belfast who are trying to attract more ‘desirable’ customers start with great intentions but then start letting all sorts in and the place invariably goes downhill. I’m not a snob, I’ll go pretty much anywhere — but I’m just observing is all. Anyway, Ollies has managed to retain its pretentiousness (and I don’t mean that negatively), maybe I should say ‘selectiveness’, because of it’s attachment to The Merchant Hotel. They have a dress code, and they play middle of the road music too. It’s very stylish, modern and swish inside, with little dark nooks and crannies to get lost in, and a good dance area. In fact, that, for me, is its main selling point — its great for a dance if you feel like it. The drinks are not cheap, and the crowd is a little older, but if you want to go somewhere other than the usual haunts, it’s worth a look.