But what?s the Point?

Andrew Doolan is a Scottish architect. At the end of the 20th century, he bought a defunct rundown supermarket in Edinburgh and converted it into a fine 140-room hotel called the Point.

Andrew Doolan is a Scottish architect. At the end of the 20th century, he bought a defunct rundown supermarket in Edinburgh and converted it into a fine 140-room hotel called the Point. The property includes several suites, a 200-cover restaurant, a bar-grill, some conference rooms. It does pretty good business. It is centrally located — a five-minute walk from the main
shopping and tourist spot of Queen Street. The hotel is also ‘reasonably’ well designed and ‘fairly’ comfortable.

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We were told by our Scottish tour director as we approach Edinburgh that Doolan is a ‘minimalist’. We knew that Point would not be 7-star. However; our tour director’s subtle hint didn’t quite prepare us for what was in store.

As you enter Point, what you notice immediately is its stark lobby. No lounging chairs, no sofas, no carpets, no paintings, no flowers, no clocks, no anything. You only see the restaurant on the left beyond the glass panels and a bare granite counter on the right from where you pick up your keys.

Each of the two lifts takes only six passengers. You enter the room and flick the light switch and what is turned on is a tallish, table lamp that serves as the main room light. You look for more and, sure enough, there are two bedside ones. Yes, there is a fourth vertical fluorescent tube in the bathroom. I was beginning to understand the meaning of ‘minimalism’.

Of course, any paintings or wall hangings or flower vases would have looked superfluous in Doolan’s delight. Bare walls, one of them adorned with painted rectangles in contrasting solid colours and full-size glass windows on the far side, were the only adornments. I quickly pulled open the desk drawers. Nope, no hotel stationery or business kits. Forget any complimentary bottle of mineral water.

Enter the bathroom — narrow granite counter, two cakes of soap, towels on the heating rails, two glasses. Period. Toiletries? You must be joking! Shower cap, what’s that? This was artistic minimalism — without a minimal price.