PEABODY —The Bell Inn and Tavern opened its doors for friends and family last weekend, offering a glimpse at the renovations undertaken by developer Ed Greeley and his team at the O’Shea Mansion on Washington Street.
For this reporter, attending the opening marked a full-circle moment, having covered the renovations last summer. At the time, there were few glimpses of what the Inn would become, as Greeley and Co. had essentially just begun renovations. The outside of the mansion had been stripped, the walls were bare, the ceilings were a work in progress, and the basement speakeasy looked much more like a basement than anything else.
While Greeley certainly had a strong vision, it was difficult to picture just how exactly he would pull it off.
While attendees of the friends-and-family opening didn’t get a look at the speakeasy or the hotel rooms, even the first floor of the Inn represented such a tremendous departure from what the mansion itself used to look like.
Inside, the walls are painted a striking rich green, which is paired with dark wooden accents throughout the dining area. The walls of the dining room are peppered with little bits of history — this reporter sat below a small painting of Abraham Lincoln, for example. Greeley clearly wanted to make that history a big part of The Inn, and it shows.
The menu featured a wide variety of cocktails and other adult beverages, with the drinks priced in the $15 range. Many of the cocktails have themed names and are part of themed categories, while the food menu is similarly expansive. The menu had been pared back for the friends-and-family opening, but diners were given a tantalizing look at the full list of dishes, ranging from standard pub fare like burgers and a fried fish sandwich to a roast half chicken and lamb shank.
Greeley clearly took great care to preserve the mansion’s history, as he crafted his vision around the existing space. Rather than tearing down the iconic structure, Greeley preserved it and transformed it into something that will almost certainly become a landmark for the city — and possibly the North Shore itself.
