DESTINATIONS • August 2016
London hotels with genuinely good restaurants
Can’t get a reservation at one of the hottest tables in town? Check into any of these ultra smart London hotels, says travel journalist Rachel Truman, and you’re guaranteed a stylish sleepover and meal to remember
Ace Hotel for Hoi Polloi
This hotel exudes the kind of low-key, cool urban charm that could only belong in Shoreditch. And while Hoi Polloi may be a haven for hipsters, it’s also a seriously good eating spot. Dishes are refreshingly unpretentious with a nod to trendy ingredients. The killer cocktails are another good reason to bed down for the night. Rooms from £160.
Best bite: Balance out that healthy superfood salad with a heady dessert cocktail.
Great Northern Hotel for Plum + Spilt Milk
Experience the days when train travel was glamorous at King’s Cross station’s revitalised Great Northern Hotel, with its ravishing rooms and seductive restaurant Plum + Spilt Milk. Amid the glinting glass lamps and decadent leather banquettes, the modern British menu bursts with seasonal and regional produce. Rooms from £227.
Best bite: The signature milk pudding is a beautiful thing.
Boundary Restaurant Rooms and Rooftop
As you’d expect from a Terence Conran establishment, Boundary on Shoreditch’s Redchurch Street is big on style: rooms and loft suites are each inspired by a designer or type of design. Head to the basement for irresistible provincial French cooking in a convivial atmosphere. Finish with a digestif on the rooftop bar. Rooms from £190.
Best bite: Romantic dinner à deux? Entwine forks over rib of beef or roast seabass.
Mondrian London for Sea Containers
Sea Containers, the über-gorgeous eaterie in the South Bank’s hot new hotel, takes design inspiration from transatlantic liners. The cuisine straddles the Atlantic too, and the bedrooms are elegant. There’s even a Curzon cinema in the hotel. Rooms from £254.
Best bite: The bottomless brunch on the weekends.
London Edition for Berners Tavern
Jason Atherton (pictured) may be opening restaurants apace, but it’s still hard to bag a table in his eateries. Guests at Fitzrovia’s trendy London Edition, however, can be pretty sure of a seat in his glamorous Berners Tavern. The grand, painting-clad dining room is a wonderful space to lose an afternoon enjoying the Michelin-starred chef’s playful take on British classics (pork pie, prawn cocktail and roast chicken, to name a few). Rooms from £295.
Best bite: Egg, ham and peas, a delicious spin on an Atherton classic.
The Dorchester for Alain Ducasse
For a super-luxe experience, check into prime Park Lane spot The Dorchester, home to French chef Alain Ducasse’s triple-starred London restaurant. The contemporary French cuisine is intricate, refined and luxurious. There’s the odd nod to British ingredients, but no mistaking that this is French fine dining. The dining room is chic and light and the wine list weighty. Rooms from £468.
Best bite: Seasonal tasting menu – a tastebud tour of all that is delicious about summer.
This article has been tagged Food + Drink, Hotels