Archive For The “British” Category
Samuel Reiss opened the ‘Grand Cigar Divan’ in 1828, on the site of the Fountain Tavern, which had been the home of the famous literary association the ‘Kit Kat Club’. It was in Simpson’s in 1851 that one of the world’s great games, the famous “Immortal Game”, was played between Adolf Anderssen and Lionel Kieseritzky….
It’s one of London’s most iconic hotels. Ask any local or tourist to name a couple of the most famous hotels in London and the Dorchester is liable to be one of those mentioned. It’s been around for a while, since 1931, so it deserves the accolade of Classic with all the positive connotations that…
The Fulham Road isn’t my usual hunting ground, although it’s well served by public transport and easily accessible, but after my recent dining experience I may well become a habitué of that neighbourhood. Penny Black sits at number 212 as a tastefully understated icon of real British Food, and is unique in several regards. The…
London is acknowledged to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It’s been a magnet for tourists for generations. Plenty of celebrated museums, and all free, galleries to admire, and then there is always retail therapy, and that has never gone out of style. Yes, we have famous buildings by the score…
Oxford Street has its chain retail outlets and stalls stocked with goods that no self-respecting adolescent tourist would want to live without: plenty of plastic items embellished with Union Jacks and these days Kate and William tea-towels. On the other hand, Marylebone Village truly has an ambiance of yesteryear. Boutique shops, artisanal food producers, cafés…
Henry VIII dissolved all of England’s monastic properties in 1540, because he couldn’t get his way with the Catholic church and the ‘Bishop of Rome’ with regard to his divorce. Much of Westminster Abbey’s ‘Convent Garden’ was granted to John Russell who was the 1st Earl of Bedford. The area has changed name to the…
Yes, I have a lovely life: a restaurant reviewer, and able to take my pick of the very best that the World has to offer. I am, however, seldom driven to displays of overt enthusiasm for my latest destinations. They are all good and some exceptional, but the signature lunch trip ‘Golden Age of Travel’…
This is an imposing Queen Anne mansion. Go on, admit it, you can’t remember who Queen Anne was and didn’t know she was a builder. The Elms dates from 1710 and the exterior has all the elegant proportions of a stately home of that period. It was designed by architect Thomas White who was a…
Perhaps Robin Hood had a local, and if he did I would suppose it looked just like The Fleece Inn. This isn’t a Disneyesque themed facsimile of an ancient public house. This is the real thing, and stunning it is. The Fleece Inn has an idyllic rural location on a picture-perfect village square. Lots of…
Joseph and Alison Petitjean have owned and run Brockencote Hall for the last 24 years. They had been living in France and were just married, and they had a dream of opening a country house hotel in England. They visited properties suitable for conversion to an hotel and settled on Brockencote Hall. They bought the…
I confess, this isn’t a part of the country I know well. OK, it’s true, I am a city sort but I am increasingly charmed by our beautiful towns and rolling hills. I have even bought a pair of green wellies for kicking through leafy forests and dewy dells. Hereford is a city, as it…
the bell (note the corporate lower-case letters) at Skenfrith, Monmouthshire could easily be overlooked. You need to know it’s there and it’s worth the drive down a few country lanes to reach – although some guests have been known to arrive by helicopter. It’s a restored 17th century coaching inn and was in a state…
This was our first visit to this most charming of central London hotels. Its location is hard to beat, being on Piccadilly and between Green Park and Hyde Park Corner Underground stations. It graces a plot opposite the aforementioned Green Park and extends that theme of verdant lushness to its very walls. Yes, The Athenaeum…
There is something rather appealing in the prospect of being a member of a prestigious club. Many of us are members of fitness clubs but we hardly ever go because it’s hardly ever fun. We profess to be short of time as work is our focus. But there is another kind of club that does…
The Mandeville Hotel is located in the trendy Marylebone Village, within a few minutes’ walk of some of London’s most exciting shops, art galleries and Mayfair hotspots. The hotel is on Mandeville Place which must be one of the most elegant yet overlooked corners of this neighbourhood – known by locals but passed by tourists….
[ Langtry’s Restaurant is now closed. ] The Cadogan Hotel in Sloane Street, Knightsbridge, was built in 1887. The name commemorates the Earls Cadogan, who, through their company Cadogan Estates have owned Sloane Street and the surrounding area for generations. This marvellously appointed Victorian luxury hotel was, soon after its opening, to play host to…
Formed in 1998, Loch Fyne Restaurants was established to cultivate oysters in the clear, clean waters of Loch Fyne in Scotland. The company has now grown to 46 sites and they employ over 1,200 staff working all over the UK. They don’t sell just oysters but fish in all its guises and even some meat…
Peter is a seven-day-old infant who, “like all infants”, used to be part bird. Peter has complete faith in his flying abilities, so, upon overhearing a discussion of his future adult life, he is able to escape through the window of his London home and return to Kensington Gardens. Well, who can blame him? He…
Westbourne Grove still looks delightful even in a snow storm. The lights of Toms (the Tom in question owns several other London eateries and is also Terrence Conran’s son) were welcoming, although the light from almost anything other than a fridge door would have been a relief in such conditions. The Westbourne Grove locals love…
Opened in 1851, Flemings Hotel in Mayfair is one of London’s oldest hotels. It was converted from six Georgian townhouses but now this historic building has been restored to a tasteful and luxurious haven. Flemings is a chic discreet townhouse hotel set in the heart of one of London’s most exclusive areas, Mayfair. The hotel…