London welcomed a brand new hotel at the beginning of June with the opening of the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair in historic Hanover Square, just a stone’s throw from fashionable New Bond Street and the ever popular Regent Street.
However, unlike many recent hotel openings here in London, this was not a restoration of an old property but rather a brand-new building, designed by internationally renowned RSHP and the first new build on Hanover Square in over 10 years.
The unique Vierendeel structured building has been inspired by the Georgian terraces that surround the hotel, providing wide internal space and an elegant contemporary townscape façade, clad with burnt red brick ‘baguettes’.
This modern, sleek boutique sister property to the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park has 50 guestrooms and suites, as well as 77 private residences. The hotel is also home to award-winning Chef Akira Back’s first London restaurant, along with two bars and a luxurious health spa.
The hotel’s interior has been designed by British based Studio Indigo, who have successfully managed to blend Mandarin Oriental’s Asian heritage with locally inspired elements to create a distinct identity for London. Inspired by haute couture, the guest rooms have been imagined as a jewellery box, with rich emerald green, regal maroon and tranquil turquoise colours to create a calming place in which to relax.
They have used fine timbers, marbles, soft fabrics and carpets, along with bespoke lighting and furniture that is complemented by metallic finishes in brass, bronze and gold. A beautiful touch is the House of de Gournay hand-painted silk wallpaper with its flowering magnolia design, whose leaves have been meticulously considered in relation to the Feng Shui of each room. It is also a gentle nod to the trees you can find in Hanover Square. I particularly liked the large walk-in closet and dressing room in the large 141m² Mayfair Suite I looked at with its beautiful bespoke bathrobes. But even the standard Deluxe Rooms are a generous 33 m² in size.
The hotel’s entrance is set back from the road making it convenient for guests to be dropped off at the door and welcomed by the friendly staff.
As soon as you step inside the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair you immediately get a sense of East meeting West. The public spaces are bright and airy with a large double height glass roofed atrium that houses Akira Back’s restaurant down a flight of stairs. It is also where you will find the cosy ABar Lounge, 14-seater chef’s table Dosa, private dining rooms and spa. Designed by Tokyo based design agency Curiosity, they have been most effective with their use of colour and texture, choosing rare green Ming marble to reflect the green spaces of Hanover Square, Berkeley Square and Green Park. The restaurant has been inspired by “a walk in the park” and the natural elements of wind, water, earth and fire, cleverly reflected through choreographed lighting, suspended structures and metallic ceilings.
Korean born Akira Back brings his experience of working in some of the very best Japanese restaurants in the world to London, offering diners a sense of adventure and boundless creativity to his culinary creations. The 148 cover restaurant, which includes three private dining rooms, offers some of his most popular dishes, such as the ‘AB Tuna Pizza’ with a wafer-thin crunchy crust, umami aioli made with ponzu sauce, tuna sashimi, micro shiso and white truffle oil.
The adjacent dimly lit ABar Lounge offers an artistic cocktail programme and small bites menu accompanied by a line-up of live DJs in the evenings. Not yet open when I visited the hotel, is the ABar Rooftop with its panoramic views over the London skyline, perfect for those few warm summer evenings.
With two treatment rooms (a single and a double), sauna, state-of-the-art gym and a 25-metre swimming pool, The Spa at Mandarin Oriental Mayfair offers a relaxed pampering environment with some dynamic firsts on the UK wellness scene, including binaural biohacking treatments, offering stress release, mindfulness, awaken and power nap as quick fix 22-minute experiences for those of you who cannot afford to spend a couple of hours indulging yourself.
In addition, the spa menu tempts you with a range of treatments by results-driven ‘Swiss Perfection’. And if you are after a more personal touch, then you can always have some personal training, reformer Pilates, a nutritional consultation or physiotherapy session.
The Mandarin Oriental Mayfair is well located and offers the perfect luxury bolthole from which to explore London, be it for work or simply enjoying some shopping on Regent Street or the boutiques of New Bond Street and Saville Row, as well as visiting local art galleries or taking in a West End show.
The Details
Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, 22 Hanover Square, London, W1S 1JP, England.
Tel: +44 (0)20 7889 8888
Website: www.mandarinoriental.com
Email: momay-reservations@mohg.com
The hotel is located just off Regent Street and New Bond Street and a short walk from both Oxford Circus and Bond Street Tube stations with easy access to Heathrow Airport on the Elizabeth Line from Bond Street.
Type of Hotel: 5-Star Hotel
Number of Rooms: 50 rooms (28 guest rooms and 22 suites)
Price Band: High
Author Bio:
Simon Burrell is a UK-based travel and motoring journalist and editor, a former member of The British Guild of Travel Writers and professional photographer.
Photographs courtesy of Mandarin Oriental
Be the first to comment