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Dorchester
- Recommended for:
- Great food / wine, Honeymooners, Relaxation / Spa, Romance, Shopping
Expert review of Dorchester
A classic London luxury hotel - still sparkling after nearly 80 years.
Built in 1931, the Dorchester is a traditional favourite, with all the top-class luxury trimmings (brand-new spa, fancy restaurants and afternoon tea, celeb-friendly bars) that implies, but I particularly like how it balances exclusivity with openness. The grand main lobby and bars are London favourites for treat tipples or afternoon tea, but hotel guests are also individually pampered in the traditionally styled rooms.
Location:
One of the leading Mayfair hotels, the Dorchester looks right into Hyde Park - albeit from the far side of the busy four lanes of Park Lane traffic - with Buckingham Palace and Oxford Street an easy walk to the south and north. Tired of having taxis hailed for you? There are easy tube connections from Hyde Park Corner.
Bedrooms:
Rooms are 1930s Art Deco - some with elegantly muted colour schemes, others more flamboyant with rich patterned fabrics - and almost all have prized Hyde Park views. (Those that don’t look over the hotel’s own floral terraces.) The three roof suites have butlers and terraces, and the window-seats in the Mayfair suites are really charming, but across the range modern amenities are seamlessly worked in - Wi-Fi and Bang & Olufson TVs, for example - and some thoughtful freebies offered - complimentary shoe shine, say, and a free daily paper.
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Public areas:
Despite the lovely abundance of flowering plants in the forecourt and on the façade, the front of the Dorchester has always struck me as looking a little bland. Not so the interior, which is as opulent in gold and heavy stone as you would hope. Behind the foyer, the hotel centres on a grand lobby, called the Promenade, a gently bustling space where residents and locals take tea and relax on plump armchairs while the staff ghost about.
Eating and drinking:
There are 90 kitchen staff at the Dorchester, so you can expect culinary fireworks. Alain Ducasse’s restaurant is technically top of the tree (it’s only the second London restaurant to get a rare third Michelin star), but is a little too reverent in atmosphere for my taste; still, the three-course set lunch (£45, including two glasses of wine and coffee) is great value for cooking of this quality. By contrast, the delightfully over-the-top tartaned warriors on the walls of the Grill always make me smile - here you eat breakfast or can try seasonal, modern British cooking from new head chef Brian Hughson. For a real treat, book the private dining room downstairs in the kitchen, where you can watch the sous-chefs as they prepare your meal - and get everything explained by Executive Chef Henri Brosi. I really like the tiny, exclusive bar downstairs from the Promenade. Attached to the China Tang restaurant, it’s all decadent chinoiserie and subdued light. The bar serves dim sum all day and is a celeb-favourite during the week. (I like how boring piped music in the China Tang loos has been replaced by poems read aloud!) The hotel’s main bar, run by highly praised cocktail supremo Giuliano Morandin gets more post-work action that China Tang’s bar, due to the entrance straight on to Park Lane, but I prefer the oval Promenade bar (at the end away from the foyer) for more soothing people-watching, accompanied by solo piano in the afternoon and jazz from 7.30pm. Afternoon tea is served over five daily sittings in the Promenade (1.15-5.15pm, £35.50) or downstairs it the Spatisserie (see below).
Leisure facilities:
There is a gym here, but it was squeezed to accommodate an almost ethereally white spa - refurbished last year to the tune of more than £3 million. The spa carries different exclusive lines of lotions, and has a coolly charming tea area (the, ahem, Spatisserie) in which you can readjust before hitting the outside world (or book for afternoon tea, even if you’re not staying in the hotel; £34.50, £43.50 with Champagne).
Service:
I expected top-hatted doormen hailing taxis, the concierge and a dedicated theatre desk wangling last-minute show tickets, but found the front desk far more approachable than at some Mayfair hotels: a touch of gruffness to disuade chancers from trying their luck, but a firm welcome nonetheless. With three staff for every bedroom (there are 90 personnel in the restaurants alone), expect the best.
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Who stays there:
A lot of loyal return custom, but kept lively by a steady stream of locals checking out the bars, restaurants and afternoon tea. Appeals to both fashion-savvy shoppers and traditionalists, without feeling fusty and old-fashioned.
Price advice:
Including VAT, superior doubles (the smallest) start from £500 a night, and the extras can really mount up: £30 per person for breakfast, £19.50 a day for internet usage. But take advantage of the Summer in the City deal, for example, and the price drops to £300 including full English breakfast. In my experience there’s little difference in rates between weekday and weekend visits, but June and July almost always book out well in advance.
Pros:
Great service
Stunning public spaces
Spacious, well-appointed rooms
Cons:
Good luck getting a room in June or July
