Contributor/ Andrea Magrath
Best Known For
Being a discreet, understated boutique hotel with a destination Michelin-starred restaurant. A perfect home away from home for savvy travellers that want luxury and impeccable service but don’t feel the need to shout about staying in a first class hotel.
The Good Stuff
Friendly, attentive staff make for a warm welcome as I enter the elegant Georgian townhouse, offering to send up some complimentary tea or champagne (not a hard decision) to help me settle in. The spacious deluxe room is modern without being cold. Stylish, yet understated it is equipped with all the necessary touches such as free Wi-Fi, UK and US powerpoints (handy!), and a touch-screen console that controls everything from the lights and flat-screen TV to butler service and wake-up call. An oversized marble bathroom provides toiletries from COMO Hotels’ spa, COMO Shambhala and the deep bathtub is the perfect place to soak away the day.
The Halkin’s one downfall was often said to be its restaurant, nahm. This was replaced last year with Ametsa with Arzak Instruction, a Basque restaurant headed up by Elena Arzak, which quickly earned a Michelin Star. The food is exquisite, and as the restaurant is also the setting for breakfast, it goes without saying that it puts your average morning buffet offering to shame. A more informal tapas menu is available in the lobby bar, which also holds regular sherry tasting evenings.
The Vibe
A light and airy lobby gives way to a Bond-esque interior when you ascend to the upper floors, where a sexy curved corridor of black walls camouflage the room doors. As it is not traditionally “British” in style, the atmosphere is particularly suited to business travellers who want style, luxury and efficiency without the pomp of a classic London hotel.
Inside the Hotel – 8/10
Ametsa with Arzak Instruction is a definite highlight. While The Halkin’s boutique size and 41 rooms creates an ambience of intimacy and exclusivity, there isn’t room for a spa and pool – guests can book in-room treatments, or nip over to sister property The Metropolitan on Old Park Lane.
Outside the Hotel – 10/10
Tucked away on a quiet street in Belgravia, you’d never know you were within a short walk of Park Lane, Buckingham Palace, the boutiques of South Kensington and Chelsea, and Knightsbridge with Harrods and Harvey Nichols.
Image courtesy of Como Hotels
