What exactly is Mayfair's first new build hotel to open in more than a decade like? We sent Annunciata Elwes to find out.
What can only be described as an impeccable fusion of East and West can now be found on Hanover Square at the new Mandarin Oriental Mayfair.
Housed in the first new build in the area in a decade, to a design by RSHP architects featuring an innovative Vierendeel frame and burnt red-brick ‘baguettes’ inspired by its Georgian surrounds, it opened in June, with 50 guest rooms and suites, plus 77 private residences.
The interiors, by British based Studio Indigo, reflect the superlative attention to detail that can be found in every aspect of the hotel. Rooms are inspired by jewellery boxes, in unobtrusive yet rich shades, fine fabrics, timbers, paintings and marbles warmed by golden light. Even the leaves of the magnolias on the de Gournay hand-painted silk wallpaper are arranged to complement the feng shui of each room, while also providing a salute to the trees of Hanover Square and the hotel group’s oriental heritage.
Here, extreme care is everywhere you look, from the tasselled bookmark thoughtfully provided by a housekeeping person who rescued the book I’d been reading flung pages down, spine upended, to the dragonfruit, lychees, chocolates, Moet, and jasmine gimlet mix laid out for us, and the little cable tidies that magically appeared to make our belongings like new.
Without fail, the staff here unobtrusively go the extra mile (as do the Japanese-style loos).
Chef Akira Back surprised me with culinary concoctions unbound by geographical borders — and all the more delicious for it. We fell a little in love with our sommelier, who, gauging our adventurous mood, brought us a cellar’s worth of paired wines, each more unusual and delicious than the next, most notably a cabernet from Mongolian Château Hansen.
Even the cocktail menu in the adjoining, extremely cosy ABar managed to blend matcha, coffee, whiskey, cardamom and kumquat seamlessly, and a second, more intimate restaurant, Dosa, opened in September, where a maximum of 14 guests can experience a Korean-inspired tasting menu — and watch as dishes are prepared.
And I never, ever thought I’d recommend a breakfast of pine-nut and mushroom porridge, featuring spring onion and kimchi, with gianduja croffles to follow, to anyone, but I really do.
Beneath all this, a subterranean spa designed by Tokyo-based studio Curiosity — all bronze and green Ming marble — with its 25-metre pool and various saunas and experience tubs and showers, is another form of escape. Nutritionists, physiotherapists and athlete-worthy NormaTex massages are on hand, with other treatments involving CBD, Tuscan, Swiss, vibrational and oriental Qi rituals. I was so relaxed I can’t remember which one I had, but I emerged in a dreamlike state and have no qualms in sharing that the ‘disposable’ underwear provided was nicer than my own.
Providing a discreet, modern, ultra-luxurious cocoon in a buzzing city, the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair is a hotel beyond other hotels, befitting its heralded location at a meeting point of art, fashion and culture.
Rooms start from £1,000 per night, Visit www.mandarinoriental.com for more information and to book.
