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MANDARIN ORIENTAL HYDE PARK HOTEL
There are 198 rooms, and I must make one recommendation with the utmost vigour. You must – repeat, must – secure a room on the Park side of the building. Knightsbridge is a major thoroughfare and is busy day and night. You will want to enjoy the calm serenity of Hyde Park, as I did. Indeed, my room – number 521, on the fifth floor – was designated a ‘Hyde Park Deluxe’ (and was therefore about £1,000 a night, breakfast extra). This was a delightful apartment, furnished in impeccable taste in the Country House Manner. Fresh flowers, quiet air conditioning, thick carpets, swags and tails of the finest damask and pieces of highly polished mahogany furniture combined to create an environment which I found both elegant and comfortable. The umbrella in the stand in the hall, the architectural engravings on the walls, the fitted wardrobes in the Regency style, the large television receiver with a flat screen, the healthy supply of glossy magazines – all made me feel as if I were in the home of a friend.
Still, this tiny blemish could easily be excused, for I have not yet told you about the most delightful feature of my accommodation. Through the French window in the bathroom and through the two French windows in the bedroom was my very own terrace, overlooking Hyde Park. Demi-lune in shape and with a grand stone balustrade, this terrace brought joy to my heart. It was equipped with a table and three chairs, so that I could enjoy this most privileged of vantage points for extended periods. Indeed, having bathed and dressed, I could not resist spending a few minutes more in the fresh air, before descending for dinner.
The wine list spans the New and Old Worlds and contains 358 offerings. (Yes, I did, indeed, count them: my exertions on your behalf are without limit.) Prices range from £27 for a white vin de pays from Southern France to £2,375 for 1959 Latour and £2,750 for 1945 Yquem. Other bottles which looked interesting were 1952 Dom Pérignon (£1,936), 2000 Montrachet, Lafon (£1,867), 1990 Haut Brion (£1,462), 1961 Leoville-Las-Cases (£820), 1985 Solaia (£595) an 1983 Dominus (£225).
I broke my morning fast in the Park Restaurant, and a jolly good breakfast it turned out to be. No buffet here, praise be! But there was canned music – until the fine head waiter from Chicago, Steven Jarczyk, turned down the nasty noise for me. He deserved a gold star for that. Then I was able to tuck into the excellent comestibles, served on white Wedgwood crockery, in peace: green apple juice (freshly made for me), raspberries, slices of melon, Rice Crispies, smoked haddock with grilled mushrooms, toast and croissants, all washed down with pots of coffee and my final cappuccino. I would have preferred tablecloths to the bare wood, but, even so, £29 seemed a bit of a bargain for this terrific start to the day. I returned to the Park Restaurant, but this time to its outside terrace for afternoon tea (£40, including a glass of champagne). Here, to the sound of birdsong and the clink of tea strainers against porcelain, I gently partook of a brew of Darjeeling, 2000 Dom Pérignon, delicate sandwiches (with a wedge of lemon brought, at my request, for those filled with smoked salmon) and a selection of super pastries (my favourite being the raspberry meringue). Then I eased myself back behind the steering wheel of the Silver Cloud, engaged the transmission, gently pressed the accelerator and slowly glided away along Knightsbridge. No, indeed: there has never been any doubt that the Hyde Park Hotel is one of London’s finest hostelries. |
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ADDRESSES MANDARIN ORIENTAL HYDE PARK HOTEL
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© Francis Bown 2003
From the moment it opened in 1902, there has never been any doubt about the status of the Hyde Park Hotel as one of London’s finest hostelries. The building began life in 1889 as a combination of residential block and gentleman’s club, and its erection was not without controversy. To the folk of the day, its height was startling, particularly given its location – overlooking a Royal park – and questions were asked in Parliament about its propriety. But an aura of respectability was quickly secured. Soon the great Franco-Flemish pile on Knightsbridge was welcoming the great and the good from all over Europe, and the architects of The Ritz, Charles Mewès and Arthur Davis, added their own touch of glamour in the 1920s by remodelling some of the public rooms in their distinctive Louis XV style. Indeed, so much a favourite of the Establishment did the hotel become that it is reliably reported that The Queen and Princess Margaret first learned to dance within its walls.
I arrived in the Silver Cloud, and was immediately surrounded by half a regiment of porters, eager to see to my baggage. This keen and friendly efficiency was typical of the attitude I found throughout the hotel, and is something I have experienced at other Mandarin Oriental hotels. The Hyde Park is clearly in good hands. 
In the bathroom I found lots of grey-veined marble, two wash basins, spotlights, toiletries by Jo Malone and a tub of good size. And I came across an item I have never encountered in an hotel before: a mat on which I might practise yoga. They had thought of everything. Well, actually, not quite everything, for my billet did not contain a full-length mirror – a strange omission in such fully-equipped surroundings.
Foliage is on the ground floor, in a modern room designed by Adam Tihany ‘to bring the Park into the restaurant’. Its plate glass windows and discreet colours seemed to do just that, as did the leaf under the glass plate on the table in front of me. I would have preferred white to yellow for the tablecloths, for I am always anxious to see the true colour of my wine, but this was my only niggle with what is a welcoming and stylish room. (Mr Tihany also designed the adjacent bar.) My companion and I sat at table number eleven, which I commend to you. We were looked after very well by Markus Lindner, the Restaurant Manager, and by his waiters, smartly dressed in dark suits. The dress code for diners is informal – although, of course, I was in my usual starched collar and tie.
Head Chef Chris Staines thoroughly deserves his Michelin star. His dishes are carefully conceived and attractively presented. A four course dinner is offered for £60, with extra courses at £10.50 and cheese at £7.50. (Lunch – which I did not try – looks good value, with 4 courses and 2 glasses of wine for £37.) The menu simply lists the ingredients of each dish, so – for once – the waiter’s description performs a useful as well as a decorative function. I began with beetroot, feta cheese, walnuts and sorrel. Ever since, as a small child, I learned to love Auntie Maud’s beetroot and cheese sandwiches, I have been a serious fan of beetroot, so this simple and effective dish pleased me. Sea bass with broccoli (purée), lobster (ravioli) and mushrooms brought a superbly balanced combination of flavours and textures, and was certainly the highlight of the meal. Tender pigeon breast came with red cabbage, endive ‘tarte tatin’ and cèpes and my meal concluded with white peach, raspberry (mousse), pine nuts and lavender (foam).
Into the Riedel (Restaurant range) glasses, Assistant Sommelier David Hajos poured Alsation riesling, which was fresh, acidic and with just the tiniest hint of petrol (Trimbach, 2006 - £18, half), white burgundy, whose vanilla-laden massiveness I would have sworn came from a Californian chardonnay (Chassagne Montrachet, Les Vergers, F.L.Pillot, 2002 - £36, half) and a rhone of red cherries, smoke and damp oak (Hermitage, Marquise de la Tourette, 2000 - £68). I enjoyed this drinking.