Oxford Street may be Europe’s busiest shopping street, but Londoners rarely come here. It forms the northern border of Mayfair and exudes a hectic energy that only the most dedicated shoppers can absorb. It’s hard to believe that the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair is just a two-minute walk from this chaos, such is the calm it exudes behind its discreet doors.
Located on the corner of Hanover Square at the end of Brook Street, the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair offers a rare combination: privacy in a prime location. The historic square is at the junction of Oxford Street and Regent’s Street, but receives only a fraction of the visitor numbers.
Like the rest of Mayfair, the hotel is very crowded. Mandarin Oriental’s second London property (after Hyde Park) squeezes into a small footprint, offering just 50 rooms and suites. It is the first new-build hotel in the area in over 10 years, underscoring not only the space constraints in Mayfair, but also the complexity and cost of building there.
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Customers bear the brunt of these costs, with room rates starting at a hefty £1,000 (about $1,300) per night. But these prices are certainly not out of place in modern London. In fact, they have almost become the norm, with recent openings of The Peninsula, Raffles at The OWO and The Emory all joining the same four-figure club.
The developers seem to have spared no expense in blending the building into its surroundings (the futuristic red brick facade stands out in every way), and with good reason: the hotel rivals some of the city’s grandes dames, including the inimitable Claridge’s, just a short stroll down Brook Street. So what’s new at the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair? We asked around to find out.
The luxury facts
Prices from: $1,300 per night
Stay here for: First-class shopping location away from the crowds
We loved: The underground pool, the largest in Mayfair
Don’t miss: Akira Back, the celebrity chef’s first London restaurant
What’s more: Dosa, an intimate chef’s table and a rooftop bar
Suite to book: Hanover Suite
Remain
The Mandarin Oriental Mayfair is unusual in that it has only 50 guest rooms and suites, but 77 private apartments, so the common areas are more reminiscent of an upscale apartment block than a hotel.
The hotel’s restaurant, Akira Back, attracts many external guests, but during the day the lobby is of course a private space. The check-in desk is separated from the rest of the lobby by a bridge. Once you cross the bridge, you only see other guests or staff.
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Despite the small number of rooms, Mandarin Oriental has created eight categories, ranging from a 33 sqm Deluxe Room to the 140 sqm Mayfair Suite. However, size is one of the few differentiating factors, as all rooms share largely the same decor and high-quality amenities, including hand-painted wallpaper, marble bathrooms, locally sourced snacks and a complimentary minibar.
The interior design is distinctly oriental, but also includes subtle references to local fauna. The magnolias painted on each wall, for example, are inspired by the same flowers that bloom in Hanover Square every spring.
We stayed in the Hanover Suite, which is considered one of the hotel’s two signature suites. This one-bedroom unit offers ample living space for couples and room to entertain a friend or two in the open-plan living room/kitchenette.
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The suite makes clever use of its space and feels much larger than the stated 95 sq m. Sliding doors pull out from almost every wall, allowing rooms to be transformed from open to cozy with one effortless movement.
Mandarin Oriental Mayfair aimed to offer a similar experience in terms of amenities for all guests, but a differentiator is the New & Lingwood silk jacquard dressing gowns, exclusive to the Mayfair and Hanover Suites.
Bathrooms are clad in marble and feature the must-have Toto robotic toilets. The Hanover and Mayfair suites also have a powder room (also robotic), so you can keep the bathroom to yourself even when entertaining.
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Food
When space is tight, you start digging deeper. That’s what they’ve done here, as Akira Back is one floor below ground level. You wouldn’t know it though, as the double-height ceilings and glass roof flood the restaurant with natural light. It gives the restaurant a cave-like feel in what is actually a very narrow space.
The restaurant is run by its namesake, a Korean-born, Colorado-raised chef who has branches around the world. But this is his first restaurant in London, and on a Saturday night the restaurant was suitably busy as locals descended the green Ming marble staircase flanked by oversized designer shopping bags.
They come for the signature “AB Tuna Pizza,” a specialty of Akira Back that is remarkably similar to Wolfgang Puck’s smoked salmon pizza. We’ll leave it to historians to decide which was there first.
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Although there’s nothing particularly new or inventive on Akira Back’s menu (Asian influences, Western take), the food is very good and the service excellent. We were particularly impressed with the vegan nigiri, including a pickled rhubarb that’s out of this world, and the black cod with yuzu foam. In September, they’ll be adding Dosa, an intimate chef’s table concept that earned a Michelin star in Seoul before eventually closing.
On the same floor, the ABar Lounge is a surprisingly hedonistic nightclub offering a sophisticated cocktail menu, small bites and live DJs until late at night. The hotel will also open a rooftop lounge in early autumn, with stunning views over the charming rooftops of Mayfair.
Relax
The Mandarin Oriental Mayfair never planned to have an extensive spa offering, so limited are the options for digging in this part of London. Designers (read: faith healers) have somehow managed to build Mayfair’s largest hotel swimming pool.
The 25-meter pool looks narrow, but it’s big enough to fit three considerate adults (spare us your butterfly). The water is warm and the lighting is soothing. There are comfortable loungers, a sauna and a hot tub. If they added a cold-water plunge pool, I’d still be there today and wouldn’t want to leave.
Next door there’s a gym (which, like the pool, is surprisingly large) with Technogym equipment, appealing to both regulars and first-timers. Aimed primarily at residents and locals, the hotel has partnered with Bodyspace, which offers access to world-class personal trainers for the gym and pool.
There are only two treatment rooms, which sounds quite limited for a London hotel. Then again, there are only 50 rooms in the hotel and anyone buying a flat here will probably have to visit many other properties. Be sure to book in advance to avoid disappointment.
Capturing the spirit of this part of town, the special treatments focus on relieving the stress of the city. The Tranquility of Mayfair treatment uses a blend of massage and sound waves to relieve the stress of city life in two two-hour sessions.
Hanover Suite from £7,000 ($8,900) per night. Contact 22 Hanover Square, London W1S 1JP; [email protected]; +44 20 7889 8888; mandarinoriental.com
