A Night At: Malmaison London
Finding a well priced but still cool Hotel in a City is always an issue. I work regularly in London and across the UK presenting Styling Your Home and Instagram workshops with my friend, Dee Campling, and we often struggle to find suitable accommodation that fits our budget. During the last year, we've stayed in a few. Some have been great and exceeded our expectations - some, I can safely say, have not. We'll never forget the night we spent on twin pine bunk beds with a bathroom circa 1985 overlooking the pavement in a pub in West Sussex.
So when Malmaison London asked if I would try out their Hotel in Farringdon, I jumped at the chance. Dee and I were running a workshop at Harvey Nichols the following day, so the timing was perfect. It's right next to Barbican Station so a perfect location, whether you are travelling for business or touring London on a weekend mini break. The Malmaison brand is owned by Singapore based Frasers Hospitality Group (who also own Hotel Du Vin) and there are fifteen of them in the UK. They're just about to open a brand new property in my home town of York, so I was really excited to see what the standard was like. I wasn't disappointed.
The attractive frontage. Photograph courtesy of Malmaison.
The super cool reception area. Photograph courtesy of Malmaison.
Chez Mal Lounge. Photograph courtesy of Malmaison.
The Hotel itself is an imposing building on a quiet, partly pedestrianised side road on Charterhouse Square, an easy walk from the Tube. It's been open since 2003 but was refurbished five years ago. Describing itself as 'for design lovers, Cosmo drinkers and Sunday brunchers', it was the ideal location for both Dee and I who are particularly fond of all three of these. The reception was stunning and darkly glamorous and we were quickly checked in to our room. You can check in from 3.00 pm but you can leave your luggage earlier if you want to explore the City.
There's 97 rooms and each one has been designed with the discerning traveler in mind. With feature wallpapers of exposed brick and wood and bespoke furniture, you can choose from three different room types to suit your budget. There's the Cosy Room with double bed and ensuite with shower and the slightly larger Standard Double. Both of these rooms come with flat screen plasma TV's, minibar, extensive tea and coffee making facilities and gorgeous toiletries from Anatomicals that you are actually encouraged to take home with you. If you want to push the boat out a little further, you can opt for the Mal Club Room. This room has a separate chill out area and a Lavazza coffee machine, plus stripped wooden floors and a en suite drench shower. Finally, there's the Executive Suites which have huge beds, oversized baths and monsoon shower cubicles and giant Samsung TV's, complete with sofa for the ultimate weekend break. All of the rooms come with the standard iron, ironing board, hairdryer, same day laundry, 24 hour room service and, of course, the essential free Wifi. Most brilliantly, all the beds in the Hotel have been specifically designed by Sealy Posturepedic and are super comfy, with Egyptian cotton sheets and feather pillows.
We were lucky enough to be given a Mal Club Room with twin beds. There were several outstanding features to this room, the first being the beds which had huge velvet headboards and luxurious fur throws. They were unbelievably comfortable. Secondly, they had cable charger points by the bed. I can't tell you how often I've stayed in Hotel's where the plug points are all over the other side of the room. The bathroom was super luxurious and sparkly modern and clean. Finally, the furnishings and wall shelving were all really sleek and cool (the huge TV was built into the unit) with the icing on the cake being the Eames lounge chair and ottoman of dreams.
Dinner was taken in the Chez Mal Lounge as the Chez Mal Brasserie, the main restaurant area, was being used for a function. I had steak and chips and Dee had risotto - both were delicious and served to us by a really friendly waiter who kept us topped up with Prosecco throughout the meal. We know our priorities. The next day we were due early for the workshop so we were the first to breakfast in the Chez Mal Brasserie. It's a super cool basement area with some amazing neon's and wall art. It's perfect for a party - in fact, you can hire it out for private events and meetings. The menu was extensive and we decided on Eggs Benedict which was served quickly and efficiently as they knew that we were in a rush. Oh, and most importantly, the coffee was perfect.
The only disappointment was that Dee and I weren't able to take advantage of the 12.00 pm check out which comes as standard at the Hotel, perfect if you are there for a lazy weekend exploring the sights. Next time, I'll make sure that I go with my family on a mini break so that we can make the most of the excellent location, the facilities (breakfast at the weekend is served until 11.00 am) and the seriously cool decor. I'll be getting a date in the diary very soon.
With lots of thanks to the lovely people at Malmaison London for having us to stay. My views are entirely my own and I would never positively promote a location or property if I didn't absolutely love it.
You can contact Malmaison on the following media:
Website
Contact: 020 3750 9402