"Sanderson Hotel" 50 Berners Street London W1T 3NG Telephone - 0207 300 1400 Fax - 0207 300 1401
Firstly, I really am not sure whether I am going to find enough superlatives to accurately describe this hotel, but we'll see how we go…
~~~~~~~ Location ~~~~~~~
The hotel is located on the northern tip of Soho on Berners Street, just off Oxford Street.
The nearest tube station would be Oxford Circus, but Tottenham Court Road would not be too much farther to walk. Generally, because of where I park my car when I travel to London, Oxford Circus is an easier tube stop for me to get to this particular hotel.
As you walk up Berners Street, with Oxford Street to your rear, then the hotel is located approximately 200 yards on the left hand side, beyond The Berners hotel, that you may note on the right hand side.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ History & Style of Hotel ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The hotel is an old office / warehouse of the textiles company "Sanderson", who may be more better known to the fellas as having sponsored Sheffield Wednesday Football Club for some years … Who? They used to be a decent Sheffield football team, and are one of the world's oldest football clubs (!) tehehe … I am just asking for some abuse from some Owls fans there!!! The building was transformed into a hotel in the mid to late 1990's (I'm sure this is correct!).
The Sanderson hotel, along with sister hotel St Martins Lane, is one of the hippest and trendiest hotels in London. Both hotels are part of the Morgans Hotel chain, formerly Ian Schrager Hotels, and boast style and elegance in abundance. Put simply, people will either love or hate these hotels, there is very rarely and in-between.
Personally? I sit on the fence …. Joke! I love the two hotels, but then, if I am staying in a city centre hotel, I like modern and trendy. However, if I am staying in a hotel in the countryside, then my liking is suited much more toward the traditional style, typically English, such as of Chewton Glenn in Hampshire.
Both Sanderson and St Martins hotels are the only two Morgans hotels currently located outside of the USA.
The style of the hotels, and Sanderson more so, is extreme in terms of the décor and style of furniture … it's avant garde. The emphasis is on minimalism, yet the concepts are purely ground breaking as far as hotel design goes. When you walk through the double doors into the Sanderson hotel, to your right is "The Long Bar" (I will come onto this later), to the left is the hotel reception, with very strange looking pieces of furniture artistically placed between you and the "Purple Bar" straight ahead. Two of the most intriguing pieces are an oval seat suspended from the ceiling by a wire, and a big pair of red lips as a couch! It's all pretty crazy and makes you feel as though you are part of some bizarre movie set.
The last time I walked into the Sanderson hotel, Kyle MacLachlan (Agent Cooper ~ Twin Peaks) strolled out in front of me. In fact, on the first occasion that I visited and stayed at the hotel … wait for it girls … Johnny Depp was staying at the hotel and was casting for, I think, "Pirates of the Caribbean". Now, even though I am a bloke, I can appreciate the guy is blessed with good looks (bastard!).
The hotel, as with St Martins Lane, really is a popular haunt of the stars. So, anyone who loves his or her celebrity watching firmly within the A-List category, this is the place to come!
The philosophy of the Morgans Hotel group is that the hotels should all be based on a series of simple concepts. The hospitality industry has considered the concepts to be ground breaking, but for the hotel group, they are considered as timeless.
To quote from a press release;
"We've got to be a bit subversive and create hotels the way we wanted, without being constrained by convention. We're still passionate about what we do. We still want our hotels to provoke and entertain. We want the experience of visiting one of our hotels to be more like seeing a great movie, reading a wonderful book, or watching a memorable play - not just as a place to sleep, but a place where you feel an honest, emotional connection - where you feel like you are an integral part of the magical story that is unfolding around you - because you are"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sanderson Hotel Facilities ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BEDROOMS
"Dream-like" is one word I have heard used to describe the bedrooms at the hotel, of which there total 150. It truly is something else, with each bedroom basically a box without walls that it divided by floor to ceiling drapes. The standard bedrooms have a draped hallway, with a bathroom to the left, and the main bedroom straight ahead, which opens out into a spacious white eclectic space, with large windows emitting masses of natural daylight. The sheer effect and impact this produces is still with me today, fully 4 years since my first visited to the hotel.
I felt that the use of drapes to separate the internal space of the bedroom was ingenious, and leant itself to a rather kinky scenario (yes, get in!), whereby someone taking a shower could be fully viewed by their partner in the main bedroom (whatever tickles your fancy!). However, the drapes, are also accompanied by large floor to ceiling electronically controlled curtains, allowing for privacy should you really, really not wish to perform a seductive tease for the better half, or whoever else you may have lurking in your hotel room … gosh, the mind boggles! "Jeeves, I didn't realise you were here <blush>, just leave the room service by the television set and get out now!"
The beds are also a very central feature to the main bedroom. Picture an oblong shaped bedroom, with a silver-leafed sleigh shaped bed positioned in the middle, on a diagonal axis, above which you will note a "rug inspired by Voltaire's handwriting and oil paintings of soothing landscape scenes", which is hung rather unexpectedly on the ceiling. The bed is a picture of pure white, with large heavy duvets, and pillows that you just sink into when you dive upon it... Now, despite the Martini cocktails in the bar downstairs, the bed allowed for one of the best nights sleep I think I have ever had and I was not happy about leaving it behind the next morning I can tell you!
The bathroom has equal style and unique design concepts, most specifically the oval shaped porcelain washbasins that sit on top of a funky table, which has been copied by a number of other hotels striving to emulate the chic and trendy design synonymous with Morgans Hotels. However, no other London hotel has come close to copying the design to the extremes found here.
The bedrooms are complete with Sky Television, DVD Movies, CD Player, Internet Connectivity, Remote Blinds, and quite possibly the most 'effin expensive mini-bar I have ever come across ~ I am fairly sure, from recollection, that a packet of Opal Fruits (or whatever they're bloody called now … Starburst is it?) cost something crazy like £8.00, which I worked out cost something like 75p per Opal Fruit. Now, you wouldn't be sharing any of those bad boys with anyone else would you? I'd expect some sort of alcoholic injection into each sweet for that kind of price!!
All the usual services are also available, such as 24-hour room service, butler service, maid service, and laundry.
The hotel has some pretty swish Penthouses and Apartments, and I was completely blown away when I saw the Penthouse. Picture the size of the Penthouse Richard Gere had in "Pretty Woman" and then add in all the craziness I have described thus far, but also add a little peach décor to go with the whites.
MEETINGS & EVENTS
The hotel is not geared towards housing large-scale meeting and events, but it does offer smaller meeting space, which is absolutely ideal for fashion house, media, and the likes. Saying that, a lot of different companies like the image and impression Sanderson provides, and would often choose to hold very high-end meetings here. If you want to impress, this is definitely the place to do it. All the most up-to-date modern technology is provided, from plasma screens to smart boards and electronic flipcharts (Goodness, we're becoming lazy, if we can't even flip over the paper of a flipchart anymore!)
THE LONG BAR
Now, this is where all the people watching happens, and it's really funny to watch other people, watching you, watching other people, watching people, watch other people, people watching!
The Long Bar at Sanderson is famed as a celebrity hangout, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights. However, as different nights of the week have become more vogue in London than what would typically be considered as NOT the nights to go out elsewhere in the country, celebrities are often spotted when you least expect them. I am not 100% sure whether it is still the case now, but when new upcoming boy and girl bands were breaking into the scene, they would very often start out at THE LIGHT BAR at sister hotel St Martins Lane before later graduating to THE LONG BAR at Sanderson.
The bar is exactly as it sounds, and is an 80-foot long glowing onyx bar, with no optics hanging from the ceiling, located in the centre of the room, with the most unique high chair stools circling the perimeter. The chairs are unique because the backs of them have the design of an eye imprinted on then, to further the theme of people watching, which I thought was obviously clever.
During the day, the bar oozes natural daylight and provides a very fresh, light and airy feel. However, for me, the bar is best visited in the evening, when light is fading, and the drapes surrounding the room, coupled with the glow from the bar and the lighting within the room, provide a stunning and elegant effect.
Cocktails made completely with fresh fruits and other ingredients are certainly the order of the day, but I must warn you, they certainly do not come cheaply. I think the cheapest drink on the menu is circa £8, with a cocktail costing from £11. I have taken a few friends in during the day before and they pretty much chased me down the street on the way out, because I never warned them about the prices … Plus, it may also have had something to do with me sorting out the cheaper round in the Weatherspoons in Piccadilly … Forward thinking you see!!
THE PURPLE BAR
This bar is a very exclusive bar, which is for private members only, and is fairly small in size. It is so called because the décor is largely purple, lavender and violet. It's like something out of "Alice in Wonderland" and - although I've never done any drugs - I felt as though I was tripping out when I entered it! The bar specialises in Martini cocktails, which I can highly recommend. Again, it's not cheap and a basic Martini cocktail was setting me back something like £10 a time.
BILLIARD ROOM
This is truly awesome, and it has quite an American TV clubby vibe to it, with an antique leafed Billiard table located in the centre of the room, and large original 1950's stained glass windows from ground to first floor, as steps sweep up to the next floor. Stained glass in a hotel … no, seriously, it is there, I wasn't tripping … Although, I have a faint recollection I may have uttered the words "faarrrr out maaaan!"
SPOON
Spoon is the hotel restaurant, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. To be honest, I prefer "Asia de Cuba", which is the hotel restaurant at sister hotel St Martins Lane, worthy of a review all of it's own, but "Spoon" can individually be considered as one the best restaurants in the capital.
Spoon offers a very unique "mix and match" menu, fusing different varieties of food together. This fusion of food concept is evident at a number of trendy hotel restaurants, such as "Asia de Cuba" @ St Martins Lane Hotel, "Nahm" @ The Halkin Hotel, "Mju" @ Millennium Knightsbridge Hotel, and "Nobu" @ The Metroplitan Hotel. Diners are able to customise their meals according to their nutritional priorities, allowing for complete culinary freedom and expression. I felt that the restaurant boasted sophistication and the cuisine was of the highest grade.
HEALTH & BEAUTY
The hotel does have a wellness centre and gym, which I did not visit, but they provide some of the best treatments you can expect to find anywhere in London, with a high emphasis on personal service and total luxury. There was also quite an emphasis on total expense and I would suggest tampering with the magnetic strips on your credit cards, in order that they don't swipe!
COURTYARD GARDEN
Within the centre of the hotel, is a tranquil open-air oasis littered with mosaics, plants and trees, water features, and a reflecting pool. It is very unique within central London, and is ideal for chillin', maxin', relaxin', or coolin' ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hotel Services ~~~~~~~~~~~~
Check-in ~ 2pm
Check-out ~ 12 noon
Concierge ~ Provides all typical services, such as local information, theatre & restaurant bookings, taxi bookings, and so on.
Valet Parking
24-Hour room service
Specialised dietary menus
Health & fitness
Meetings & Events
International news, magazine & gift shop (located behind reception next to the Purple bar)
Childcare service, upon request
~~~~ Cost ~~~~Typically, you won't pay less than £225 + vat per room, per night room only for a standard double room for double occupancy.
However, please see the explanation on hotel bedroom rates, as copy and pasted from my Westin Dublin review;
< Hotel prices are rarely published anymore, because "best available rates" are now in operation within most hotels, whereby a rate will fluctuate according to the performance of the market. Therefore, if a hotel has very few bedrooms available to sell for a specific date, then the price of a bedroom is likely to be much higher … supply and demand. The pricing model that hotels no use is very similar to airlines, and this is probably the best way for me to make the analogy.
Rates will also vary dependent upon seasonality and the day of the week, so if you are travelling on leisure, you are likely to pay a cheaper rate than a business traveller, when the hotel may typically be busier>.
~~~~~~~~~ Experience ~~~~~~~~~
My personal experience was mixed if I am honest. The product is truly outstanding and from this point of view, Sanderson would be my hotel of choice every time I am in London, if of course, I could afford it.
However, the one thing that has always let the hotel down for me is the rude and arrogant nature of the staff. If you're not a celebrity, then they tend to look down their noses at you and treat you as a second-class citizen, which really pisses me off! I tend to think that at those prices, the staff should almost be rolling out the red carpet for every guest that stays! However, that said, this was much more evident with the reception staff when checking-in, rather than the bar staff who appeared - on the whole - to be a lot more friendly and engaging, but - being a cynic - that may be because the bar is the place where punters are more likely to provide a tip :-0
I do believe that senior employees have noted the comments concerning staff attitude, and this is being addressed, but my own personal experiences have been slightly tarnished by this rather bewildering behaviour. The place has an aura about it, and at times I felt a little out of place, especially as I didn't have the money to back up a night of it in either the Long or Purple bars, but it was good to experience it on the occasions I did!
All in all, fabulous and truly unique product, but the service and attitude needs to greatly improve to warrant top marks from me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ List of other hotels in the group ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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