The Dorchester

Why book The Dorchester?

For capital fabulousness. Not to be outdone by the arrivistes thudding onto the top-end scene, the Dorchester has been shaking up her tail feathers with the biggest uplift in three decades, largely led by Pierre-Yves Rochon. Public spaces have been supercharged, and two floors of new rooms and suites revealed. Park-view penthouses and a roof space remain under lock and key till later this year. The Vesper Bar has new movie-star looks by Martin Brudnizki.

Set the scene

The hotel where Elizabeth Taylor signed her Cleopatra contract in the bath remains out-and-out fabulous, but with a slinky makeover. The Artist’s Bar at the end of the catwalk-like pillared Promenade sparkles with a mirrored ceiling. Lalique crystal pillars girdle the bar and Liberace’s restored mirror-ball-coated baby grand is the winking centrepiece. This is the spot to pull up a barstool for caviar, native oysters and Champagne, or perhaps a Petal Head cocktail (Stoli Elit, kumquat, Aperol and passion fruit) served from a trolley. A new hoard of Britain-centric art, glinty and nature-themed, lines the walls: Ann Carrington’s Elizabeth II silhouette in mother-of-pearl buttons; Sue Arrowsmith’s delicate silver leaf with coral branches. The Vesper Bar, reimagined by Martin Brudnizki, is again one of London's best spots for destination boozing. Smoked-glass walls and leaf-green armchairs join glowing Palladium leaf ceiling, snugs and original drawings and celebrity photography by Cecil Beaton. It hums with a warm buzz come Martini hour.

The backstory

Since 1931, the Dorchester has squarely ruled the art deco roost on Park Lane, and its guest list, from Sinatra to Gaga, has always been flashily illustrious. Prince Philip had his stag do in the Park Suite (his friends were served foie gras, turtle soup and a mixed grill). Elizabeth Taylor signed her Cleopatra contract in the bath in the Harlequin Suite, and stayed at the hotel 37 times. (The Vesper Bar has a Bessie Mae cocktail – Taylor’s nickname – which comes with “bath bubbles” floating on top). The James Bond connection is deep. Bond author Ian Fleming (who created the Vesper Martini himself) remained a regular until his death in 1964. When William Boyd continued the Bond series with the novel Solo, Bond woke up in a suite at The Dorchester on his 45th birthday. The Dorchester has welcomed all six James Bonds, 14 Bond Girls, four Ms and nine Bond villains as guests. The Vesper Bar is, of course, named after Bond’s late beloved.

The rooms

The new suites have the hues of an English garden, in leaf greens, roses and heathers, with hand-painted de Gournay headboards and Colefax and Fowler floral fabrics. If The Dorchester Collection’s Plaza Athenée is the American fantasy of Paris, then the Park Lane dame’s new rooms are the American fantasy of Britishness – one we are happy to buy into.

The area

You can’t argue with Park Lane – just ask the creators of Monopoly.

The service

Service at the Dorchester is turbo-charged, with every member of staff warmly rolling out the red carpet. The long standing butlers are charming as well as efficient (mine promised: “I can do anything you want, as long as it’s legal”).

Food and drink

Long-standing and perennially brilliant, both China Tang (top-drawer Cantonese in an Art Deco jewel box) and Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester (three Michelin-starred contemporary French event dining) remain part of the permanent furniture. Last year, the 92-year-old Dorchester Grill opened a new chapter by putting Tom Booton’s name on the door. The Grill by Tom Booton is a fun slice of British culinary theatre by the earthy Essex-born wunderkind, still, unbelievably, only 30 years old. For this new menu of upper-crust hangover cuisine, you need to work up a serious appetite. Highlights are the deconstructed lobster “Caesar” – the ingredients have been posted into the lettuce leaves; a squid bolognese à la Koffman that’s been given the tick of approval by Pierre Koffman himself; and “All The Chicken”, the crown of a stuffed and roasted chicken adorned with two glazed wings and shortcrust pies. Breakfasts at The Promenade, under the care of culinary director Martyn Nail, formerly of Claridge’s, are some of the best in London. They range from nurturing and wholesome – linseed oat and hazelnut porridge with raspberry, banana, pistachio and and bee pollen – to gilt-edged piggery: Oscietra caviar Brioche à tête with scrambled eggs and crème fraîche.

Spa and wellbeing

The Dorchester’s spa is jewel-box small, its waiting-room palette a soothing symphony of dusky rose hues, pale pink roses adorning the entrance. Contrastingly, the post-treatment Relaxation Room is decked in navy-draped walls and smart sofas, inviting sleep and a black-out of the senses. There’s a Mii-stocked nail bar, and the regular spa menu includes treatments from Valmont, Carol Joy and ishga. (Newly introduced across all the brand’s UK hotels, ishga is an organic skincare brand hailing from the Hebrides that makes use of organic anti-oxidant Hebridean seaweed and spring water from Lewis in its marine-based facials and body treatments.)

This year’s great excitement is around the arrival of Dr Uliana Gout, founder of Harley Street’s London Aesthetic Medicine (LAM) Clinic and an acclaimed doctor in cosmetic and aesthetic treatments, now on hand to deliver medical-grade facials. Dr Gout is not “just” a medical facialist and Harley Street pro, she is a polymath, great conversationalist and worldwide lecturer. The LAM Luxe Celebrity achieves hydration, smoothness and tightening with the help of pure hydrating molecules; M-mode Radio Frequency; an Exosome “cocktail” delivered with electroporation and an anti-inflammatory red LED and hydrating mask. Her schtick is personalised treatment (the medical history form is exhaustive) so whilst each treatment is as multi-layered as the above, it may not be identical. If there’s something reassuring about having a facial based on evidence-based aesthetic medicine, the baby-soft, baby-smooth feel of your skin and your more sculpted face afterwards beggars belief. Starting from £750, Dr Gout’s facials are hardly cheap, but they are the gold standard.

There’s a steam room, TechnoGym space, and the option of personal training at The Dorchester, but for swimming you’ll need to pop over to the sister hotel 45 Park Lane across the road, which launched a 10,000 sq ft spa in 2021, including a 66-foot pool and similar treatment menu.

For families

The hotel’s pleasures are resolutely adult (and in a way, why dilute that for yourself?). But children are welcomed with open arms. On arrival, they’re gifted with chocolates, biscuits and cupcakes, Dorchester teddies and London activity packs; housekeeping can set up baby toiletries, kid’s bathrobes, glamping, gaming and movie nights in the rooms. Children’s activities include pizza-making and baking masterclasses and a hotel scavenger hunt. They will also love the pastries and cakes at the new Cake & Flowers boutique by Pierre-Yves Rochon, new last year.

Accessibility

The Dorchester has a range of accessible rooms accessed by adapted lifts with features including spacious bathrooms and roll-in showers. There’s an accessible entrance on Deanery Street, The Grill at The Dorchester, Orchid Room and Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester are accessible, and all public areas have accessible bathrooms.

Eco effort

The Dorchester’s ethical and environmental policy spans across the Dorchester Collection and the ecological aspect is centred more on wider carbon offsetting programmes and promoting animal welfare (through programmes like the Better Chicken Commitment). It’s difficult to glean their granular approach to sustainability.