Travel wishlist - The Biltmore Mayfair, London, hotel review, Scotland on Sunday travel

From the pillars and flags on the exterior to the marble and individual hand towels in the interior, this hotel epitomises sophisticated indulgence

@the_betterment_

The Biltmore Mayfair, London

London is a city synonymous with opulence, big business and international appeal. With luxury accommodation choices numbering into the thousands – and at least 65 new ones that were set to open this year in the capital – hotels are working overtime to stand out. The Biltmore Mayfair undoubtedly succeeds. Part of the Hilton Group’s LXR deluxe marque and opened in September after an extensive refit, it is your ideal urban haven. It embodies progressive luxury, boasts impressive central London credentials and wraps you warmly in VIP service.

Rooms at the The Biltmore in Mayfair, which overlooks Grosvenor Square, have their own doorbells

Room service

Rooms with a view overlook famous Grosvenor Square with the window spanning the length of the wall. There is, of course, a mini bar, Nespresso coffee machine, and tea-making facilities. All of the items you would hope for are here: a bed that you don’t want to leave, hairdryer, ironing board, bathrobe, slippers, USB sockets, waterfall walk-in shower, toiletries from Penhaligon’s, the list goes on.

Some surprises: heated toilet seat with bidet function, a drawer encasing glassware, a private doorbell (knocking on hotel doors is so 2019), digital pad to signal Do Not Disturb. It’s all very fashionable and very special.

Budget or boutique?

The address alone marks the Biltmore Mayfair as upscale. From the pillars and flags on the exterior to the marble and individual hand towels on the interior, this hotel epitomises sophisticated indulgence.

Wining and dining

The Betterment by Jason Atherton is a major selling point. The Michelin-starred chef’s restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner to guests and non-guests with impeccable, attentive service. The menu showcases seasonal produce from across the UK and the atmosphere is lively and cheery.

Wine decanters like exhibits from a modern art museum are fashioned to aerate different vintages at optimal levels. Expert sommeliers guide you through a quality, varied menu and advise on the dying art of dessert wines.

From the vegetarian menu, buttery, full-flavour wild mushrooms melt in the mouth and the smoked egg yolk is exquisite, leaving you wanting more. Meat dishes, meanwhile, provide a veritable culinary tour de force around the British Isles. Cornish lobster is perfectly offset by aloe vera and potato and horseradish salad for starters. Then it’s up to the Highlands for a main of succulent venison in the richest, deepest of sauces. Scotland is further represented on the menu by Buccleuch Estate rib-eye. A cheese cart comes around offering a good selection including a blue Gorgonzola that might be the most delicious this reviewer has ever tasted. Dessert is a selection of unique flavours and textures such as red pepper and raspberry sorbet, and vanilla pebbles with clementine syrup.

For breakfast, the restaurant offers “wellness” options and protein shakes in addition to cooked and continental.

In the relaxed Tea Lounge, visitors enjoy towers of cakes for afternoon tea with the hotel providing illustrated maps highlighting the region in which their food and drink is produced.

The Pine Bar houses a specialist whisky bar with a focus on quality rather than quantity. A dram of Glenfiddich 50 Year Old there will set you back £4,500. And for special tasting sessions the Scotch is accompanied by unusual, delicate, Spanish-influenced crystal bread with toppings to complement each whisky, including cherries preserved in-house.

Worth getting out of bed for

You can nip over to Selfridges, stroll into Soho, or step over to Hyde Park. The Biltmore Mayfair is perfectly situated as a jumping off point to explore London.

Little extras

There are beaming smiles from all staff and offers of help without intrusion. They call the lift if they see you walk towards it.

Guestbook comments

The luxury afforded by the Biltmore is matched only by its location. Check-in and live like a Regency era royal.

Nightly rates at The Biltmore Mayfair start at £450. The Biltmore Mayfair, 44 Grosvenor Square, Mayfair, London W1K 2HP (020 7629 9400, lxrhotels3.hilton.com)

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