The Landmark London on Marylebone Road is “an oasis of luxury, sophistication and serenity in the heart of London. A magnificent Grande Dame of a hotel.” Those words were written by the hotel’s copywriter and who am I, a fellow copywriter, to better them. Or indeed reinvent the wheel ~ after a congenial, two-and-a-half-hour High Palms High Tea in the hotel’s splendid Winter Garden with a charming plus-one, those words rang completely true.
Tom Stoppard famously wrote that all writers are ‘lucky dogs’ and as Senior Writer for ARgENTUM I was the lucky dog sent along to sample the hotel’s scrumptious High Palms High Tea and report back on the Grande Dame’s ambience, as The Landmark London and ARgENTUM have entered a first-of-its-kind partnership. The hotel’s new Signature Suites are featuring a bespoke collection of luxury vegan-friendly bathroom products from ARgENTUM. More of this match made in an earthly paradise later. First tea ~ in the spacious Winter Garden with its 80-foot atrium, which used to be a courtyard in the centre of the hotel, into which carriages came to set down their guests and have liveried porters take their luggage.
The Grand Central Hotel, as it once was, opened its doors in July 1899, four months after the Great Central Station (now Marylebone Station) opposite, which was built to serve the Chilterns and the Midlands. It was one of the swathes of great Railway Hotels in those romantic, more glamourous days of travel. The hotel boasted 700 rooms, and the nightly rate was three shillings and sixpence, which sounds like it was a Victorian backpackers’ rate, but today’s equivalent value would be £93.86p. As mentioned above the hotel was designed around a vast courtyard which as well as allowing access to horse and carriage allowed light and air into all the bedrooms whose windows faced onto it. The courtyard was transformed into a Winter Garden with atrium between 1902-1910.
And it was here, the echo of horses’ hooves on cobble stones long gone, that a flurry of diligent waiters brought us our lavish tea that started with a glass of fine English Champagne, Rosé for mademoiselle, Brut for me. And it was here, surrounded by potted palm trees and the glitzy Gucci and Prada clad international jet set, that I gleefully donned my Jay Rayner mantle. From an impressive menu of tea varieties, although I chose the predictable brickies’ breakfast tea (not advertised as such!) my guest chose a more fey and exotic sounding herbal tisane befitting her status as a student of astrology.
There then arrived a cake stand decked with finger slice sandwiches, lemon and blueberry scones and topped with an array of dainties, tartlets, choux and ganache. The sandwiches were good, especially the Lapsang Souchong Smoked Scottish Salmon and when there came an offer of replenishment I couldn’t resist a second bite of the succulent salmon. My Sagittarian companion was gluten-intolerant, and she reported that she appreciated the different gluten-free breads that wrapped the delicious filings. Her GF scones were ‘a bit rubbery’ but she admitted that even as a baker herself she was not sure she could do much better. Mine were fluffy and all that one could wish for in a scone and the Salted Pistachio and White Chocolate Ganache that accompanied the clotted cream and jam was to die for. In fact, we both could have happily died there amongst the potted palms.
We didn’t. Instead, we chatted away till it was time for carriages at 6.15 (I think we were the last to leave). How time had flown, and I can recommend it as a very conducive place to let it fly as the world whirls away outside its sanctuary walls. We’d hardly made much of an in-road to the top deck of cakes, but doggy bags were gladly provided and my friend who I was staying with that night pronounced them very yummy. The dapper, attentive staff had made us feel like royalty, A List celebrities or oligarchs but a short walk to Baker Street Underground Station and our various tube lines home brought us back to reality. Rose-tinted for a while.
So, to the question as to whether The Landmark London and ARgENTUM are a match made in an earthly paradise, I’d say yes. The Landmark London certainly is a soft and gorgeous lap of luxury. From those original 700 rooms, architects have appropriated space to create 300 of the biggest hotel bedrooms in London. And of these there are 70 suites including the Signature Suites, in all of which guests can pamper themselves with ARgENTUM’s bespoke handwash, hand and body lotion, shampoo, conditioner and shower gel. Guests can also indulge in our award-winning skincare and fragrance range. In the inner sanctum of this sanctuary off one of London’s main thoroughfares ~ the bathroom/the boudoir ~ the lucky guests, if not this lucky dog (this time) get the opportunity to immerse themselves in a sensory, uplifting experience inspiring a long moment of tranquillity, self-refection and balance. That’s luxury. True luxury. And we’re talking luxury here ~ a match made in heaven.
Discover the High Palms High Tea At The Landmark London Hotel for yourself...
