The Spa’s sense of spaciousness is replicated in The Lobby, with its coffered ceiling and triple-height stone pillars. The stand-out features in Peter Marino’s design are the hand-painted de Gournay murals that pay tribute to the various Royal Parks only a short walk away. While the concept of all-day dining doesn’t always have the best connotations, this is a cleverly planned, airy space in which to start the day with breakfast and an equally appealing setting for afternoon tea – even on a grey winter’s day, as the light falls on Grosvenor Place beyond the lofty revolving doors.
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High above the treetops on the hotel’s eighth floor, Brooklands Bar might lay claim to having the best panoramic views in west London. St Paul’s and Big Ben do, however, have strong competition from the interior details: a latticed ceiling inspired by a 1930s twin-engine bomber; carriage seating and leather-lined wall panelling echoing those of the Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost; a chandelier modelled on the blades of a Rolls-Royce turbine jet engine. The bar’s private space, The Napier Railton Room, pays homage to the record-breaking 1933 aero-engined car that regularly raced on the Brooklands track. In the adjacent Brooklands Restaurant, a 13.6-metre aluminium model of a Concorde hangs from the ceiling, while a midnight blue Tai Ping carpet depicts a map of the night sky across Concorde’s route. The architects of Archer Humphryes must have had great fun seeing how many references to aviation and automation history they could pack into one rooftop space.
