HYATT PLACE CITY HOTEL, WHITECHAPEL, E LONDON
Words and Review by Deana and Graham Morgan
Right in the heart of Whitechapel in the East End of London is a rather smart, business hotel recently opened by the Hyatt group.
One of the Best hotels in East London – A short walk to the Gherkin, Fenchurch Street, Leadenhall Market, Spitalfields, Petticoat Lane to name but a few, the landscape surrounding the Hyatt Place City Hotel, which is ideally positioned on the Whitechapel Road, is impressive and changing daily. One can always tell when an area is on the “up” by the ever-changing skyline and presence of cranes coupled with the cacophony of clinking, clanking hard core build projects.
Anciently, Whitechapel was initially the start of the Roman Road and historically the high street was lined with coaching inns ready to accommodate travellers entering the city. It’s hardly surprising then that this is a great spot for a business hotel of this kind. Located a short walk from Aldgate East tube station (gives you easy access on the District Line to Tower Hill, Embankment, the Strand, Covent Garden and beyond), and the Whitechapel Gallery which we did visit (free entry, open daily, full of great exhibits and a terrific book shop and coffee bar!), we have now found our new des res next time we hit the big city lights!
A lot of thought has gone into the décor here with incredible street art both within the hotel’s public spaces and outside too. The lower ground floor is where you’ll find an awesome wall art by Jay Kaes (IG @jaycaes). Here too are geometric designs by Olly Fathers (IG @ollyfathers) right by the subterranean reception area. In fact, the basement is the hub of the hotel with a second foyer, bar, restaurant and a well-equipped fitness centre. There’s an event space on the ground floor and some of the rooms on the first floor look out onto another specially commissioned artwork. This one is a 30m x 3m mural by Lothar Goetz (IG @lothargoetz) entitled “Room With A View” and it cleverly creates a focal point which hides the rear of the site.
The restaurant called Zoom served us a cracking meal on our first night with the menu reflecting the multi-cultural layers of the local community and heritage surrounding the hotel. We started with a sharing plate of Hummus and a bowl of olives, followed by Prime Rib for my husband and Tandoori Salmon for me. Both delicious. Graham enjoyed an East London Brewing Company IPA and I had a chilled Pinot Grigio. The restaurant opens from 4pm until 10pm and is a great place to meet people and dine following a hard day of meetings / sightseeing / shopping. Really informal dining with good honest fayre. I had to finish off with the Tiramisu recommended by the staff and it was terrific with more than enough for us to share.
The top floor is where you will find PocketSquare, a cocktail lounge with happy hour from 5pm to 7pm. Lovely open-air seating overlooking the rooftops of Whitechapel and indoors this stylish setting creates a super backdrop to sample some very impressive mixology. PocketSquare is managed by Bar Manager, Kristian Smith who’s blending skills go way beyond the usual cocktail selection. In addition to those is an impressive offering of newly created cocktails which truly reflect the local history of the area.
This is alchemy and alcohol at their most inventive. We sampled Marketa which is inspired by the animal markets of yore on nearby Brick and Petticoat Lanes. Kristian ferments his own plum wine to add to this mix and it’s wonderfully heady. Plum wine being one example of many ingredients he has crafted to give his cocktails their uniqueness. Sedition was our favourite with Absinthe, Hendricks, white port, champagne and herbal salt. Another notable one is entitled Pepys Gold. Sam Pepys being the local cheese merchant who buried his cheeses to keep them safe from the great fire of London which thankfully stopped a few metres short of the area. Aqua Vita inspired Dorian Gray changes colour, depth and flavour as you sip! This was such a great place to unwind after a long day of shopping and a trip to the theatre. We closed the bar at 12.45am! Well worth a visit, however, be prepared to get suckered in to saying “well, maybe just one more!”
And so, to bed. Our room was well appointed, we even had a balcony with seating and occasional table on which to put my early morning cuppa. There are not many places to stay in London that can boast that!
With no obstructions our room and its view was light, airy and well stocked with a range of hot beverages including a Nespresso machine! Crisp white linen, fluffy towels, a large flat screen, plenty of hanging space, great en suite shower room and simply styled decor. Everything you would expect from a short stay in London for business or pleasure.
Just to reassure you, whilst some of the aforementioned development could be seen in the far distance it most certainly could not be heard and we did indeed enjoy two nights of blissful sleep, both times followed by a buffet breakfast in the basement.
Hyatt have tried just hard enough to get the balance of comfort, style, wellbeing and accommodation spot on with this latest addition to their offering. The staff were slick, welcoming, informed and rightly proud of this new venture. Our stay was everything we wanted and more.
