Richard Dash and Jamie Carter review a luxury weekend in Mayfair, enjoying the overnight delights of Mayfair Townhouse, the epicurean pleasures of Mount Street Restaurant and a taste of the country at The Farm Shop.
Never will I ever be... The saying goes, ‘when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life’. It’s safe to say when you visit Mayfair, you’ll discover the best of ‘old’ London.
What comes to mind when someone asks you to go to Mayfair? Fast cars, expensive houses, fabulously dressed people, chic coffee shops, a level of wealth that some of us could only dream of? Same for us, so imagine our glee when we were invited to Mayfair for a stay and dine experience. Grab a cup of tea and get comfy, because you’re coming with us on a metropolitan adventure we could only previously have dreamed of.
Mayfair Townhouse
From the team behind Iconic Hotels Group, we introduce Mayfair Townhouse. Curiously unexpected, but reassuringly Mayfair.
The Mayfair Townhouse lines the illustrious Half Moon Street, the setting for Oscar Wilde’s most famous play, The Importance of Being Earnest. Built in 1730, Half Moon Street was a colourful haunt for bachelors, bohemians and artistic types in Victorian London. During this time, many of the street’s townhouses were split into residential apartments for the elite man-about-town to reside in before marriage. Iconic fictional characters such as Oscar Wilde’s Algernon Moncreiff and P. G. Wodehouse’s Bertie Wooster lived here. These characters live on in the Townhouse today. You can meet them for a drink at The Dandy Bar or see them on the walls as you walk to your private suite.
The building itself is steeped in history dating back to the 1700s, when the Renard family used funds from their family bank to construct rows of townhouses for the newly wealthy merchant class. This row of townhouses was later purchased by the Hilton Group and turned into one large hotel, which has, in turn, been purchased by the Iconic Group. I’m sure I’m paraphrasing and missing a couple of hundred years, but you get the picture. It’s a stunning row of classic London townhouses, tastefully and playfully renovated to celebrate the rich history running through its walls.
After a short tour through the shared spaces and Dandy Bar, we were shown to our room. It’s not very often you’ll find me using this word, but we both felt the room had an air of sexiness to it. With its dark features and fixtures and clever use of accent lighting, it almost felt seductive; seductive, sumptuous, and rich.
Nothing quite says holiday like a stocked (complimentary) mini-bar: fizzy drinks, plenty of water, luxury tea and coffee – and a welcome bottle of Laurent Perrier, perfect for washing down our welcome truffles.
You’ll want to add breakfast to your stay - trust us. Take a short walk to the lower ground floor to the in-house dining room. As with many hotels, breakfast is a help-yourself affair, with plenty on offer. Just off to the side of the main dining area, you’ll see the pantry, which is stocked full of your breakfast bits: granola, fresh fruit, pastries, overnight oats, and cereals. For those of you looking for a heartier start to the day, there’s an à la carte menu (the avocado and poached eggs were divine) and a help-yourself full English offering too. There’s a clear eye for quality products and precision here. Despite being a help-yourself set-up, which can often be overwhelming, everything here seemed so intentionally placed and aesthetically pleasing it helped guide the experience for us, after all, we eat with our eyes first.
Mount St Restaurant
A not-so-hidden gem, shining proudly atop the iconic Audley Public House on Mayfair’s illustrious Mount Street, itself lined with chic eateries and marvellously Mayfairish tipple spots - this area has earned its reputation as one of the places to be (and be seen to be) in London.
Mount St Restaurant is a modern British restaurant that brings together food, drink, art, culture, and craftsmanship. Designed by Studio Laplace, headed by Christophe Comoy and Luis Laplace, this delicious dining spot integrates architecture, art, and design while allowing the site-specific artists’ commissions to take centre stage. It’s like walking into a work of art in itself.
Take the restaurant floor; American artist Rashid Johnson has transformed it into an all-enveloping site-specific commission made of exquisite shades of Palladian marble. This allows guests to experience an artwork differently — they can dine on it, walk on it, and indeed dance on it.
As you take a moment to breathe it all in, the art lovers out there will notice some familiar pieces on the walls and throughout the fixtures and furnishings; pieces by Andy Warhol, Keith Tyson, Frank Auerbach and Paul McCarthy - ask about his “Christmas trees.” You’ll know what I mean when you see them.
Executive Chef Jamie Shears works closely with local farmers and growers to secure the freshest British produce from around the UK, including beef and lamb from Durslade, their very own farm in Somerset.
Safely in the hands of general manager Soufian and our server for the evening, Betty, we begin our journey through their menu, packed heavy with influences from the seasons and a feeling of pride in British ingredients throughout.
It was tough, but eventually I landed on Bruton beef tartare with a raw egg yolk and toast for a bit of crunch and texture. Jamie took the Portland crab with smoked trout, apple and fennel, finished with a punchy lemon dressing. Both dishes were rich and tasty, and well proportioned, setting us up nicely for the main event.
For the main course, we decided to celebrate the best of British meats. We chose our challengers: Durslade Farm lamb loin with stuffed courgette flower and tomato and anchovy, versus aged fillet of beef with bubble and squeak, mushroom ketchup and bone marrow sauce. Both dishes packed a punch and held their own, but the beef took the win. When you get a steak with a tasty crust that is still soft and pink inside, you know someone is feeling very smug in the kitchen.
We really shouldn’t have ordered pudding, but because we’re here for you, we really put ourselves through the tough stuff. Lemon tart with yoghurt ice cream for Jamie, as he needed a little pick-me-up to stop him falling into a food-induced coma, while I chose banana soufflé with rum and raisin ice cream, drenched in caramel sauce, as recommended by the wonderful Betty. It was a deliciously decadent end to our unforgettable evening with the team at Mount St. Restaurant.
Farm Shop
No visit to London is quite complete without a quick spot of shopping (and oh, Mayfair is quite the Aladdin's cave of delights), so when we were offered a little tour around Durslade’s own farm shop, how could we resist?
Mayfair's Farm Shop opened in 2023 and has quickly become a community hub that offers fresh and seasonal produce from their farm in Somerset. The Farm Shop is almost painfully quaint and cute; drawing customers with their distinctive green and white striped awnings from the outside, while inside, there’s a more staged feel. White-washed stone plinths with vibrantly coloured fruit and eye-catching vegetables stored in marvellous wooden crates and baskets. The shelves and fridges feature award-winning products, a large portion of which comes from their 1000-acre estate in Somerset.
Remember last night’s lamb loin and fillet of beef? The Durslade Farm supplies Mount Street restaurant, and they can supply your home, too. Accessible through the Farm Shop or through the Aldford Street entrance, the Farm Shop has its own neighbourhood butcher with an impressive and extensive selection of meats and specialist cuts. The team is expertly skilled with a true butcher’s eye to ensure they sell the best cuts. You can find them breaking down whole carcasses in the morning, making chicken cushions and French trimming lamb in the afternoon.
If that wasn’t enough, and you hankered for something stronger than a fresh pressed juice, head downstairs to their hidden wine bar. With a huge selection of wines, cheeses and share boards, it’s easy to see how one glass can become many and how a quick visit will become an evening. This space carries the Farm Shop’s rustic charm through to the reclaimed tables and chairs, minimal styling and glowing candlelight. This is a “if you know, you know” type of bar, so take some unsuspecting friends, and forever more, you’ll be known as the friend who knows the good spots.
In closing, our trip to Mayfair was exquisite. It was a celebration of the finer things in life: fine architecture and history, fine food, fine art, and even finer people. If you want to experience a little of the luxury our forebears once took for granted (and perhaps still the residents of Mayfair today) this is a trip you will want to book soon.
It's safe to say that with discoveries like this, never will we ever be tired of London.
themayfairtownhouse.com | mountstrestaurant.com | farmshop.co.uk/london
