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A la Colthard: Hotel du Vin/Wimbledon

I had last stayed at this hotel when it was the Cannizzaro, a Palladian house in the style of Kenwood with equally magnificent grounds. However the hotel – especially the service – disappointed. Now under the management of Hotel du Vin they have upped their game. On arrival I was stuck [...]

June 9, 2021 // 0 Comments

The Grand Eastbourne

A few years ago I was a naughty, very naughty girl. I was reviewing an up-market trattoria in Chelsea. I had arrived late and was the only diner left. The manager Federico offered me a complimentary grappa and one became three. My marriage was going through a difficult time and as I told my [...]

May 23, 2021 // 0 Comments

Lockdown observations in a full-on day

I once met a psychiatrist who specialised in geriatrics who opined that character faults were heightened as the person grows older. For ‘growing old’ I would substitute ‘in lockdown’. I confess to being more than irritated by casual service and in the last 48 hours encountered this in [...]

May 6, 2021 // 0 Comments

Gravetye Manor

As – to use a vogue phrase – a circuit breaker from the daily domestic routine, I made a reservation sometime ago for lunch yesterday at Gravetye Manor near East Grinstead. I had only heard good things of a hotel which was once the home of Victorian gardener and writer William Robinson [...]

October 17, 2020 // 0 Comments

London: it’s eerie

Yesterday I travelled to London for various meetings. A taxi took me to my first appointment via Oxford St. – I have never seen it so deserted. If I had to describe the West End pre-Covid I would use the word bustling. Now it would be eerie. It was like those nightmarish science fictions [...]

October 15, 2020 // 0 Comments

Mamounia/ a dream realised

If it’s good enough for Winston Churchill, a man of epicuean not to say Falstaffian, tastes it’s good enough for Daffers. This is a hotel I have always to stay at and with a few minor criticisms I have not been disappointed. The overwhelming feelings are those of space and excellence of [...]

January 10, 2020 // 0 Comments

A LA COLTHARD/MARBELLA CLUB

The good friend a heavy hitter in the ad world who stayed with us at the Marbella Club referred to it as ‘reassuringly expensive’. This was a clever ad slogan applied to a premium lager to attract a rich clientele. As I understand it, it means that it is intended to be expensive as [...]

September 24, 2019 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/Varsity Hotel Cambridge

It’s been some years since I visited Cambridge and I cannot believe how much it has changed in my absence. Perhaps it’s the digital boom as it has a thriving science park but the city seems more alive and prosperous than I remembered it last. My memories go back to a May Ball in the early [...]

June 1, 2019 // 0 Comments

Amsterdam arrived and analysed

We actually made up the time after being given an earlier than anticipated slot. Schipol airport is a confusing, crowded place as you have to get past the flows of passengers making their way to departure gates. After clearing border control and customs there was no driver as arranged at the [...]

May 21, 2019 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/ Grand Hotel du Cap Ferrat

Polly and I decided to go to her favourite place on the Riviera, Cap Ferrat. For those that do not know it, it is very much the enclave of the super rich. Aside from Paloma Beach, the Rothschild villa and the Grand Hotel, there is not that much to do. The Grand is now under Four Seasons Management [...]

April 29, 2019 // 0 Comments

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