The Zetter (and the Zetter Townhouse): London Revisited
November 23, 2022
It has been some years since we visited the stuffed cat in the Zetter Townhouse in London, and lo and behold, the cat is in full on Christmas mode. More about that soon enough.
In town for business, we reinhabited the old haunt (the Zetter Hotel), this time in room 503. This is one of the three rooms on the fifth floor with an excellent outside deck. Of course it was rainy and cold the entire time, because London. But we actually used the deck!
NPS still believes the 50X rooms need refurbished bathrooms. The showers are long in the tooth, unsatisfying, and involve climbing into a tub. A complete revamp with some glass showers would do everyone good.
The rest of 503 is great. Be aware that the stairs down to the bathroom can be hazardous in the middle of the night.
Looking in on 503 from the deck.
Two views from the Zetter (up and down). The blue sky was extremely temporary.
Now look at that tub! We’re going to need to try that (but only after a visit to Callooh Callay.
The blue is still around.
Hopefully this shower is not long for the world. The bathrooms are small but could be laid out much more reasonably.
Of course, the main draw of the Zetter is the Townhouse next door. Yes please. We had them fetch the Amer Picon from downstairs. The visit featured many a Picon cocktail, including the Liberal, the Brooklyn, and Picon Punch. I never make the latter because it takes way too much rare (in the US) Amer Picon.
Things were Christmasy all over London.
We returned to the Zetter Townhouse multiple times.
But first a quick note about some restaurants we did business things in. Quo Vadis is an outstanding location for a private dinner. And the Quality Chop House is unbelievably great. Seriously, best Pheasant we have ever eaten. Best Ramen in London at Mohonon.
Fun? At Quo Vadis.
Picon Punch looks like coke.
Noel was let out on good behavior. It did not last long.
Guilty as charged.
This South African gem was a perfect match for game. The Norwegians were in the house!
Romey arrived bright and early and looking very stylish.
A quick hit at the Tate rounded out a full day.
More Townhouse late into the evening.
A new thing? A visit to the London Eye. Been there. Done that.
The band.
A visit to the Churchill War Rooms was stuffy and a bit of a disappointment. The Ivy, on the other hand, did not disappoint.
Martinis for the band at the Dorchester Bar (the Connaught was packed). This round did not do much to improve the theater. We saw A Single Man at the Park Theater. It was OK.
Martinis were not a sufficient dinner. So we made a late night run to Chinatown. It was also packed. Where did all these people come from?
In other news, the Victoria and Albert has a design exhibit that is interesting, the South Bank Christmas market is a bust, Bengal Village is really nothing worth writing home about, and Callooh Callay remains a blast (thanks for the good conversation Charlie).
The Industry Sour cocktail made several appearances during this trip:
equal parts green chartreuse, lime, fernet, and simple syrup (1:1). surprisingly great.
Always Negroni.
And that tub? Yup!
A very nice visit to the Zetter again. We’ll probably be back. Because. Four showerheads and a hope for new bathrooms in the near future.
Touching Base at the Zetter in London
October 29, 2017
So, is it really worth it to spend the night in London on the way back from Malta? Why yes. Yes it is. If you stay at the Zetter.
We tried out room 505 this visit, which was a new one for NPS. The porch is fantastic (though London weather remains dreary).
The bathroom is slightly bigger than 503 but we still have to ignore the shower curtain.
Have some Ramen at the incredibly authentic Monohon Ramen.
And cap off the night with a cocktail at the Zetter Townhouse (where they brought me a Liberal 3 minutes after I arrived, unasked. Thanks Guy!).
Quick overnight visit two thumbs up and five showerheads to the Zetter.
#rockthecasBAR
May 11, 2017
When iteration one’s hashtag is #londonculling where do you go from there? Obviously #rockthecasBAR!
This time we fueled up before our London cocktail adventure. And we even paid.
Then it was off through the crowded streets of London to Dukes Hotel. If you are in the mood for a Bond-inspired super high octane cocktail on the martini spectrum, Dukes is the place. We were explicitly warned to have ONE (in all caps even) by a professional! Thanks for the warning Jacques, you were right.
We walked the few blocks up to the Ritz for round two. We were almost let into the casino to do some gambling (which was not the plan). A corrected trajectory put us through the front door to Rivoli. It was Negroni time.
The beautiful clear ice was branded in the Savoy style. Everyone is copying everyone else in London.
Time for a cab to Clerkenwell, hailed by a snarky doorman. Back to…wait for it…the Zetter Townhouse to see the dead cat. This is our regular London haunt and we were immediately recognized at the door.
Here kitty kitty
Sticking with the gin, we decided on a Zetter Gimlet made with some infusion or other (I believe a kind of tea). It was delicious. The cat joined in.
While waiting for companion three to arrive from across London at rush hour we started feeling parched, so we ordered a round of 20th Century, some pistachios, and some jerky sausage.
Twentieth Century
10 ml lemon juice
10 ml creme de cacao
20 ml cocci americano
40 ml dry gin (jensens)
stir. strain. express lemon peel. small lemon garnish.
The kitty will have another
Ramen is always helpful the day after too many cocktails, but we were just getting started. Prophylactic ramen is now a thing. Monohon ramen is just as great as we thought it would be. Super authentic and delicious.
As NPS is writing this and feeling rather surprisingly good in the morning, I suppose that the prophylactic ramen did its job. Unfiltered sake was not really what the doctor ordered, but we had it anyway.
Warning: This is not a cocktail
A short walk to Callooh-Callay was when our kung fu set in. We walked right past the waiting people, made a joke with the doorman about being tweeners, and immediately sat down at the crowded bar. We were served by either Carrie or Mary. Callooh-Callay is a raucous place where quiet conversation is not in the cards.
Either Carrie of Mary suggested a Hanky Panky. We’re always up for that.
Feeling like talking to each other again, we cabbed it over to the Savoy to visit the Beaufort. We are sad that the Beaufort has changed its menu. They now feature some kind of cartoon menu that seems very Disney. NPS does not approve.
We ordered a Silver Bullet and a Never Ending Story (or two) even though the waiter tried not to let us.
By this time our phone use capabilities were waning and hashtags were slipping into gobbleddygook. We cabbed back to home base at Mondrian Sea Containers, missing a train in the meantime.
Dandelyon was packed of course, so we used our magic to waltz right in and rearrange the furniture. Alex was behind the bar and one year older. Complimentary bubbly arrived which put us in the mood for a French 75.
This somehow made Fernet happen and then it was off to bed. Meanwhile, the guest experience fairies delivered a bottle of champagne while were were out and left it with a personal note. Nice touch!
#londonculling, #rockthecasBAR, what’s next??
Blue is the new Red at the Zetter in London
May 3, 2017
It may be a gray day in London, but it’s blue in room 503 at the Zetter hotel.
And that’s a good thing, because blue is the new red. Loyal readers may recall room 503 used to be red. A complete makeover has occurred making the room cozier and even more modern seeming.
But what’s best is that room 503 was waiting for us when we arrived at 10:15 in the morning after a flight across the pond (about more which see this Delta Does Business posting). So nice to be recognized and taken care of properly. Wonder why the Zetter is better? Well, that’s one reason. Thanks Fabian.
Blue 503 skylight highlight
The Zetter room 503 comfy bed
Zetter sitting now featuring carpet and a modern bar
About the only thing that has not changed is the bathroom which remains nice but small and does feature a tub/shower combo thingy. Tell no one.
The shower is nothing to write home (or blog) about, but it sure feels good after a long flight
The best feature of room 503 is the bank of windows overlooking London. You can see both the gerkin and the shard from bed.
Looking out
Looking in
503 features a fantastic balcony
So all is well at the Zetter. Now we must now manage to stay up all day somehow. Sleep is for the weak.
Stay awake by walking around London in a daze
Lunch at St John is an excellent option.
Real bread at St John
The Tate
As always the Tate is a great place to while away some time. This trip, NPS discovered an entirely new wing?!
Tate Modern
First Iris in London
A sushi dinner at Sosharu was passable. Sosharu is trying to make sushi appealing too close to a train station. Skip it.
Fortunately, a cocktail or two at the Zetter Townhouse was in order. Funny how every time NPS shows up here we have to teach them to make a Liberal all over again. At least they still have the Amer Picon on hand. Back bar fernet with Guy was something that happened.
Amer Picon in the Zetter Townhouse
Also of note during our Zetter time in London:
Dinner at Texture (not as impressive as it should have been).
Brunch at Chiltern Firehouse
A fire at the Chiltern Firehouse in May
A visit to the Artesian bar at the Langham (after tea was ditched in favor of cocktails).
Artesian
Cocktail whose name escapes us
The British Museum
Cocktails at the Aemrican Bar in the Savoy.
The American Bar (wingspan)
A Spinning Jenny is presented on its own little pedestal. Spinning Jenny
45 ml bombay sapphire
15 ml cocchi americano
10 ml pear eau de vie (williams)
15 ml Yerba Mate
15 ml grenadine
soda
Stir. Fizz. Collins rocks. Pedestal.
A new blue five showerheads for the Zetter.
The Zetter Townhouse is our favorite boutique hotel in London. We’ve been many times. One last night in London before flying home in the very swanky upper class on Virgin Atlantic rounded out the twenty day trip.
Room eleven got a workout this time when the bathtub was actually used!
But by far the most fun was hanging out by the cat in the bar until all hours. Much fun was had.
Five showerheads and a long recovery over the ocean for the Zetter Townhouse and it’s fine bar.
Zetter Townhouse in Sunny London
May 11, 2015
It’s sunny this Sunday in London. We’re sure that is an anomaly.
Nothing but blue sky
Refreshed from a morning visit to the Zetter, we settled into room 11 at the Zetter Townhouse across the square after a light lunch.
Just like across the street, it is great to be recognized when you walk in!
3rd floor corridor
leads to …
Room 11
Zetter townhouse room 11 (according to Fabian has the best shower)
There is a glass shower.
No plastic in sight
Artsy bathroom quadrangle
Then it was off to the British Museum for a few hours. First time visit even though I have lost count of how many I have been to London. Here are some impressions.
The British Musem
Skull
Ceasar
Skull
Skull
People by the stone
Writing
Timing
So very British
An early and truly fantastic dinner was had at the Chiltern Firehouse. Truly exceptional flavors. Followed by too many Liberals and too much ping pong at the Zetter Townhouse living room. Marco served us well.
NPS is briefly in London again, staying at the Zetter Townhouse. As it always goes on international travel days from the States, we showed up way early for check in. Way way early.
Never fear! Though the Zetter Townhouse was filled to the gills, the kind general manager Fabian Sanchis at the Zetter found us a room to crash in. So incredibly cool. Thanks Fabian.
It really is nice to be recognized when you arrive at a hotel.
Room 102 is a tiny little high style room with two important features: a bed and a shower. After a long, fitful pod ride on Virgin Atlantic, the bed was most welcome. Yes, a nap was had. We must be getting old.
So how does Virgin Atlantic Upper Class stack up against United BusinessFirst? Though it pains us to say this, things are pretty much about the same with an edge to United. Food? Airplane bad. Typical blitzkrieged steak. Well, maybe it started as steak?! Cheese? Good (the same). Wine? Decent (the same). Pod? Nowhere near as comfortable on Virgin Atlantic. The pod design does make for a flatter bed that is a bit flatter and more padded though not as wide, but in order to transform to bed mode, you have to get out of the seat and recombobulate everything. And seat mode lacks a left armrest, has an uncomfortable tilt mode, and is pretty cramped. In the age of sophisticated transformer toy design, there is really no reason for that.
Breakfast is better on Virgin Atlantic for sure, and the crew is much friendlier and seems more professional. So all in all it’s a surprise major toss up between United and Virgin Atlantic.
International travel beats domestic hands down for sure, but rumors that the Virgin Atlantic experience is something astounding turn out to have been greatly exaggerated. Mostly that’s because the United international experience in business class is actually (still) very reasonable.
Pile on the fact that Virgin Atlantic and Virgin America don’t really have a seamlessly integrated frequent flyer system, and you have a problem if you travel internationally very often. That is, you can’t use your status or points on Virgin America to upgrade on Virgin Atlantic (though you can book an award trip in Upper Class). That sucks.
Live and learn.
Anyhoo, back to room 102 and awesomeness at the Zetter.
102 is temporarily bright and sunny
102 bed with stylish pink lighting or is that fuschia?
Excellent shower featuring hot water and a drench shower head
So now we’re rested, showered, and up, and the sun is temporarily out, and life seems almost close to normal. Just in time for a (admittedly very early) business dinner at the Chiltern Firehouse.
Five showerheads and a big thank you to the Zetter and to Fabian.
The Zetter Townhouse London
September 29, 2014
View from Zetter Townhouse room 11
Yes, its a gray and rainy day in London. Nothing at all surprising about that. But at the Zetter all is sunny and bright (in a virtual way). I’ve been a guest at this hotel multiple times and have quaffed many a cocktail at the Zetter Townhouse next door. This trip I am staying in the Townhouse itself, up on the third floor in room 11.
Rooms in the Townhouse have the same quirky design as the downstairs lounge. Antiques, old art, stuffed cats, fancy columns all thrown together willy nilly to nice effect.
Room 11’s quirky collection of flotsam.
A huge gilded tub prevails
Though the bedroom includes a huge gilded tub, there is a glass shower cube tucked away in the black and white tiled bathroom.
Glass shower cube beats the mother ship
Best of all, upon my very early arrival from the other side of the pond, room 11 was ready to be immediately occupied. Short nap. Hot shower. We’re off to a good start.
Workshop coffee just across the street serves breakfast at all hours. And they make an espresso that even jOHN would approve of.
There’s nothing quite like a visit to the Tate Modern in an arrival fugue state to make life seem any more surreal than normal.
Telephone call for a Mr Dali
Kandinski and the very beginning of abstraction
An early business dinner at Tramshed rounds out the first evening. Cow in formaldehyde with a chicken on its back.
Damian Hirst was here
And not to outdo the lesbian petting in the gents, there’s this.
Right.
To recover, a Liberal is in order, perfectly made at the classy Zetter Townhouse bar.
The Liberal
Night two included dinner at the modern pantry (right next door to the Zetter Townhouse). Interesting and very eclectic food that is hit or miss. Make sure not to skip the black sesame for dessert.
A nightcap at the Townhouse was going well until some jackass showed up at the bar and insisted on picking a fight?! Easy enough to walk away, but not the sort of thing you expect at an upscale establishment. I did not wait for the situation to be resolved, but simply headed upstairs. (Note: Management seems to have ignored this situation completely. Nobody said a thing the next morning. Hmm.)
But before that, we experimented with a couple of El Presidente inspired cocktails by Bobbie. Experiment 1:
40 cl myers rum
10 cl byrhh
10 cl fino dry sherry
5 cl grenadine
2.5 cl fernet
stir. serve up in a champagne glass.
Experiment 2:
40 cl myers rum
10 cl byrhh
5 cl fino dry sherry
5 cl grenadine
2.5 cl fernet
stir. serve up in champagne glass.
The only issue with this drink was inferior rum. A cuban anejo barrel proof would be ideal. Or maybe even mount gay eclipse. Will work this one at home.
On a final note, a reservations mix-up made by my (usually incredibly excellent) travel agent when the trip was refactored to add Helsinki resulted in an extra night’s charge from the Zetter. [At first we said: I find it surprising that management did not opt to eat the charge. Bad on you Zetter for policy fascism. We will remember. But then management read the entry and reconsidered their position. Glad they did the right thing in the end. Thanks Zetter. See you again soon.]
The Zetter Gets Even Better: London
March 10, 2014
As self-proclaimed creatures of habit, those of us here at noplasticshowers have spent some time at the Zetter Hotel in London (see previous entries). Arriving early this morning was not a problem. Room 503 as ready, and a hot shower was in order.
One pleasant surprise, the Zetter has seriously upgraded its Internet system. World class upload speeds are rare. This is a good thing indeed.
Pleasant surprise number two. I was recognized by multiple staff members today, including the manager on duty Fabian Sanchis. That is very nice.
Pleasant surprise number three. It was sunny. That didn’t last long!
The balcony off 503 on a sunny morning.
The balcony off 503 on a sunny morning.
Sunny desk niche.
Sunny bedroom with lots of windows.
The shower situation is still non-optimal, but pretty good. The showerhead is worth noting.
A quick trip to nearby Workshop Coffee for breakfast was in order. Tonight its back to the Modern Pantry right next door for a business dinner. And then if some extra energy arrives from outer space, a visit to the Zetter Townhouse for a nightcap.
It’s a five showerheads day.
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