West London is often seen as the more posh, if not less exciting, part of town in comparison to the city’s buzzier east side.
But the crowning of King Charles III on Saturday suddenly means the RoBo, the Royal Borough made up of affluent west-side areas such as Notting Hill, South Kensington and Chelsea, has a new gravitational pull on visitors hoping to stay in the longtime stomping grounds of his majesty.
Even if your invite to crash at Buckingham Palace got lost in the post, West London has plenty of royal-worthy restaurants — including Straker’s, Thomas Straker’s cozy neighborhood joint on Golborne Road, and Dorian, a self-described "bistro for locals" in Notting Hill where reservations need to be booked a month in advance — and boutique boltholes that showcase the noble tradition of English hospitality in inspired ways. (And no, we're not necessarily talking about the lavish Coronation Ball hosted by the Ritz London in Piccadilly, where Charles and his queen consort, Camilla, made their infamous paparazzi debut as a couple in 1999.)
This week, writer Monica Mendal recommends 9 West London getaways that offer visitors a kingly escape — and without any of the royal-family drama.
With a retro theater marquee announcing its name a la a theater production on the West End, the Hoxton group’s latest outpost on the north end of Shepherd’s Bush Green stands out amidst the area's sea of falafel shops and street vendors. Rooms featuring scalloped headboards and works by London-based artists Cece Philips and Colette Lavette hanging in the lobby are plenty charming, but the star of the show is the hotel's restaurant: Chet’s, a Thai-American diner helmed by Los Angeles chef Kris Yenbamroong of Night + Market fame.
Spread across two Victorian townhouses in Notting Hill, the Portobello Hotel has hosted a revolving door of models, music legends and fashion VIPs for over a half century. The Victorian-era bathtub in Room 16, for example, was once filled with bubbly by Kate Moss and Johnny Depp and used by Alice Cooper to house a menagerie of snakes during a tour pit stop. (Don’t ask.) Crystal chandeliers and fish-print wallpaper give the rooms plenty of rock n’ roll flair. But rest assured: Staying up all night is optional.
