When one thinks of a “boutique” hotel, images of minimalism spring to mind. Hip places full of steel and avocado-colored paint with staff prancing around in T-shirts with never a whiff of a tie or jacket in sight. Where everything has to be modern, innovative and new at the expense, often, of comfort and practicality. Thankfully, although classed as a boutique, nothing could be further from this description than London’s Egerton House Hotel. Here, while modern conveniences abound, common sense won the game—and handsomely, too. The Egerton is set in a quiet, tree and leaf-filled street just a few paces off the Brompton Road in Knightsbridge. If it’s location that is of importance, then this is nirvana. Turn right out of the hotel and within a few paces you can be entering one of London’s famous museums or a super store such as Harrods or Harvey Nichols. Turn left instead and within three to five minutes along this quiet street and you bump right into Fulham Road with its eclectic stores, local restaurants and neighborhood pubs. But on our recent stay, although tempted to linger, with the allure of the hotel being so comforting and welcome, we opted to return and to sit for a while in the downstairs lounge bar before, quite reluctantly, heading out to dinner. A friend who lives locally assured us that Antonio, who effortlessly attends to the needs of all in the bar area, makes the best martinis in London. He does. The soft conversation and elegant surroundings make this bar one of London’s hidden gems. The staff at the Egerton House were smartly dressed, articulate and knowledgeable and there to make a guest feel welcome and at home. The rooms are sumptuously decorated, some with original artwork by Toulouse Lautrec, Matisse and Picasso. And, having been many times at the wrong end of this problem, the built-in international power outlets found in each room are a blessing to behold. With beds that swallow you into oblivion, flowers and fresh fruit upon the stand, a glass of welcoming champagne sent to your room upon arrival and staff with attitudes of days gone by, the Egerton House Hotel far exceeds the inadequate title of “boutique.” For it may be a small hotel in size, but it has the heart of a giant. The Egerton House Hotel, 17-19 Egerton Terrace, Knightsbridge, London, SW3 2BX. Telephone (0)20 7589 2412, www.egertonhousehotel.com. The Egerton is part of Red Carnation, a distinguished boutique collection of five- and four-star family-run hotels in London, Dorset, Guernsey, Geneva, Palm Beach and South Africa.

Happy traveling,
WILLIAM TOMICKI,
Publisher, ENTREE

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