The new Champagne Veranda @ Crowne Plaza St James

Oh yes! I think this is one of those ocassions where the picture speaks for itself! At the Crowne Plaza London St James, this is a pic of their stunning courtyard, and above… their new Champagne Veranda! Brilliant!(click on the pic for a closer look)….

Just imagine sitting out there on a fine summer’s evening sipping a glass of chilled bubbly, in a word it is simply, heaven, see you there!

for the london hotel that has it all…. a veranda

We know we’re blessed individuals. Our friends at the legendary Crowne Plaza London St James & 51 Buckingham Gate invited us for a hugely entertaining lunch at Quilon (contemporary Indian cuisine) next door to their hotel.

Yes people, this is a restaurant review, well partly. Starting with mini popodums, yours truly began with ’smonked mushroom and soya bean chop’ whilst I think most of the other guys went with the mini vegetable dosa. Ok, so I hold my hand up – I’ve eaten there before (I knowwww) and it was incredible, literally every single mouthful is an omg moment, every mouthful, and today was just as yumcious.

Following the starter was a little glass of a tomato juice with coriander, the waiter let us know it was both spicy and warm, it was, and it was lovely too, can I have another please.

The main was a fishy affair, ooooh yes. I tried to bore the table with how I am an unfortunate sole (geddit?! Ok, I’ll hold on the jokes) who never has fish at home (but they all ignored me, and moved on to holiday-tales). I had the Halibut curry (Koondapoor fish curry), as I write this in the evening I would happily have another right now. The curry is brought in a bowl whilst you grace your dish with rice & gorgeous naan bread, and grace I did. The fish was simply sublime, and even though very small portions (thankfully at lunch) the large animal inside me would have loved to have polished off a whole lot more.
Then I did something crazy, so out of character, so crazy, so strange, so earth shatteringly world changing, that I am still wondering what happened; I had dessert. I never have dessert at a restaurant (call me crazy), yet it seemed crazy not to, just look at the pic, it speaks volumes, and it came complete with space dust J

The hotel guys Darren & Simon were itching for us to go see their brand new veranda above the courtyard that marries together the Crowne Plaza London St James & the stunningly stun-acious luxury apartments that are 51 Buckingham Gate, that in just a few weeks are hosting their first landmark event; Opera in the Courtyard.

Atop of the veranda it is literally a wonder that this space was never previously used. A hugely cosy space complete with sofas and comfy chairs, and of course overlooking the equally magical courtyard (the courtyard by the way currently has a fab large TV – waterproof now that you ask – perfect for the World Cup & of course something called Wimbledon that began this week.

We’re sure that the veranda will be a great success and simply yet another fabulous USP to a hotel that already has a myriad of gems (but enough about our hosts!).

Thanks guys & see you in the courtyard.

Large in London

Alex Large here (no jokes please, otherwise my sister Simone will be paying you a visit), I am the Destination Manager for South England, I also enjoy backgammon, badminton, quantum mechanics, exploring the inner-me, and dressing up in ‘80s gear, c’mon, who doesn’t?

Looking in from the outside at the wonderful world of London Hotels, it is easy to be caught by the bug, no, not by a big spider, or even a small one that allegedly brings good luck (seriously they don’t, trust me on that one). I find myself (and my inner-me) stunned (it could be from the spider bite I once had) sometimes by the vibrancy and energy that oozes from every single one of the hundreds of hotels that appear on the site.

I have been lucky enough to be on the periphery for a few years now and on those occasions when the nod comes to attend one of the events that are run, I jump at the chance (and because of the spiders…… dear landlord, seriously, you’ve been saying you’re going to sort us out an exterminator but so far nada!, come on man).

Through the years I have been privy to the amazing suites at The Montcalm with see through bathroom walls, the beautiful courtyard at the Crowne Plaza London St James where I even managed to sign up to a programme of 10 personal training sessions at the Spa @ 51 after a couple of Red Wines too many, and I am forever reminded of the time I dressed up as Harry Potter at the Sofitel London St James (told you I like the dress-up!).

Fantastic times were had, a few drinks drunk, but what particularly hits home is the passion and the desire from the hoteliers to ensure everyone is happy and enjoying themselves, and this can only be a good thing.  We all know that there are some superb hotels out there, with fantastic rooms, great bars and extravagant receptions, but what really makes the experience special for our guests are the hotel staff. 

Here at lastminute.com we like to make people happy, it makes us happy too! We know that when people go to the hotels we work with, they will have one heck of a time… even if they are on business!

At the end of the day, when you get to your hotel, kick back, throw your favourite PJs on, have a glass of beer, we know that you will be looked after by a group of people that are second to none! Even if they do make unnecessarily hard quiz questions such as the ones we had to endure at the Park Inn Hyde Park – I am sure Martin fixed it!

Thanks for listening.

No spiders were harmed in the writing of this post.

Opera in a hotel courtyard

Galileo Galileo, Galileo Figarooooooo, ahem, me me meee, just tuning up dear. Those wonderful people at the Crowne Plaza London St James have truly prepared something special this time – behold – ‘the Marriage of Al Fresco dining & Opera under the stars’….

Exclusively for four nights only, the Courtyard will be transformed into an outdoor Opera house complete with scenes from balconies, views from the VIP veranda amidst starry skies and delightful dining.

Oh yes, even if like me, your knowledge of opera starts & ends with the middle section (or is that aria?) of Bohemian Rhapsody, this is guaranteed to be an absolutely unique experience. The courtyard which is home to both the Crowne Plaza London St James and the 51 Buckingham Gate apartments, is breathtaking & amazing enough – without any event to grace its beauty!

The packages can be booked online either as a Stalls Package at £260 inc vat (Superior double/twin, breakfast in the Bistro, & 2 Stalls Seats @ Opera in The Courtyard), or as a VIP Package at £395 inc vat (Junior Suite, bottle of bubbly on arrival, full breakfast in your suite, & 2 VIP Veranda seats). All available to book on the following dates….

Friday 30th and Saturday 31st July
Friday 20th and Saturday 21st August

Book these packages here

Performances will be provided by ‘The Covent Garden Strings Company’ who have written the performances specifically for the Courtyard taking into account the surroundings and history of the hotel as well as Shakespeare’s sylvan plays that adorn the townhouses including the famous scene from Romeo and Juliet as depicted in West Side Story.

A three course gourmet grill experience complements these performances with delights including Sautéed tiger prawns with garlic and fresh tomatoes and Whole baked sea bass with an almond chermoula. There will also be a fantastic choice of steaks and traditional western grilled dishes.

See you there!