Hilton London Bankside Hotel

This 5 star hotel has only been open for just over 9 months so everything feels new.

Located just south of the river Thames, the hotel is just a short walk away from the Tate Modern and Southwark Tube station was only a 5 minute walk away, so getting to the hotel was easy.

The hotel is a new build and attention to detail and style has been paramount as you might expect in a Hilton hotel.

The welcome at reception was friendly yet professional; it was a nice surprise to be addressed by my surname which was a personal touch that was very welcome.



The rooms come in 5 categories ranging from Guest rooms through to Suite and Executive rooms.

We were initially staying in a Guest room but after one or two issues, which we were not happy about, we were swiftly upgraded to a Suite, which came with a living room area and a well stocked mini bar complete with chocolate which was free apart from the alcoholic drinks. Access to the Executive Lounge was also free. This is a huge bonus and highly recommended.



The free WiFi was very fast and ideal for streaming or completing any work. The rooms come with a very comfortable Serenity bed and a 47inch HDTV. Free coffee and tea making facilities. Also a well stocked bathroom.

We found the Executive Lounge to be a haven of peace, tranquility and with a personal service. Free drinks and snacks are offered throughout the day, breakfast is also served in the lounge which is not as chaotic as eating breakfast in the main restaurant.



We chose to eat breakfast in the Oxbo restaurant: the quality and range of the food was excellent (being sourced from the nearby Borough market) but the service at times did not match up to the rest of the service we had encountered so far. It would have been nice to have been shown where everything was on the first day rather than be seated and left to find everything yourself as it is buffet service.



Pre dinner drinks and cocktails can be taken in the cosy Distillery bar which is located on the site of a former essence factory.

A reference to the warehouse that used to store £5 notes for the Bank of England, the Penny Wall covers 2 sides of the wall to the left of the bar. The pennies, dating from 1864, were sourced from coin dealers in Charing Cross, including a bag of mint pre-decimal coins, which still had its original lead seal. Each penny was hand-applied onsite by artists Diarmuid Byron-O'Connor and Dominic Lewis. The installation includes a monarch's timeline and will continue to develop and expand with civic leaders, dignitaries and the local community recording their visit by adding a penny to the wall themselves.



The Oxbo restaurant in the evening comes into its own and the staff serving at night were in a different league to those we had encountered working in the restaurant at breakfast time.

My starter of Caesar salad was plentiful and tasty whilst my partner's Scotch Smoked Salmon was so generous I had to help her out. Mains of Gloucestershire Beef and Fries were cooked to perfection, a nice touch was the head waiter who served us asking that we taste the meat first to see if it was cooked to our liking. Desserts of baked Vanilla Cheesecake and OXBO Ice Cream Fruit Sundae rounded off what had been a 5 star meal with 5 star service.



A Yorkshire connection is that of Leeds Sculptor David Farrer, whose papier mâché trophy heads adorn the walls of the restaurant. There are also throughout the hotel figures of a fox. Apparently when they were building the hotel a fox used to visit the site. Now the Bankside Fox is the guardian of the hotel. If you stay with children it would keep them entertained trying to find them all!

A fitness room and indoor pool completes the picture at this highly recommended hotel. Although you are in the centre of London, upon entering the hotel it felt like you had entered a more peaceful and relaxful environment. Service, quality and an excellent location all add up to a winning combination.

www.londonbankside.hilton.com

Telephone: 020 366 75600