Lasarte is a restaurant in Barcelona with 2 Michelin stars. It is a intimate space with simple designs and murals inspired by Gaudi. Their website says that their recipe for success is a simple one. They just ‘work, strive, feel, listen, talk, taste, observe, thrill, improve, excite, think, imagine, inspire, decorate, pamper, reflect, research and work –…
The Dry Martini Bar in Barcelona is part of a chain of bars owned by Javier de las Muelas which in 2010 sold their one millionth Martini. Needless to say the bar focuses on making classic Martinis and pictures of the drinks adorn the walls. Cocktail masterclasses and training courses take place next door at ‘The Academy’ to teach more…
La Villa Duflot is a four star hotel and gourmet restaurant outside of central Perpignan. The hotel has a very relaxed feel and is decorated comfortably and stylishly. It’s a very serene place to stay and enjoy some peace and quiet. The rooms have a pleasant art-deco look, the restaurant serves great local food and…
The Clarence is a simple but stylish boutique hotel overlooking the River Liffey in Dublin. It is well known for being owned by Bono and The Edge from U2 but is also a quality hotel in it’s own right. It’s decoration is very traditional and quite basic, maybe even slightly dull, compared to some other hotels…
The Michelberger Hotel has one of the strangest websites for a hotel you are likely to find. Rather than sticking to one of the basic formats used by most hotels it has a giant cartoon space ship to explore. It’s all quite surreal but it all fits in with the style and vision of the…
A member of Design Hotels, the Duomo Hotel in Rimini is built to stand out. As soon as you enter the building you go from the old streets of central Rimini to a reception area with a desk that looks like something from a spaceship. The hotel’s website says that they use ‘alternative materials, bright colours…
The Dolder Grand is a multi-award winning 5-star hotel in the outskirts of Zurich. It overlooks the city on one side and the Swiss countryside on the other. It is a member of Design Hotels which describes it as ‘a historic landmark and a testament to contemporary architecture’. It is based around a 19th century…
In 2010 head chef Christian Tetedoie closed down his Michelin starred restaurant in Lyon and move to a new building overlooking the centre of the city. At the time he cited the creative freedom he felt after his divorce the motive for the move. By all measures the move has been a huge success. The…
The Hotel de Sers is a five-star luxury hotel ideally situated near to the Champs-Élysées. World Hotels describes the hotel as ‘one of the most magnificent boutique hotels Paris has to offer.’ It has a very trendy bar, a relaxing courtyard garden and a cosy restaurant serving gourmet food. By all accounts the hotel provides friendly service…