Ian Schrager is a man who requires little introduction. A firm fixture on the contemporary hospitality scene for over three decades, the charismatic New Yorker can be credited with spearheading the boutique hotel sector by introducing his now trademark social lobbies in lodgings from the Royalton to Miami’s iconic Delano. This month sees Schrager opening the doors of his newest project in the capital, 15 years since his first foray in London’s West End.
Located just a stone’s throw from Oxford Street, The London Edition is the second offering from Schrager’s new pairing with Marriott International (following the Istanbul Edition) and is housed within the grand confines of the old Berners Street Hotel. ‘15 years ago, I used to walk past this building every day and I always dreamed about building a hotel here that was special,’ says Schrager.
A one-time home to 20th century luminaries such as King Edward VII and Russian jeweller, Carl Fabergé, the property dates back to 1835 and many of its extravagant original details have been meticulously restored by the Ian Schrager Company Design Studio and New York-based firm Yabu Pushelberg. The hotel's sophisticated interiors, in warming palettes of dusty rose, khaki and mustard tones, are elegantly furnished with eclectic pieces inspired by Salvador Dali and American artist Donald Judd.
The restaurant, run by the Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton, is dominated by two giant bronze chandeliers and an eccentric floor-to-ceiling mishmash of photographic portraits, landscapes and still-lifes. The 173 wood-panelled rooms feature original artworks and the penthouse suite offers 360-degree views. There is also a cosy den-like cocktail bar called the Punch Room and, in a nod to Schrager’s seminal Studio 54, a hermetically sealed dance club in the basement will feature lighting designed by celebrated specialist Patrick Woodroffe. ‘It’s like dancing in a recording studio or on a film’s sound stage where the dancers are the performers,’ says Schrager.
In typical Schrager-style, it is of course, the lobby that is the true centrepiece. Focusing on work as well as play, the area boasts a Judd-inspired black walnut table fitted with desktop computers, a bar and an antique billiard table - all presided over by a dramatic Ingo Maurer polished silver sphere light.
Schrager, it seems, is once again upping the game. ‘About 15 to 20 years ago in London, I had the market almost to myself,' he says. 'Now there are other options out there. It kind of invigorates me - it makes it more special. I’m not ready to give up the [hotel king] title yet'.
The restaurant, run by Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton, is dominated by two giant bronze chandeliers and an eccentric floor-to-ceiling mishmash of photographic portraits, landscapes and still-lifes.
The cosy, den-like cocktail bar, called the Punch Room
The Ian Schrager Company Design Studio teamed up with New York-based firm Yabu Pushelberg to create contrasting, simple and sophisticated interiors in warming palettes of dusty rose, khakis and mustards
The 173 wood-panelled rooms feature original artworks.
One of the simple, white-tiled bathrooms
In typical Schrager-style, the lobby is the true centrepiece. Focusing on work as well as play, the area boasts a Judd-inspired black walnut table fitted with desktop computers, a bar and an antique billiard table - all presided over by a dramatic Ingo Maurer polished silver sphere light
ADDRESS
The London Edition
10 Berners Street
London W1T 3NP
-
A new Oxford Street pop-up celebrates IKEA's blue bagsIKEA's iconic blue bag gets its own pop-up concept store, the 'Hus of Frakta'.
-
Audemars Piguet and Kaws have created the Royal Oak Concept watch we didn't know we neededThe Audemars Piguet x Kaws Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon 'Companion' is slick wrist-worn art
-
A friendly rivalry coloured by kinship: Wendy Maruyama and Tom Loeser on their two-artist show'I wanted to make furniture, just not traditional furniture, but weird furniture,' says Wendy Maruyama on ‘Colorama’, a two-artist show presented at design gallery Superhouse (until 11 January 2025)
-
First look at Belmond’s new ‘romantic and nostalgic’ luxury trainBelmond introduces the Britannic Explorer, the first high-end sleeper train experience in England and Wales
-
London bar Bauhaus Warehaus is a factory by day, drinking den by nightMixologist of the moment Remy Savage shakes up the world of cocktail-making with a hardworking sibling to A Bar with Shapes for a Name, his Bauhaus-inspired bar enterprise in east London
-
First look at 19 Motcomb Street, Belgravia’s iconic Pantechnicon reinventedFormer Nordic-Japanese design and dining hub Pantechnicon reopens as 19 Motcomb Street with a trio of food and beverage concepts
-
Where to eat Italian food in LondonFrom four-course blow-outs to the perfect pizza , food critic Ben McCormack recommends London's best Italian restaurants to have on your radar
-
Out of office: from Loewe loafers to volcanic views, the Wallpaper* editors' picks of the weekWhat the Wallpaper* team have been eating, seeing, wearing and crucially, enjoying, this week
-
Explore Cornwall's cosiest coffee shopsCornwall is known for its natural beauty and stunning landscape, here is our pick of coffee shops to enjoy the views and refuel
-
Out of office: What the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this weekTeam Wallpaper* are hard to pin down. Here's what our editors have been up to this week that might inspire your own downtime, from films to food, architours to musical interludes
-
First look at Soma 2.0: a new nighttime highlight in east LondonFresh from its Soho roots, this newly opened London bar is set to redefine Canary Wharf’s nightlife – not least with its Indian-flavour-twist cocktails, as Neil Ridley discovers
