TONIGHT
Step Inside Bar

And they say alcohol doesn’t make everything better. Pah! As part of the already great Clerkenwell Design Week, the boys behind the local Giant Robot and Redhook restaurants have teamed up with Inside UK and architect Giles Miller to convert the old disused petrol station on Clerkwenwell Road into a three-day pop-up bar. Punctuating the various talks and shows that make up CDW, the Step Inside Bar promises the old design classics of good drinks, good tunes and good times coupled with what might just be the largest legal smoking terrace. Surely those are the very foundations of any esteemed design premise, if you ask us.

BOOK NOW
UJ x Cowley Manor Tropical Disco

Next Friday is our Tropical Disco UJ Pool Party at the gorgeous Cowley Manor – and even though all the hotel rooms and suites are fully booked, we’ve held back our last few day tickets for you to join in the summer celebrations sans-accommodation (but have listed some alternative accommodation below, close to the venue), and they’re available now. Day tickets cost £25 in advance and include complimentary Bombay Sapphire cocktails, access to Cowley’s awesome Pool.Side outdoor pool, lounge and bar, plus sets from our OWN DJ residents. The party runs from 5pm till late; obviously guests are responsible for their own travel; and the theme is Tropical Disco – so we expect some serious colour-blocking. See you there!

Alternative Accommodation:

Colesbourne Inn:
5 minute taxi door to door: 01242 870 376

The Green Dragon:
10 minute walk up a country lane, located in the Village of Cowley:  01242 870 171

INTERNATIONAL
Cannes in a Can

The suits are shiny, the yachts are gold and the lips are as inflated as the egos that trawl the Croisette from early morning meeting to late night party. And yet, despite the beguilingly bling crowd that frequents the year’s biggest event in cinema, the Cannes Film Festival somehow always manages to churn out some of the most discerning art house films that are likely to reach our cinemas. So, we donned the dark shades (yes, even in the darkness of the cinema auditoria) to bring you our five favourite picks from this year’s offerings.

Click here to read the feature..

RESERVED
This week’s hottest foodie destination

The Gilbert Scott
Marcus Wareing’s posh new place at St Pancras

St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, Euston Road, NW1 2AR.
020 7278 3888

www.thegilbertscott.co.uk

Location
After many years and many, many millions, the vast Midland Grand hotel in King’s Cross has finally been restored to its Victorian splendour, re-named the St Pancras Renaissance and re-opened for business. For those of us with only average-sized pockets (rooms ere towards the impressively pricey), the experience will be limited to the ground floor with its splendid bar and Marcus Wareing’s second restaurant, The Gilbert Scott, named after the architect responsible for the glorious Gothic pile.

Vibe
It’s fair to say that it’s aimed less at London locals than Eurostar travellers beginning or ending their jaunt with a treat. But that’s no bad thing: rather than the blasé, expense account-atmosphere of other high-end joints, fellow diners here tend towards the jolly and appreciative. Plus, the fact that you’re unlikely to bump into anyone you know gives the place a frisson: perhaps it’ll replace Kettners as the venue of choice for adulterous couples not wanting to be spotted.

Flavours
Quaint, olde worlde Britishness is the name of Wareing’s game: dishes include Mrs Peckham’s lobster and mushrooms on sippets. But unlike Heston’s similarly history-minded approach at Dinner, the food here is more straightforward than it sounds. Tweed Kettle, for example, is just a perfectly cooked fillet of sea trout with a crust. Pudding is where he cuts loose,with witty takes on classics: cheddar cheese ice cream accompanies Eccles cakes, and Kendal Mint Cake provides the inspiration for a genius choc ice.

Décor
Pretty astonishing, from eye-level upwards at least, the ceiling’s white metalwork is doily-intricate, and the butter-yellow walls lined with old mirrors, paintings and pillars topped with lashings of gold leaf. You get the impression that, after restoring the hotel’s original features, there wasn’t much money left for furniture: it’s pleasant enough but unmemorable. On your way out, however, be sure to stand at the bottom of the hotel’s grand staircase and gaze upwards at the multi-floored view. Alas, a polite gent will stop you actually going up – unless, of course, you caved and splurged on a room after that third glass of Viognier.

Upshot
An oasis of class and refinement on the Euston Road, suitable for both your visiting gran and your new squeeze.