A Spa day at Coworth Park

A few days ago  visited heaven; the new spa at the Coworth Park.
It is probably one of the most perfect spas that I have ever been to and it is only just over a year old, so everything is pristine and it is not overly busy.
Coworth Park is a very grand hotel that is part of the Dorchester group of hotels, it is located just outside of Ascot.  The main hotel is quite classic...

 The spa however is a little different, I walked past this lovely water feature which is the link between the old and the new....

 It is a state of the art modern eco building, not normally my preferred aesthetic, but there was something very feminine and homely about this building and the interior light was beautiful.

Everything is natural, the interior brings the garden into the spa.

The gym wasn't huge, but with only a handful of guests it was adequate.

 The pool was beautiful and opened on to the grounds, it had piped music playing under the water.

The changing rooms were more of a nod to the Dorchester in London, with those luxurious slightly deco touches.

 I loved the lucite tables that I wanted to take home.

 I had a brilliant facial which used this Swedish brand, it was nice to have a change from Aromatherapy Associates, these smelt just as lovely and were all organic.

The nail area isn't quite as spectacular as at the London one, but is very well equipped.

The relaxation area was really fresh and uplifting, infinitely better than all those dark zen style rooms where you just feel that you want to escape.

There were four of us having lunch, it was absolutely delicious, we had healthy salads, and rather unhealthy indulgent cream puddings.

Unfortunately all of my gym kit was in the wash, luckily I never throw anything away so still had these blue and purple marble effect leggings, yes I really did buy these in about 1985, the photo doesn't to justice to quite how hideous they are!

The day cost £115 for a facial, unlimited use of the spa and grounds, a two course lunch, a glass of champagne, unlimited lattes and cappucinos and a fresh fruit juice. It is a great deal and will be much more expensive (if available at all) once the hotel and spa is fully established.

Dinner at the Connaught

The Connaught would never be a place that I would think to go to with a group of girl friends, and yet it is top of the list for most chaps.  May be the destinations in London divide themselves between male/female appeal.
The first places that I would think of for a special tea/drink/ meal would be; Claridges, the Berkeley, The Dorchester, the Ritz, the Hempel and newly added to the list the Langham Hilton.
For men the list might be more like; the Wolsey, the Connaught, the Savoy, the Lanesborough and newly added 45 Park Lane.
The hunter regularly brings fantastic goodies to the home table, but I did suggest that sometimes it is nice to go out, and perhaps this could be a date, something that neither of us have experienced for nearly 20 years.
He had carte blanche and chose the Helen Darroze at the Connaught, my only knowledge of her is that the female chef in Disney's Ratatouille is based on her.

Unusually, I spent some time getting ready and tried on a number of outfits, to find something appropriate to wear.  As this was a 'date' my wardrobe choice was very different to the uniform of black trousers and sparkly top that I would normally throw on without a thought.
In the end I decided on a Gucci dress that I have never worn and have owned for around 10 years.  The purchase was a little strange.
I was in Kensington, it was just before Christmas, fairly early in the morning.  The bank, had closed down and looked like it had been occupied by a jumble sale, there were no lights and it was freezing.  The bank was full of bundles of clothes and a couple of people rummaging through them.  Always keen on a rummage, I went in to join in, as soon as I opened one of the bags, I picked up the most amazing chainmail and silk Gucci dress, which I knew had sold for over £2000.  It was too small for me, but in brown, my favourite colour and unlike any thing that I had ever seen 'in real life'.  'How much is it?' I asked, and a guy in a huge anorak said, 'How much do you have on you?' At that moment the police arrived with the Bailiffs to evict 'the shop', I stood out on the pavement looking at the dress that draped fluidly in my arms, I have £60 in cash I said. 'I'm not taking cards today' he said and took the cash, and so the dress was mine. A date at the Connaught seemed the perfect destination to christen it.

I was in desperate need of a bit of colour and used my friend's new fake tan, I was already dressed with shoes on, you can see how dark it goes when you look at my feet (which I missed completely!)

The Connaught did not disappoint, it is a very beautiful hotel with an art deco meets modern gentleman's club interior.

The bar was bustling and the champagne served in etched crystal saucers

The restaurant was very warm, so the dress was ideal, I felt sorry for the men, it was way too hot for suits.

The choice of food was vast, there was a standard menu at £80 for a choice of 3 courses (there were amuse bouches between every course, and I lost count of the sweet offerings at the end so it was more like 7 courses).  There were two tasting menus, one of 6 courses and one of 9, again, these all came with amuse bouches and then there was a truffle menu which was about 6 courses and was the most expensive priced at £145.
I had scallops, followed by veal and chocolate ganache from the 'standard menu', although the food is anything but standard.

The chocolate ganache was delicious and came with its own side dish...

Bursting at the seams of my chainmail, we jumped in a taxi after and evening of magical indulgence.

Champagne at the Savoy

Life has been eventful over the last few days, many have passed in a drunken haze with nights fuelled by alcohol and giggles, starting on Saturday night at the newly refurbished Savoy.
The cynical part of me wanted to find fault with the results of a £220 million overhaul, but walking into the atrium I did have that magical moment that is difficult to define.  This place was at once classic, modern, interesting and beautiful, there is a lot to see and I know it will offer a good time.  Just like Marilyn at the Savoy first time around....

The shops in the atrium were inviting and there was a lot that I wanted to photograph, I had every intention of limiting my alcohol intake so that I could capture some of the beauty, plus my shoes are tricky at the best of times...

The dress is by Lungta de Fancy, a new London label, prices are reasonable, and the collection is modern and youthful but wearable. The dress was perfect for the Beaufort bar, which demands an outfit to live up to its opulence.

Unfortunately the road to hideous hangovers is paved with good intentions (and a number of cocktails and bottles of champagne)

And by the end of the evening, everything was looking like this, so I tottered to find a taxi.