NEWS & OFFERS: Stylish Central London hotel from £189 B&B and Eurostar to enhance food and drinks

Stylish Central London hotel from £189 B&B

The cost of central London hotels continues to be ridiculous with many 4* hotels costing over £300 a night. Travelzoo is a long-standing travel club that I have booked through before. It costs nothing to join and they have experiences and hotels in a number of countries. In the UK, they come up with a few hotels and fine dining gems now and again.

Part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, the Lost Property hotel is steps from St Paul’s Cathedral in London. You can find our review of the hotel when it first opened here and one from last year here.

A short walk across the Thames will bring you to the South Bank. The hotel has great transport links, with the City Thameslink train station down the street from the hotel. Two underground stations—Blackfriars and St Paul’s—are five minutes’ walk away.

You won’t earn Honors points, and you are not entitled to your Hilton benefits, so it is always worth comparing the Hilton price to this deal before you book. Prices are cheapest after Christmas and at weekends. They vary between £189 and £329 for mid-week. The offer is for a Queen Superior room with full breakfast. 

You can find the offer here. 

Eurostar to enhance food and drink

Eurostar has announced it is improving its food and beverage options with three food and beverage masters working with the brand for the new Premier service. The enhancements will be available for customers from 4 November. This is alongside the announcement that Eurostar will be partnering with Skyteam. The food looks much better than you could expect on a short haul flight in business class. Given the number of air delays currently, Eurostar definitely looks like a better option for many people.

The trio consist of Two Michelin Stared Chef, Jérémy Chan, renowned French pastry chef Jessica Préalpato and Natural Wine Connoisseur Honey. This new catering offer is part of the launch of Eurostar’s new service classes: Eurostar Standard, Eurostar Plus and Eurostar Premier. Designed to be environmentally friendly, all the menus on offer will be prepared with fresh, seasonal ingredients from countries on the Eurostar network.

Gwendoline Cazenave, CEO of Eurostar: “By reinventing the onboard culinary experience, making it more innovative, daring, and environmentally friendly, Eurostar is presenting itself as a destination in its own right. Our new gastronomic offer aims to transform each journey into a unique experience, where the indulgence begins as soon as you board, making the new Eurostar a reality for our customers. Eurostar is more than just a train: it’s a promise of new discoveries and unique moments. Our new chefs bring this vision to life and we’re delighted to work with them on this journey.” 

The amuse-bouches and main courses have been designed by Jérémy Chan, a British chef who celebrates locally sourced ingredients, blending them with a variety of spices and flavours from around the world. His London restaurant, Ikoyi, of which he is Executive Chef, has 2 Michelin stars and was voted one of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2023.

The desserts have been created by Jessica Préalpato, a French pastry chef who favours natural flavours such as ancient grains, unrefined sugars and plants. Named Best Pastry Chef in the world in the World’s 50 Best in 2019 and the first woman to be named Pastry Chef of the Year by Gault et Millau, Jessica is one of the new faces of patisserie. 

The wines and champagne have been carefully selected by British sommelier and co-owner of Sune, Honey Spencer. Honey is an advocate of organic and sustainable wines, has worked as a sommelier at some of London’s top establishments, and is one of the 50 Most Influential Sommeliers in London according to The Drinks Business. 

The menu is now made up of four courses including amuse-bouches, main course, a cheese course and dessert.  

Examples of the dishes include an amuse-bouche of Curried Cauliflower Mousseline. For the main course, passengers will be able to choose between a hot option, which could include Baked Salmon served with Coconut Rice and Tangy Potatoes, or a cold option, such as Roasted Pumpkin with Honey and Cashew Miso. Next there could be a Colston Bassett Stilton, paired with burnt honey and apple, and finally a Citrus Delight infused with green cardamom.

To elevate the dining experience, a carefully curated selection of wines will be available, including Champagne Fleury, Domaine De La Dourbie red wine and Château La Mothe Dubourg, a balanced and dry Bordeaux, plus the rosé La Fleur de Julie, an organic Grenache. The wine list is refreshed every three months, ensuring a variety of choices. For those who prefer non-alcoholic options, a selected mocktail is also offered, alongside the usual range of beverages.

Here is a sample Premier menu:

Amuse-bouche 

Cauliflower piccalilli and curried cauliflower mousseline

Main courses 

Hot option – Baked salmon, rice with coconut and black olives, tangy potatoes 

or 

Cold option – Roasted pumpkin with honey and cashew miso

Cheese 

Colston bassett (stilton), burnt honey and apple

Dessert 

Citrus delight with green cardamom

Drinks 

Champagne Fleury – Balanced and round on the palate, with the depth of Pinot Noir. Moving away from the big traditional houses, Fleury represents the new generation of Champagnes whose producers cultivate their own vineyards 

Red wines  

Domaine De La Dourbie, Oscar, IGP Hérault 2023 – Light with a touch of cocoa 

Symbiose, Merlot, IGP Pays d’Oc, 2023 – Blackcurrant and pepper aromas 

White wines 

Château La Mothe Dubourg, AOP Bordeaux, 2023 – Balanced and dry 

Rosé wines 

La Fleur de Julie, IGP Pays d’Oc, grenache, organic, 2023 – Fresh, with red fruit aromas