Hotel Review: Santo Mauro, Madrid, April 2013

It's Curbappeal:
- Beautiful elegant building
- Pretty garden to relax in
- Located in wealthy residential district
- Calming & exclusive vibe

Crowd: Largely couples, aged 30+ but most very glam/elegant

Food Rating: we only ate breakfast & was disappointing.

Our room: 17 (superior room). Not in main building but in quiet 'stables' styled building. Room opened straight onto quiet courtyard. Large long room with separate dressing area & large bathroom (separate rooms for toilet & shower). Room style was classically elegant & relaxing colours (beige & brown furniture & walls)

Anything we didn't like:
- Breakfast was very mediocre (scrambled eggs were dry & museli came in small Kellogg's packets) - we'd expected more of a five star hotel
- No vanity kits in the rooms (cotton wool etc) nor available when asked
- Eur13 for large bottle of Perrier water to the room with eur5 charge for delivery!

The bill: not too bad (apart from room service bill as mentioned above)

Recommended: definitely - already planning our return stay

... Some photos straight from our iPhones...

Foodie venue review: Greenwich Market, Greenwich, London

What's the curbappeal?
- excellent selection of world food in a beautiful (and historic) covered market
- cuisine includes: Japanese, Korean, British, Spanish, Portuguese etc, etc.
- also great for browsing arts and crafts stalls.

With love,
Ms. Curbappeal x

Ps. Here's some photos from my iPhone...

London Restaurant review: disappointing new kid on the block

Venue: Blue Boar, Westminster, London

What's the curbappeal?
- well its website promises oodles of hipster cool. Teamed with a focus on BBQ food (pretty niche, sounded interesting)
- unfortunately the visit was disappointing: Despite the restaurant marketing itself as a standalone venue (see their website), it's very much part of the Intercontinental hotel, within which it resides. The overall vibe is confusing. It's very modern inside and the attempt to create a hipster interior (in the bar), just doesn't work. The restaurant has a formal setting which is at odds with the cuisine served (BBQ focus). I ate with 2 friends and we were all disappointed with our food. I had the steak (just OK) and my friends had the pulled pork, which they said tasted strange due to its 'rub'.

Sorry but this one's not for me (kudos to some of the art work though)

With Love,
Ms. Curbappeal x

Ps. here's some photos from my iPhone

My Bucket List: restaurants to try in London

Venue: Burger and Lobster, Soho, London

What's the curbappeal?
- based on the company's website, the design looks to be hipster. Albeit at the classier end of the spectrum: think sassy red leather booths paired with the obligatory bare lightbulbs and wooden flooring.
- cuisine: the name says it all! I hear good things about the drinks menu which is segregated by what you're eating I.e. burger or lobster.

Yet to visit - will report back

With love,
Ms. Curbappeal x

Ps. here's a photo of the exterior from my iPhone..