It is like a small town inserted in the heart of the city, a neighborhood that, with its own heartbeat, moves away from the archetypal image of London without ceasing to be tremendously London. It doesn’t matter that, just a few steps away, busy Soho stretches out, that traffic is snarled on Oxford Street, that tourists are crowding into Covent Garden. It doesn’t matter because it means entering Marylebone Village and receiving a breath of calm, peace, and good vibes.
Let’s say that, in this sort of urban village, cool rubs shoulders with artisanal, modernity walks hand in hand with traditional things. This stewardship of authenticity seems to be a magnet for celebrities. Madonna, Paul McCartney and Helena Bonham Carter, among others, enjoy apartments in this grid of Georgian streets, where beautiful restaurants, art galleries, independent boutiques and charming cafes line up.
In Marylebone everything seems to prosper under the banner of sophistication, of course, passed through the sieve of ecological, organic and sustainable. Here where Arthur Conan Doyle set many of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, today you can enjoy a healthy menu, groom your hair to look great or buy clothes that you won’t find anywhere else in the city.
But you can also sleep and rest as if we really lived in this neighborhood. As if we had the aforementioned stars as neighbors. For this there is The Marylebone Hotel, a modern and functional accommodation where the day begins with a wonderful breakfast to continue with a swim in the heated pool or some exercises in the Third Space, one of the most exclusive gyms in London.
Beyond its wellness offering, in this purely urban hotel you should book a London suite not so much for its stylish interior as for its wonderful terrace, from which you can contemplate the rooftops in the warmth of an outdoor fireplace, ideal for inclement British weather.
A simple walk through these streets will be enough to prove that Marylebone is (how could it not be) a destination for lovers of good food, which in English is very accurately defined with the word foodie. Especially on Moxon Street, where there are a succession of establishments devoted to gastronomic pleasures.
La Fromagerie is one of them, dedicated, of course, to cheese, for which it has a maturation cellar and a room, The Cheese Room, where one would like to try all types, from the freshest to the most cured. Including, yes, the English, since, in this place (which also sells artisan bread, sausages, wines, jams and homemade chutneys), you learn that there is life beyond cheddar.
Right in front, another irresistible temptation awaits: that of Rococo Chocolates, the paradise of guilt-free sweet tooths. Here we not only find refined preparations in which the best cocoa is combined with unusual flavors (rose cream, violet petals, cardamom…) but also beautiful designed packaging. What they call packaging in English.
Although, to truly please the palate, there is nothing like the juicy list of restaurants with cuisine from different parts of the world, small and discreet, where it is shown that you don’t need much fuss to eat very well. Like Delamina, with tasty and healthy dishes from the Eastern Mediterranean, fused with the flavors of Tel Aviv. Here what prevails are nutritious recipes with herbs, spices and fresh ingredients, in an informal but cozy place.
Less simple is Carlotta, which captures the atmosphere of a peculiar Italian-American trattoria, in which the red velvet chairs fit just as well as the gold fabric that covers the walls or the Virgin Mary presiding over the bathroom. A very Instagrammable setting to taste Sicilian-influenced dishes under a lively soundtrack.
A little flirtation doesn’t hurt either if we want to look in tune with Marylebone. That’s what Atherton Cox is for, an innovative beauty salon used to grooming models for their photo shoots and fashion shows, keeping you on top of trends. A place to dare with a makeover or, simply, with a blow dry, that is, a drying and styling with which, in a few minutes, you get great hair.
Afterwards there will be no choice but to indulge in the art of shopping, the true essence of this neighborhood. You have to walk down Marylebone Lane in search of the independent boutiques, the atypical stores, the emerging designers. Here we will find O pioneers, with British Victorian-style clothing; Tracey Neuls, with fabulous shoes hanging from the ceiling or the eccentric V V Rouleaux with her universe of bows, ribbons, flowers and feathers. Other retailers such as Derek Rose, Frame, Varley and Sézane await on Marylebone High Street, where it will not be difficult to take the bait.
And so, well-combed and well-dressed, we will have to finish the day with some delicious drinks. For example, at The Coach Makers Arms, which is much more than a classic pub in an elegant Georgian building. What was, 140 years ago, an inn, today houses a gastrotavern and even a speakeasy in the basement where the night is incombustible.