The Ultimate Home 2011

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  AMAN SPA LONDON AT THE CONNAUGHT The Asian hospitality brand’s “first and only” spa that does not reside within an Aman resort. Set in a serene contemporary space in the Connaught’s basement. (AH) +44.20.3147.7305, http://www.the-connaught.co.uk BLISS At the U.S. spa chain’s first London outlet, in Chelsea, expect a “youthful” […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  THE A LOUNGE, AT THE ALBANNACH “True whisky connoisseurs” bypass the ground-floor Scottish restaurant at this Trafalgar Square establishment and head “doon stairs,” as they say, to the trendy bar. “They have every Scotch you could want,” as well as “signature whisky cocktails that pay homage to the […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  SIMON THOMAS (ST) BROWN’S HOTEL LONDON Walk in the door of London’s oldest hotel and go straight back under the staircase, and head concierge Simon Thomas will be standing behind the desk on your right. The 40-year-old Thomas joined Brown’s—which debuted on Albemarle Street in Mayfair in 1837—when […]

< Back to Concierges’ Guide to London  ALAIN DUCASSE AT THE DORCHESTER Michelin three-star French cuisine from the renowned chef in a “contemporary and relaxing” space at The Dorchester. The four-year-old restaurant stands out both “for the food and for the style of the room.” For an elegant and adventurous evening, reserve Table Lumière, an […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  APSLEYS, A HEINZ BECK RESTAURANT “Very popular” afternoon tearoom is home to England’s first tea sommelier, Karl Kessab. The elegant establishment, within The Lanesborough hotel, also might be home to the country’s first gluten- and dairy-free tea service. (AH, CS) +44.20.7333.7254, http://www.lanesborough.com THE CARAMEL ROOM The Berkeley hotel’s […]

< Back to Concierges’ Guide to London  ANDERSON & SHEPPARD A member of the Savile Row Bespoke tailors, this outfit is popular with “American clientele” for its “trendy” cuts. But “service is what sets them apart.” (MDC, AH, BM) +44.20.7734.1420, http://www.anderson-sheppard.co.uk BERLUTI This fourth-generation “contemporary” shoemaker creates the “best shoes in the world.” The “made-to-measure” […]

< Back to Concierges’ Guide to London  ANYA HINDMARCH Renowned designer’s “bespoke shop on Pont Street” draws women in search of one-of-a-kind items like the Bespoke Ebury handbag. Craftsmen in the shop personalize the made-to-order bags with your initials and secret messages embossed onto the interior leather. (BM) +44.20.7838.9177, http://www.anyahindmarch.com ASPREY “The shop to go […]

< Back to Concierges’ Guide to London  ASPREY New Bond Street department store carries “everything from backgammon sets to porcelain and silverware” but is recommended first and foremost for “bespoke high-end jewelry and watches.” “Everyone likes something from Asprey.” (MDC, AD, BM, CS, ST, MW) +44.20.7493.6767, http://www.asprey.com AUSTIN KAYE This family-owned dealership of new and […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  ALLENS OF MAYFAIR Oft-touted as the “best butcher in the whole of London,” this “traditional” shop in Mayfair “specializes in beef and game.” “Most of the top restaurants use this butcher,” but walk-in customers are welcome. Also offers butchery classes. (AD, GM) +44.20.7499.5831, http://www.allensofmayfair.co.uk BERRY BROS. & RUDD […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  ALFIES ANTIQUE MARKET “Famous throughout the years” for being “really good fun,” this converted warehouse on Church Street draws “a collection of dealers all under one roof” to offer “a little bit of everything.” More than 70 vendors. (AH, GM, CS, MW) +44.20.7723.6066, http://www.alfiesantiques.com   BERMONDSEY SQUARE ANTIQUES […]

< Back to Concierges’ Guide to London  APSLEY HOUSE The former home of the Duke of Wellington (who famously defeated Napoleon in the 1815 Battle of Waterloo), Apsley House is a treasure trove of spoils, holding “all of the gifts he was given after winning battles.” Find masterpieces by Italian painters such as Correggio and […]

< Back to Concierges' Guide to London  ALL ENGLISH LAWN TENNIS CLUB (WIMBLEDON) “You can play” at the world’s most famous tennis venue. “It’s not easy. It’s not something that’s advertised. But you can do it.” (MW, ST) +44.20.8944.1066, http://www.wimbledon.org BRITISH MUSEUM “One of the greatest museums in the world.” Period. (MDC, BM, CS) +44.20.7323.8299, […]

When Bill Lyon competes in vintage races, which he does on a fairly regular basis, he usually drives a Porsche—a 1957 356 Carrera, a 1960 RS 60, or a 1961 Carrera Abarth. But he plans to race in a different marque soon, a bright-red 1965 Alfa Romeo TZ2 that he acquired four years ago. It […]

With the sweet scents from the adjacent sake brewery wafting through the air, Elizabeth Norris is busy selling, framing, and restoring intoxicating treats of a different kind. Covering the magnetic walls of her Vintage European Posters shop in Berkeley, Calif., are massive movie posters displaying vivid colors, conveying lots of attitude, and possessing the priceless […]

A curiously foggy domed glass bowl arrives at the table. When the sous-chef lifts the top, orangewood smoke wafts into the air, revealing a single raw oyster bathed in a briny escabeche and sweet honey foam. It is a spectacular presentation—and a pretty good smoked oyster—at the latest hot ticket in Las Vegas: José Andrés’ new […]

Architecture and ambience have long played critical roles in marketing the world’s great wine regions. In past centuries, the denizens of Bordeaux, for instance, erected neoclassical châteaux among their meticulously tended vineyards to advertise the character and quality of their wines, while today, in California, vintners mark their estates with postmodern pavilions or imposing stone […]

In the 1930s, Paris was the creative center of the avant-garde, and the Duchess of Windsor certainly captured the spirit of the times with an avant-garde idea of her own: She wanted a fully functioning zipper embellished with gemstones and diamonds, and she asked the French jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels to create it. The […]

Peter Whalen, the head pro at the new Baker’s Bay Golf & Ocean Club in the Bahamas, predicts light traffic for the community’s Tom Fazio–designed course. “We’re projected to do around 1,800 rounds a year,” says Whalen, adding that this figure translates to about five rounds per day. “So we have no excuses for not […]

Of the many ingredients in his life, business and pleasure are perhaps the two that chef José Andrés mixes most admirably. This is among the countless reasons why the 42-year-old Spaniard’s considerable success in the kitchen has spawned equal success beyond it. After training with Ferran Adrià at El Bulli, Andrés moved to Washington, D.C., […]

In the early years of the last century, polo was an obscure sport in the Southern California resort town of Santa Barbara. In fact, the first exhibition match had taken place only a few years before, on a rainy afternoon in 1894, during the local flower festival. But that did not stop a band of […]

Driving the XKR175 is as refreshing as reading a Jaguar review that has no feline references. Jaguars have never been known as hot rods; even the marque’s byword of the XK era—”Grace . . . Space . . . Pace”—shuffles performance to the end of the slogan. But with a new 5-liter V-8 engine spooling […]

Unadorned functionality has remained the guiding principle of modern German watch design ever since A. Lange & Söhne helped to revive the tradition in the mid-1990s; yet the industry’s newly reemerged preference for function over form has drawn a certain amount of criticism from observers. Perhaps in response to this perception, the usually staid, Glashütte-based […]

On October 1, 2009, in Bryn Mawr, Pa., a wrecking crew arrived at the gates of a Mediterranean palazzo with Gothic windows and a massive swallowtail battlement that would have been more appropriately perched on a promontory above the Grand Harbour in Malta than nestled on this suburban parcel. But like our 2011 Ultimate Home […]

The 15-minute drive to Àni Villas Anguilla from the island’s bustling port of entry is an exercise in decompression. Anguilla’s long, skinny shape and undulating topography dictate that roads on the Caribbean island are narrow and winding, snaking past roadside fruit and barbecue stands and brightly painted beachfront shanties. Delays are the norm, frequently in […]