A home away from home in Poland’s loveliest city October 26, 2010 IT is a pity that ancient and beautiful Krakow is no longer the capital of Poland – sometime towards the 19th century Polish kings veered towards Warsaw for business but they always asked to return to Krakow for their final resting place, as did many famous Polish saints, poets and bishops. These days, Krakow is [...]
Like a regular Mini – except bigger October 26, 2010 Despite the name, it’s clear the new Mini Countryman is targeted at city drivers rather than country folk. Why? Well, to start with, it doesn’t have a badge anywhere on the car that says “Countryman”. It seems unlikely that Mini’s owners BMW forgot to add it – more likely that it didn’t want to discourage [...]
CAR TALK October 26, 2010 REBUILDING SAAB’S BRAND This is Saab’s new 9-4X, its new crossover car that will be shown at November’s Los Angeles Auto Show. Size-wise, it will sit between the existing 9-3 and 9-5 saloons and it’s an important car for Saab as it rebuilds its brand. With a turbocharged 2.8-litre V6 petrol engine and four-wheel drive, [...]
Theatreland’s newest French fancy October 25, 2010 Les Deux Salons 40-42 William IV Street, WC2N 4DD Tel: 020 7420 2050 FOOD SERVICE ATMOSPHERE Cost per person without wine: £36 IF THOSE strikes across the Channel are thwarting anyone’s plans for an autumnal French sojourn, don’t worry – France has come to London instead. Les Deux Salons is the latest place to be [...]
THREE OTHER GRAND FRENCH BRASSERIES October 25, 2010 GALVIN LA CHAPPELLE A year after it opened, the Galvin brothers’ Spitalfields restaurant has become an institution for City diners looking for superior French flair. Its sister bar, Galvin Cafe a Vin, lives up to its name with a fabulous wine list, plus formidable food of its own and a cigar terrace. 35 Spital Square, [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS October 25, 2010 BENARES’ DIWALI FEAST Mayfair’s favourite posh Indian restaurant is going to be celebrating Hindu festival Diwali in style with a special menu. Michelin-garnering chef Atul Kochhar’s menu, on offer throughout November, will two or three courses with paired wines, of which highlights include smoked lamb kebabs with pickled red cabbage; tandoor sea trout with marinated [...]
How to look razor sharp October 25, 2010 EVERY man knows how to shave, right? Wrong. Look at your colleagues and spy out the ones with red blotches and roughed-up skin under their chins and you see the chaps who have never mastered wielding a razor. “You can tell from looking at them who has been shaving badly for years,” says barber Carmelo [...]
A taste of true relaxation, Chinese-style, at the Connaught Hotel October 25, 2010 THE CONNAUGHT unfurled itself slowly and lusciously, with Hélène Darroze’s superlative restaurant and two jewel-like bars opening at various intervals after the hotel’s major refurb a couple years back. One year old but little trumpeted is the hotel’s super-discreet Aman spa (with a pool) where I went to experience an “experience inspired by China”. This [...]
FIT IN THE CITY October 25, 2010 FITNESS & DIET EXPERT THE “use it or lose it” theory applies to your brain in exactly the same way as it does to your hamstrings and pecs. Here’s how to strengthen that muscle. EAT RIGHT FOR YOUR BRAIN Your brain requires healthy fats to function properly. The body can’t produce these essential fats so [...]
Swiss class indoors, Swiss snow outdoors make an iconic St Moritz hotel October 24, 2010 THE lift doors opened and, there, standing in the grand foyer of St Moritz’s Suvretta House, stood a woman who seemed to epitomise this luxurious Swiss hotel. Tall, elegant and effortlessly chic in her glossy fur coat paired with long, expensive black boots, she oozed European-style opulence. Behind her, the stunning alpine view glinted in [...]