Short stay: The Cavendish, Mayfair, London, UK

I recently had the pleasure of staying at The Cavendish, a four-star hotel in London which can be found on Mayfair’s Jermyn Street which runs parallel to Piccadilly, and is close to West End shopping and theatres. Built as a hotel in the 1830s, it has served as a hotel for most of the last 200 years and was purchased by The Ascott Ltd. in 2012, having undergone a succession of notable owners during the last two decades (Granada, De Vere and Ellerman Investments, owners of The Telegraph Group). The welcome I arrived in the evening and was welcomed at a spacious and modern reception desk where I was kindly informed that I’d been upgraded to an Executive Room. Check-in was swift and efficient without being overly-formal. Planning to go for a quick run before dinner, I checked when the restaurant closed for last orders – the slightly earlier time of 9.30pm on a Sunday evening, which gave me just enough time. The room My Executive Room on the twelfth floor had a King-size bed, Samsung TV, Bose docking station, Nespresso machine and writing desk from which to work. Free WiFi is available and reading material included ELLE magazine and Revolution. A chaise longue, chair and table in one corner of the room offered a small area in which to relax. The room looked out towards a number of notable landmarks on the horizon such as the ‘Walkie Talkie’, the Shard and the London Eye, shown here just after sunrise. The bathroom The bathroom consisted of a bath and separate shower, hand basin, towel rail and WC. Bathrobes were supplied as were Noir toiletries. The facilities I dined at the hotel’s Petrichor restaurant on the first evening of my stay, and found the staff there to be very attentive. My starter was a pan-fried crab cake with a green apple jelly, avocado and chilli salsa, and micro leaves. The sweetness of the green apple jelly really came through and complimented the dish rather well. My main was the pan-fried Norwegian cod fillet with a lemon and chive mash, sautéed beets (samphire), baby artichokes, mussels and sesame seeds, with sides of spinach and leaf salad with pomegranate. The fish was succulent and with a beautifully crisp and crunchy skin, whilst the lemon in the mash gave the dish quite a tangy twist that I really enjoyed. My least favourite course of the three was a rhubarb cheesecake, rhubarb jelly and shortbread crumbles which for me was a little underwhelming yet nicely presented. Other nice touches A card was laid on the bed each evening, along with a copy of the Evening Standard, outlining all the extras that could be provided without charge – anything from shaving kits to shoehorns. Many of these items could be found in the room already but I was to just ask the housekeeping team if I needed anything. Cost Classic Double rooms start from £189, including breakfast. Executive King rooms, as you see presented here, start from £239, including breakfast. The best bit Although the hotel has much to praise, possibly one of its biggest assets is its location. One of the entrances is directly opposite Fortnum & Mason and there are many upscale, designer shops in the immediate vicinity. It is just a stone’s throw from Green Park and Piccadilly Circus, and Buckingham Palace, the Palace of Westminster, the National Gallery and many of London’s theatres are all within easy walking distance. The final verdict The Cavendish is a centrally located hotel in a prestigious area within the capital.  It is exceptional for a four star hotel and very affordable for a good quality, well-positioned London hotel. Disclosure: Our stay was sponsored by The Cavendish.