a staycation in shoreditch
*This post is in collaboration with Mondrian Shoreditch. The stay, meal and drinks were kindly gifted but all opinions are my own!
A couple of weeks ago, my friend and I felt extremely lucky to be checking in to the Mondrian Hotel for a same-city staycation. I had unknowingly walked past the hotel several times from when I worked in the area so when I arrived, I was surprised by its central (but tucked away) location.
It’s certainly not every weekend that I stay overnight in a 5-star hotel so we made sure to soak in every little detail. Some of the more notable ones were the hotel’s fragrance (a musky blend of white spices, sandalwood and patchouli — also available to purchase as a candle!), the retro green sofa nestled in the corner of our room and the underfloor heating in the bathroom (SO underrated). A full hotel review post coming your way shortly - watch this space!
If you’re either staying for the night or popping by for the day, keep reading for my recommendations for making the most of your stay in shoreditch.
fuel for the day
If you do choose to stay for the night, breakfast the next morning will be served in the hotel’s gorgeous Altitude restaurant on the top floor. I think the sunny morning, a rooftop pool view and beach-inspired interiors had me subconsciously excited for summer as I opted for an açai bowl, a croissant and an iced latte. All very delicious.
Alternatively, some other brunch options in the area are Lantana (their five bean chilli is my FAVE), Attendant, Ozone Coffee (photo below), Friends of Ours and Cocotte.
get your coffee fix
A good start to the day for me usually also includes a banging coffee and luckily East London is full of coffee spots that are probably worthy of their own post. Some that I’ve either tried and tested or heard great things about are Jolene, WatchHouse, Climpson and Sons, Origin Coffee and Shaman Coffee.
wander through the streets
One of my favourite things to do in the area is aimlessly wander through the streets as the Georgian architecture takes you back to historic London and the incredible artwork will leave you inspired. You might have seen some of these spots on Pinterest or Instagram already but in case you haven’t, the exact spots include: Elder Street, Princelet Street, Brick Lane, Fournier Street, Wilkes Street, Crispin Street, Sandy’s Row and Mare Street.
shop like a local
Aside from the usual high-street names, there are SO many gorgeous independents in this part of London. Spitalfields Market is the obvious choice for food and vibrant market stalls as it’s only 5 mins away from Liverpool Street but you can also head to Brick Lane Vintage Market or Upmarket for even more street food and shopping. A couple of other shops we spotted were Libreria, a small but charming bookshop and Atika, a vintage department store.
Mondrian is also a 5 min walk from Redchurch Street which has a selection of cool restaurants and shops for design-lovers, including Labour and Wait.
A little further beyond Shoreditch, you can find lots more in Columbia Road for the famous Sunday flower market and a whole street of wonderful shops with even more beautiful shopfronts and in Hackney. Featured below are Earl of East, Lily Vanilli bakery and Angela Flanders.
We ended our evening at the hotel with a drink at Christina’s and tapas at BiBo’s - I’m a fan of sharing dishes as it means you get to try a little bit of everything. Our favourite dish was the ‘croquetas de jamon iberico”.
Thanks for reading!
T.
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