The Ned

Formerly the headquarters of the venerable Midland bank, and more recently HSBC, the landmark building at No. 27 Poultry never lacked for atmosphere. But with the bank itself departed for points east, this Edwin Luytens original has been put to better use as a members’ club and luxury boutique hotel.

The audience encompasses the City of London’s financial elite as well as its creative industries. But these are bankers with taste; rather than blunt-force ostentatiousness, the Ned opts for the classic glamour of an Art Deco ocean liner, and bedrooms that eschew modern design in favor of a period-correct Twenties and Thirties vibe.

Make no mistake, though — this is a luxury hotel through and through. The Crash Pad rooms are cozy and compact, perfect for an impromptu late night out, but even they come with walk-in rain showers stocked with Cowshed bath products. And further up the range you’ll soon find more typically expansive luxury rooms, and a plentiful selection of suites at the top end, culminating in the Lutyens Suite, a 100-square-meter residence occupying the old bank chairman’s office, complete with a private elevator.

Here, of course, the social life is equally as important as the accommodations. A surplus of restaurants and bars includes the Northern Italian restaurant Cecconi’s City of London, a Parisian café, a New York–style delicatessen, an American steakhouse, and several more. Services include the lavish Cowshed spa, a hair salon called Ned’s Parlour, and Ned’s Barbershop, for a speakeasy-style shave and a haircut. Safe to say there’s no other hotel, in London or anywhere else, quite like the Ned.