Il Bottaccio is a 19th-century Renaissance building that overlooks Buckingham Palace Gardens. It…read morenow serves as an excellent function venue for hire: a place to stage your event, whether it's a corporate do, a product launch, or - as I was fortunate enough to attend last night - a showcase of wine producers: Moët Hennessy's inaugural New World wine showcase, 'Discover the Flavours of the World' (http://en.blog.qype.com/2008/05/02/wine-tasting-with-qype/) (read here (http://theplummetonions.wordpress.com/2008/05/15/having-a-wine/) if you want to know more about the wine event itself). This sort of building, more like an old private club, adds a lot of class to an event. It was very appropriate for last night's wine tasting: aged, classy, and luxurious. A large upstairs room was used for most of the producer's displays, while a smaller, exclusive downstairs library room was used for one of the high-end producers. For a reception-style event, it looks like they could manage a couple of hundred people. According to their web site, they can cater dinners and put on dances, too. Venue staff were very pleasant and very helpful.

I recently moved from NYC to London. I loved the NYC nightlife and its uniqueness, the parties in…read morethe city that never sleeps raised my standards when it comes to partying right. Personally, I like private parties at all times of day and night, where the Djs are playing back to back, beautiful people on the dance floor and bottles as far as the eye can see. Most of all, the location is the most important factor as it represents what the party stands for. I've been going to a few of the parties at Il Bottaccio, these nights were cherished with fun memories and blissful productions on the company's side. The building looked beautiful inside-out and the sound was on point. I always left the parties amazed by the overall aura of the guests and the venue. I recommend Il Bottaccio for any amounts of reason, however the key factor is that the venue supplies a luxury location that knows how to cater to its guests. I had fun there and will be coming back fur sure.

This is one of the most misleading companies I ever had to deal with. Out of three times we hired…read morethem for some work in our gardens, they consistently issued receipts over 50% higher than their quote (which was already incredibly expensive). A shocking example of border line practices and misleading their customers.I highly recommend avoiding at all costs

This garden center was a boon during lockdown and really made it worth wandering around and losing…read moremyself in the greenery. They also have a gorgeous, expanded cafe now with delicious ice cream and smoothies/milkshakes. Really friendly staff and a super comfy luxe aesthetic! Just fab!

I loved this place!…read more We had the wedding party do an early supper in the afternoon here with a ton of food and drinks . It was a big group and we were very happy! Fish and chips - 4 stars my goodness Burgers- 4 stars , soooo yummy Steak frites - done right 4 stars Caesar Salad- 4 stars Roast Lamb Rump - 4 stars Beef Short Ribs - 4 stars

The food, service, ambiance was amazing. We went for New Year's Eve and rented the Board room for…read moreour group. Our dedicated waiter took great care of us. After dinner and dessert, we went down to the bar and rang in the new year.

I went here for the Bridgestone afternoon tea and it was an overall good experience. If anything,…read morego here for the scones/rolls!!! Best I've ever had and I love bread. I give the staff a 10/10 for their politeness and friendliness. The building is also super beautiful. It really felt like royal dining. Another fun plus - The bathrooms have lotion and a concierge. They also have washcloths for the hand towels. All of the tea I tried was very good. I got the rhubarb and vanilla and the white apricot teas. You can get unlimited refills and try other flavors which is great considering the £89 price/person. They also had no problem substituting the pastries to accommodate allergens. The pastries themselves were like a 7/10. They were good but not mind blowing. And I probably wouldn't go just for the pastries. The sandwiches were good too. I did think the decorations on the pastries were so cute as they were all Bridgerton themed.

Intimate after dinner drinks at a classy hotel…read more Went for a glass of wine at their Library Bar after dinner. Quite a bit of choice, but opted for a few French wines by the glass. A quiet and reserved place where you can actually hear yourself talk. Would definitely be back.

Its my Club,But I'd be happy to take some of my Qype friends…read morealmost anytime. Loveliest in the sun, because of the gorgeous garden; its equally fun on a winter night, round the log fire, playing snooker or listening to jazz. Members can - indeed are encouraged - to have exhibitions here. Lunch is either al fresco on the patio,or in the bar - cheap but very delicious - or fine dining in the very elegant dining rooms. All rooms lined with paintings by members past & present. There are regular events : the Artist's lunches : (3 courses with a lecture at £9) concerts, classical & jazz, theatrical performances,exhibitions,visits to studios etc etc. (look at the website for details) Metered Parking is possible outside. Buses 14 0r 19 & South Kensington tube. I love going to the V&A & then walking to the Club for lunch or supper Esp when Eton Mess is on the menu! NB : Cameras & mobiles absolutely forbidden!

Chelsea Art's Club, Chelsea - I would not have known that this place existed if it was not…read morementioned to me. And even if it was recommended, I would not have been allowed into the place without the company of a member. Chelsea Art's Club is in the heart of Chelsea, established in 1891. The building is not a flashy one, except when there is an art exhibition on, the front of the building is in its artistic form; bright and colourful. When I was there, it was just a humble whitewashed establishment. I would have walked past it without knowing that it is actually a club. It has a plaque outside of the entrance door, again, nothing fancy, next to a small door which means someone taller might have to bow down to enter the place. Situated off the busy King's Road, I was truly surprised at the little bustling interior this place has to offer. Chelsea Art's Club is very popular as an arty hangout and membership is strictly only by nomination and invitation. The Chelsea Art's Club also offers accommodation for their members. The entrance looks a little poky, narrow and small but enter the dining area, here, it is spacious. The glassed ceiling and windows lightens the place and gives a sense of space. A large snooker table in the middle which also functions as a newspaper/magazine stand. The downside for me is that smoking is allowed in the interior of the place. The split level balcony makes more dining space. The place is furnished with reading sofas, coffee height tables and chairs, all the furniture is different in style. A little worn but in good taste. It is the main social room of the Chelsea Art's Club. Also situated on the ground floor is a smaller reading room and a separate more formal dining area. At Chelsea Art's Club, the bar menu is a very simple menu with choices similar to brunch and a light lunch, sandwiches, salads, pub style. Drinks prices were very reasonable starting from GBP 12.00 per bottle for their house wine. thai green chicken curry with rice GBP 8.50 boiled ham with dauphinoise potato GBP 8.50 - the ham, while plentiful, was nothing special, but the potatoes were rich and delicious, altogether a hearty dish. smoked salmon with scrambled eggs and toast GBP 8.50 - the scrambled eggs were done perfectly, lightly runny and really buttery! goat's cheese sandwich steamed treacle pudding GBP 4.50 - the pudding was moist and light with the treacle sauce which is adequately sweetened too my taste (ie. not sickly sweet). Very good. Generous portion too. apple and berry crumble GBP 4.50 - sweet and sour of the fruit but the crumble was not properly cooked. Self-service. If you are lucky to be one of the ones to have access to this place, please invite me again :). It is indeed a very comfortable, friendly and sociable place to be spend a cold rainy afternoon. Ok, food is not at its best but the place makes up hugely for it.

On the prowl for an up-market "escort"? *This* is your venue. Oy. Seriously. It was actually…read moreuncomfortable sitting in the cocktail lounge next to so many "ladies in red" (literally - I'm not kidding) indifferently sipping their martinis all alone... If the dubious crowd weren't bad enough, the basement club's sound system was WEAK ... so muffled you could barely detect bass... I've had better speakers in a rental car. The mainly Russian crowd seemed to be enjoying themselves - dancing around their tables with relish... but we just couldn't get into it So... put-off by the harlots and bored of the music, we wandered upstairs to the casino. It was like a scene out of an old Western movie. A stagnant empty room with exactly TWO men drinking Scotch and playing Blackjack. The rest of the dealers were just shuffling their cards... "Is it always like this?" I asked one of them. "It's been a quiet week," he replied... (Or perhaps year? I wondered... judging from the staleness in the air...) Undaunted by the eerie scene, my friend bought some chips for a bit of roulette. Twenty minutes later, and my friend at least that many quid poorer, we left. More than anything, FIFTY London just felt depressing. I don't know what it was like a year or two ago... maybe it can *be* happening... but the night I was there, it felt like it had bitten the recession dust pretty hard.

I have been lucky enough to have been a member since the gorgeous Fifty opened its doors and still…read moreis a fabulous venue with even more fabulous staff from the lovely ladies at reception, the door staff, barmen to the infamous Salvatore himself. I have never had a bad evening and it's a venue for all types of company from taking my Mother to a date to a night out with the girls. I highly recommend but the previous reviewer is correct that you have to be a member or a guest of a member!

Mosimann's is a very special place, close to one of London's most famous squares. I've been here on…read moreseveral occasions - mostly to private functions (breakfast, lunch and dinner!) where the catering and staff have been impressive and exemplary. Swiss-born, Anton Mosimann, is a dedicated foodie and renowned chef with a total passion for what he does and a thorough attention to detail, presentation and flavour. The setting is chic, elegant and relaxing. Because Anton cares about the health and nutritional impact of his creations, without being overly worthy, you can eat here and feel you are indulging yourself without feeling uncomfortable and wondering if it was worth it, afterwards. Everything I have tasted here has been delicious. Mosimann's signature attention shines through, even down to the cappuccino with the eponymous cocoa-dusted 'M'. If you get the chance to experience Mosimann's delights, in the serene setting of this former presbyterian church, make sure you accept without hesitation

My parents belonged to the club and we had many an excellent meal at Mosimann's during that period…read more I was just looking at photos from a Christmas Eve dinner there - we were all in black tie and from the moment we arrived the champagne flowed, and the food was incredible. Such a grand dining room, impeccable service, and a real atmosphere of culinary elegance.

In a beautiful building overlooking The Mall and St James lies the home of British Science. For 350…read moreyears a society of esteemed scientists have been meeting to share visions and learn from one another and you can visit their prestigous address to learn from them too. So...does this society have anyone you've ever heard of? Hooke, Newton, Pepys, Wren, Darwin, Huxley, Faraday, Babbage... Basically all the minds that shaped the path our country and world have taken... the minds behind the engineers of the industrial revolution. And right now The Royal Society is funding research, meetings and outreach to shape the 21st and 22nd centuries too. You can't join without first being nominated as like one of the best scientists ever or something. But you CAN visit the society for wonderful public talks, presentations from young scientists from around the country and for historical exhibitions in the disgustingly gorgeous libary. Have a look on their website for event schedules. I know I'm a geeky scientist, but trust me... I've only ever enjoyed my visits and so will you. Last time it was a Bill Bryson talk about his books, followed by getting pissed in the ICA bar below (although that wasn't with him).

One of the hidden germs behind the Mall, beyond the highness, lies the society of science, a…read moreFellowship of the world's most eminent scientists and the oldest scientific academy in continuous existence. The Kohn Centre in the Society recently hosted a talk with Douglas Melton, the Head of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. The set up matched perfectly with the event, from the reception hall exhibition to the paintings on the Centre Walls. This led me to explore the venue hires... Surprisingly such a luxurious place, with 1500 fellows including 70+ Nobel Laureates, it has a modest cost for public venue hire, esp. those with charity status, compared with those of the Royal Institution of Great Britain. Although a membership only working place, the Society opens to public with limited guided tours and a serious of interesting public lectures. These are the last days of the Exhibition: "The Royal Society: 350 Years of Science" featuring a number of treasures from the Royal Society's extensive collections of archives, rare books, artefacts, and portraits. I particularly liked the women scientists section. It is a fortune that the society offers library facilities (70,000+titles) free to public (registration required) and the reading rooms have wireless internet. Imagine one works there with full inspiration from the greatest minds :-) "To expand the frontiers of knowledge by championing the development and use of science, mathematics, engineering and medicine for the benefit of humanity and the good of the planet." (RS' Mission)

We came across this little gem while walking from Brompton Road to Victoria. Surprisingly, there…read moreare very few pubs in the area, so we had to seek it out. Service was fast and friendly, and it's a buzzing, busy place on a weekday evening after work. Unfortunately they had only one low/no sugar soft drink option on offer, otherwise we'd have perhaps stayed for a second and third drink. However, it's going on my list for next time I'm in the area.

I'm not a huge fan of Fuller's pubs. I like their range of drinks (although they would benefit from…read morehaving a guest beer to offer a little variety) but I find that most of their pubs are devoid of charm of any kind. I'm not sure quite how they manage it. This pub is another example of this. This is an old pub too so it should have more charm to it. It dates back a couple of hundred years in its current incarnation, although there was a pub on this site even before then, back when this was swampland and very dangerous swampland at that!

I am just speaking of dining here. I was fortunate enough to be invited by a member to dine and wow…read morethis was some exceptional fine dining! Expectations management - with drinks it comes out to be about 90 to 100 pounds (assuming you get a multi course meal. It can be more depending on what you order). Guests receive the menu without prices, so you don't know what you order unless it is divulged by the host. Service - the best service I have ever had for fine dining across 19 different countries. Wine - this is what makes this place the best. The sommelier is personable, and knows ever wine off the menu pretty much (we went across the board) and gave us perfect pairing advice. Desert - to die for. Be it formages that custom served off a board or cream, perfectly put together and served.

My friend has access to the club and took me there for afternoon tea. We sat in a beautiful parlor…read moreroom for tea that basically made me feel like Ron Burgundy - I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany. Tea is reasonably priced at 25 GBP per portion - and each portion was huge. The server very wisely recommended the three of us to order two afternoon tea servings instead of three, and even two servings were too much. Each order came with four scones, eight large pastries, four finger sandwiches, and a tasty prawn tartlet. Definitely recommend the tea service if you get a chance to visit the Royal Automobile Club!