Search results for

Why we love it: A landmark-turned-hotel with elegant decor and top-notch dining

The Highlights:
- Five-star hospitality from one of Europe’s first luxury hotel groups
- Three-Michelin-starred cuisine at 15 Stamford
- An outdoor saltwater relaxation pool

The Review:
Located in Singapore’s civic and cultural district, the Capitol Kempinski Hotel is a modern-day union of two historical landmarks: The Capitol Building and Stamford House. Reimagined by late interior designer Jaya Ibrahim and his team (now part of BLINK Design Group), the property stays true to its roots with a colonial-meets-Art-Deco design, including high corniced ceilings, dramatic archways, and grand windows that reveal sweeping city views. Equally elegant are the 157 guestrooms, which boast Chengal wood flooring, custom lacquered Indian rosewood furniture, and cornices resembled fish scales—a reference to the Merlion, Singapore’s official mascot.

The hotel takes pride in its culinary programming, placing a heavy emphasis on high-quality ingredients and a carefully curated wine selection (reflecting the Kempinski brand’s origins as a 19th-century wine merchant). Nowhere is this more evident than at signature restaurant 15 Stamford, where three-Michelin-starred chef Alvin Leung serves reinterpreted Asian classics like Assam suckling pig with fresh fig and Hokkaido scallops with shiso and soy jelly. For something more casual, sample the specialty rums and chocolates at The Bar at 15 Stamford; take your afternoon tea at The Lobby Lounge; indulge in German breads and pastries at Berthold Delikatessen; or fill up on German-Austrian fare at Frieda. When you need a break from all that eating, pay a visit to the outdoor saltwater pool or spa, where the team performs calming treatments with award-winning products from Gaylia Kristensen.

Housed in a refurbished building on a four-acre private peninsula, this all-inclusive luxury resort is far more expensive than most hotels on Lake Titicaca, but it’s well worth the splurge. Not only are all of your meals, cocktails, and most excursions included, but the lodge invests deeply in the local community—it hires more than three-quarters of its staff from the surrounding area, sources as many ingredients as possible from regional farmers, and turns to nearby artisans for its textiles and other crafts. Additionally, the on-site restaurant is one of the best in the area. If you’d prefer a more private dining experience, take your meal on one of the hotel’s wraparound terraces, or order 24-hour room service.

All 18 rooms face the lake and feature heated floors (it can get chilly at night at 12,500 feet of elevation), a banquette overlooking the water, a free mini-bar, and deep bathtubs. King rooms are the most economical, but the two corner rooms—with their spacious layouts and panoramic views of the lake—are the most requested. For the best sunrise or sunset vistas, choose either the “Dawn” or “Dusk” rooms.

After making her name in Paris in the 1920s, American-born singer and actress Josephine Baker became a French citizen and, like many artists and intellectuals of the era, traveled often to Morocco, which was then a French protectorate. In the early 1940s, she stayed at a royal guest house at the invitation of the Pashah of Marrakech—a riad that, today, has been restored and re-launched in her honor as a boutique hotel named “Star.” Though just a 15-minute walk from Jemaa el-Fnaa square, the riad is hidden away in a more residential—and car-free—part of the walled old town, adding to the feeling that you’re staying in a private home.

Britain-based owners Lucie and Mike Wood, who also own three other riad hotels in town, spent over two years restoring the property to reflect a mix of traditional Moroccan craftsmanship and the Art Deco style of Baker’s heyday. Along with hand-carved plaster, beautiful lamps, and original cedar woodwork, the hotel features Baker-related memorabilia and books as well as period items sourced from auctions. Past the ground-floor plunge pool and dining area (scene of the abundant daily breakfast) are 13 individually decorated rooms and suites. The Josephine has an oversized tub, the Jazz features carved cedar doors and a fireplace, and the Chiquita sits next to the lovely rooftop terrace, where guests can enjoy views of the Atlas Mountains from their lounge chairs. Also on-site is a small hammam with a steam area and massage room, as well as a cooking school, launched in 2017. When you want to get out and explore, the hotel will provide you with a free local cell phone and GPS-enabled app to help navigate the city.

In October 2014, Chef Enrique Olvera opened his much-anticipated New York restaurant Cosme, which offers an inventive dining experience in the Flatiron District. The spacious restaurant is a short walk from Langham Place, Fifth Avenue, and features modern Mexican dishes with locally sourced ingredients and housemade tortillas. But guests should not come expecting standard chips and guacamole, Chef Olvera is known for utilizing creative and sometimes surprising ingredients in his dishes. Menu items include burrata, salsa verde and weeds, and occidental purple corn pozole, pork jowl, lettuce, radish, Mexican oregano. The eclectic menu items are meant to be shared, and certain Mexican specialties, like dried chiles, beans and heirloom corn are imported from Mexico. Chef Olvera’s Mexico City restaurant Pujol has gained world fame for his fresh take Mexican food, and Cosme offers more stellar options. The bar also pours a wide variety of mezcals and tequilas. Photo by T.Tseng/Flickr.

The Jefferson Hotel has been the gold standard for discerning visitors to Richmond (including 13 U.S. presidents) since 1895. Not content to rest on their laurels, the hotel completed a renovation in 2016, restoring its landmarked public areas and refreshing and expanding the guest rooms and suites. The new rooms feel more like posh apartments, with doorbells, foyers to the sitting and dressing areas, and luxury touches like soaking tubs, walk-in showers, and in-mirror televisions. The alligator drawer pulls are a nod to the creatures who used to live in the lobby fountains in the early 20th century. The Rotunda and Palm Court lobbies, with their Tiffany stained glass ceilings, have overlooked many power meetings and celebrations, and provide a magnificent backdrop for decadent afternoon tea or the popular champagne Sunday brunch. The four-star Lemaire restaurant serves a New American menu of Virginia ingredients in their distinctive dining rooms, while the more relaxed TJ’s bistro is open for hearty breakfasts and classic lunch fare. Guests of the Jefferson may work off all that locally sourced food at the 3,000-square-foot gym or in the indoor pool with skylights and an outdoor pool deck.

Thanks to its easy-to-reach location on the main highway just fifteen minutes south of Playa del Carmen, this open cenote ranks among the most popular with locals. One half of the clear spring is shallow, with areas for climbing adjacent rocks; other spots are just deep enough for snorkeling. Elsewhere, there are still deeper waters for swimming and cooling off, complete with a sundeck and a small cliff for jumping.

Since first reading about Capri as a teenager, I had dreamed about a shop like this. Crammed with hundreds of colorful tunics and beach coverups, Antica Sartoria makes it easy to leave with a bag stuffed full of gifts for oneself and friends back home. The inexpensive resort wear makes liberal use of polka-dots, paisleys, and ornate designs. Not a shop for wallflowers. There’s another outlet in Positano.

The line for burgers and fries at Gott’s Roadside (formerly Taylor’s Refresher and don’t you forget it) in St. Helena can be ridiculous in the afternoon, but if you go in the morning, you’ll have your choice of picnic tables—either in front where you can watch the morning traffic funnel into town or on the grassy lawn out back. From the simple egg and cheese to a fried chicken mess nicknamed the Paula Deen, Gott’s may have the best egg sandwich in the Valley (although, granted, there isn’t a lot of competition). Plus, a Trumer Pilsner makes a great breakfast beer.

Mona’s flagship restaurant—like the museum itself—is both challenging and surprising. The French-accented fine-dining spot, headed up by chef Philippe Leban, focuses on excellent Tasmanian produce with a twist: Think fun-filled dishes like artichoke gazpacho with mustard ice cream and mustard oil.

Brasswood Bar + Kitchen is part of Brasswood Estate, a sprawling complex at the north end of St. Helena, comprises a winery, tasting room, restaurant, café, art gallery, and bottle shop. The property was formerly known as Cairdean Estate but was rebranded in 2016. Like many eateries in Napa, this one features local bounty—produce and protein grown in Napa and surrounding counties. Executive chef David Nuno specializes in Italian cuisine, so everything has a bit of a Mediterranean flair. In the restaurant, the duck Bolognese, with duck from Sonoma, is rich and savory; the herb-crusted lamb chop is made with local lamb, as well. The artisan bakery serves food in a less-formal setting; here, pay for your white corn soup or mushroom salad at the counter, and enjoy it by the fountain on the plaza outside.

The charming little town of Lynchburg is home to Jack Daniel, the most famous distillery in all of Tennessee. Take a quick stroll around the town square before crossing a short bridge, which will lead you over a creek that flows from the same spring that provides fresh water for Jack Daniel’s delicious whiskey. Upon arrival at the distillery, you’ll find a modern visitor center where you can learn about the history of Jack Daniel’s as well as the process of making Tennessee whiskey, including the extra step of charcoal mellowing that differentiates it from bourbon.

It’s remarkable to consider that every drop of Jack Daniel’s served at bars all over the world comes from this lovely hamlet down in the hollow—in fact, visitors are likely to see delivery trucks carrying pallets of bottles back up the hills to parts unknown. Should you want to dive deeper into the whiskey-making process, take a guided tour through the various stages of production, beginning at the source of the springwater and continuing through distillation and finally the rickhouses, where the whiskey ages for years in oak barrels until it’s ready for bottling.

Immortalized on celluloid in the film Lost in Translation, the modernist Park Hyatt may have the sexiest cocktail bar in all of Tokyo. The rest of the property—set on the upper floors of the three connecting columns of the 770-foot Shinjuku Park Tower—is just as attractive, with a bamboo garden, swimming pool, and restaurant seated high in the sky. The interiors are the work of Pritzker Prize–winning architect Kenzo Tange and designer John Morford, ornamented with wood, woven abaca, and granite to add warmth to the hotel’s sleek glass surfaces. Starting at just under 600 square feet, guest rooms are practically palatial and include glass knobs that let you control everything from the lights to the curtains right from your bed, as well as walls paneled with rare water elm from Hokkaido, some sourced from trees that were submerged in lakes for up to 2,000 years.

Just inland from Ensenada, Baja California exists a wonderland of fine wine, haciendas and Provencal restaurants. There is an energy here that is worth dawning the bullet proof vest and heading a couple hours south of the Mexican boarder to check out the excitement and culinary innovation. In the Valle de Guadalupe wineries and restaurants are redefining where fine wine comes from and what Mexican cuisine can be. The Valle de Guadalupe sits in a valley that warms through the day and is cooled every evening by the onshore flow off the ocean, allowing perfect conditions for grape growing; which has been going on here for over a hundred years. Additionally, the valley is a source of fine olive oil, locally grown herbs and produce, local farms and seafood from the nearby ocean. The best way to experience this culinary movement is to stay at a winery like Adobe Guadalupe or Vinedos Malagon in the heart of the valley. These wineries offer more than just wine tasting and luxury, they offer activities, ranging from horseback riding to cooking classes, deep sea fishing or dirt biking. The best part of it all is you can still fill up on classic Mexican tacos and mariscos when the fine dining and wine becomes too much.

The views of the skyline of Gaira (once a separate town, near Playa Blanca, but now part of greater Santa Marta), the ocean, and the surrounding hills are part of the magical experience of dining at Burukuka, located right on the water. But it is the restaurant’s commitment to excellent fusion, Caribbean and local cuisine that is the real reason for its success. One must-try is the callelle, a local specialty of mashed green bananas with cheese, sour cream and homemade sausage. The alfresco seating on a large deck is a plus even on warm days, as it’s cooled by ocean breezes.

In a city like Houston, which is bursting with international flavor, it’s not difficult to find fantastic Indian food. But Anita Jaisinghani, co-owner of the beloved Indika, serves up the best of the best with Pondicheri. The menu here revolves around unique takes on India’s street foods, including pakoras and a daily selection of samosas. In terms of main dishes, the best way to sample what’s being offered is by getting the vegetable or meat thali—a daily selection of dishes and sides perfect for sharing. Other standouts include desi fries (French fries dusted with Indian spices), naan with roasted garlic, and fresh-baked cookies.