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There’s a lovely street called Cheshire Street. Labour and Wait sells old-fashioned homewares: twine and string and gardening tools and glasses, all beautifully laid out like a ’50s housewares store.

44/(0) 20-7729-6253. This story appeared in the Premier 2009 issue.

Much like when it picked then-up-and-coming Shoreditch for its first London hotel, The Hoxton brand put its Paris outpost in the heart of the 2nd Arrondissement, a booming neighborhood thanks to the arrival of several millennial-focused start-ups and tech firms. The 18th-century building’s position is also convenient for exploring the city, as attractions like the Louvre, the Marais, and Notre-Dame are a pleasant walk away. Back at home base, you’ll find eclectic interiors courtesy of the Soho House team, with original architectural details like spiral staircases and mosaic floors sharing space with vibrant floral wallpaper, mid-century-inspired furnishings, and hand-picked contemporary artwork. It’s all in keeping with The Hoxton’s emphasis on shared social spaces, so along with the comfy lobby lounges, you’ll find guests hanging out in the Rivié brasserie (which serves all-day menus of French fare and comfort food classics in both indoor and courtyard areas) and the cozy Jacques Bar (where Moroccan influences show up in the décor and the drinks list).

Business at the front, party at the back: that’s the ethos behind this hotel, which opened in London’s financial district in 2012. Weekdays, the clientele in the lobby bar and brasserie is all business, the conversation a gentle hum of meetings. But the hotel has a lively side. On weekends, a young, fashionable crowd from nearby Shoreditch and the ever-growing tech center Silicon Roundabout comes for the DJs that regularly include big names such as Ricardo Villalobos. Owners D&D London—the city’s leading hospitability group and brains behind such restaurants as Coq d’Argent—have made food the focus of their first hotel. Within one year of opening, the top-floor, fish-focused restaurant, Angler, already had a Michelin star. And then there’s the art. Sir Terence Conran’s design firm created modern interiors accented with pop-art prints, full-wall installations, and playful sculptures, many created by British artists living and working in the area.

Following the success of its first hotel in the vibrant Shoreditch neighborhood, The Hoxton group opened this second outpost in 2014 in the less “happening”—but super-central—Holborn area, just a short walk from the British Museum, Covent Garden, and The Strand. Set in a former telephone exchange building (part of which is historic Victorian, the other part mid-century concrete), the hotel encourages socializing and working in its open-plan lobby, which is outfitted with library-style wooden tables, book-lined shelves, retro couches, and a couple of guest-use computers, plus plenty of places to plug in. You can order drinks and coffee all day in the lobby, three meals of large-portioned favorites (from fish and chips and burgers to banana splits) in the industrial-chic Hubbard and Bell restaurant, and rotisserie chicken and sides in the speakeasy-feeling basement Chicken Shop.

These communal spaces come in particularly handy if you’ve checked in to one of the smaller rooms—the 174 accommodations come in sizes from Shoebox and Snug to Cosy and Roomy (which is not all that much bigger). The spaces are cleverly designed to feel larger than they are, though, with large, circular mirrors, bespoke wallpaper printed with Charles Dickens scenes, comfy beds, and artwork by students of the prestigious Central St. Martins university. There are also useful perks like free Wi-Fi and one hour of international calling, a light breakfast delivered to your door daily, complimentary water and milk in the mini-fridge, and beer and wine available at the front desk for regular grocery store (not hotel) prices. If you want to linger, late checkout is available for an additional £5 per hour.

This dark, downstairs bar, formerly called Whistling Shop, intimately recreates the gin palaces of the early Victorian era. And while the decor is faithful to the era, the cocktails offer a modern twist on the old classics: there’s even an in-house steampunkish laboratory where the mixologists create their intriguing concoctions. “Drunk For a Penny, Dead Drunk for Two Pence, Straw for Free,” offers the menu, with a wry wink to the promises made to customers at the height of the gin craze and memoralized in William Hogarth’s illustration Gin Lane.

Victorian, Edwardian, and period pieces from the 1920s through the 1950s are the specialty of this vintage shop off Brick Lane. We love their lace, and they always have a cool selection of gloves and hats. There is a cute café upstairs where bands play live music. 44/(0) 20-7739-0799. For the September, 2012 issue, Humberto Leon and Carol Lim of Opening Ceremony shared with us their favorite places in Argentina and around the world.

What goes with bacon-wrapped olives? A Brazzo! Bookers Bourbon, W&H Rare Old Oloroso Sherry, and West Indian orange bitters on top of two enormous ice cubes. A gin martini, however, wouldn’t go amiss either. This Little Italy bar, whose menu lists where and when each cocktail was invented (ex: The Prohibition: Philadelphia; 1920), does classic cocktails strong and right. So sip a Gimlet or Sidecar in the intimate, dimly lit, inviting space, and let the night slip away.

For those who love a chicken tikka or a lamb rogan josh, Britain is a famously fulfilling destination, with some of the best Indian food you’ll find outside, well, India. The curryhouses on Brick Lane will ladle out masalas and rice until your belly’s ready to burst, but for a different take, try Dishoom, which operates in five different London locations (and Edinburgh) and specialises in the finger food of Mumbai’s Irani cafés: a fabulous array of grills and snacks, from the delicious lamb kebab to the moreish keema pav (minced lamb or chicken), served on a bun in an environment that recreates the décor of the colonial railways. If you can make it here for breakfast, the bacon naan roll or the spicy scrambled eggs are the perfect way to set up your day.

Despite launching on New Year’s Eve in 2008, Sir Terence Conran’s boutique hotel is a discreet affair. The Boundary was the first hotel project by the eminent octogenarian British designer and his partner, Peter Prescott, but the inexperience doesn’t show. This is a very polished place that revolves—as you might expect from a furniture-obsessed restaurateur—around good food and seamless design. From the street, you’d barely know a hotel existed. The focus is on the busy, brasserie-style Albion restaurant, whose tables pour out onto the pavement, and the adjoining grocery store, bakery, and cake counter. But that’s not to say the rooms are an afterthought. Hidden away in the upper floors of a handsome Victorian warehouse on London’s Redchurch Street are 17 distinctly designed rooms that brim with custom-made furniture, handmade beds, and a splash of eye-catching art. All are flooded with light through large sash windows and take their cue from leading designers such as Charles & Ray Eames, Le Corbusier & Charlotte Perriand, and Mies Van Der Rohe. For those who believe good design should blend effortlessly into its environment, this is the place to stay.

Two warnings up front: TIME (you can ‘literally’ spend hours here ; ) and EXCESS LUGGAGE (on your fight home). Artwords, founded by the charming and extremely knowledgeable Ben Hillwood–Harris back in 2001, is one of my all-time favorite destinations in London – an incredibly well curated bookstore, that specializes in design, fashion, architecture, fine art, and photography. It’s a bit like drinking out of a fire hose for me to spend an afternoon there, discovering new unusual books and magazines. Of course I always walk out with way too many books, although...I wonder if there’s such a thing. If you’re exploring Shoreditch, it’s a good idea to make Artwords your last stop. I’ve learned my lesson, lugging my treasures all over the place. >>>A huge thank you to The Trafalgar St. James and Curio Collection for a great time in London. @CurioCollection @TrafalgarSW1 #DiscoverWhatsInside #CurioCollection #BeCurious

Here’s another gem I stumbled upon, on my wanderings through Shoreditch: The House of Toogood. It is the studio & shop (you’ll have to ring the bell) of Faye Toogood, a London-based furniture designer specializing in Limited and Unlimited Edition furniture for galleries, private clients and site-specific sculptures and installations. It’s a magical space. A young designer opened the door for me and stayed with me, while I took in my surroundings. An art exhibition on the walls, beautiful clothing on hangers, and handmade ceramics on tables – all seemingly put together without much effort, and yet, perfect. Open Monday – Friday 9-6pm, knock on door/ ring the bell >>>A huge thank you to The Trafalgar St. James and Curio Collection for a great time in London. @CurioCollection @TrafalgarSW1 #DiscoverWhatsInside #CurioCollection #BeCurious