Nobu Shoredirch

Shoreditch is located in the north-east of London and has become one of the hippest parts of town in recent years. It is very multicultural and known for its food and urban culture. You can get to Shoreditch by taking the Northern Line to Old Street or the Overground to Shoreditch High Street. It is a great place for food lovers with many bars and awesome restaurants everywhere. Some of our personal favorites include Smokestak (BBQ) and Blacklock (Steaks) and BlackRock (Whisky Bar).

The Nobu Shoreditch is an Asian-inspired 5-star hotel, located just 5 minutes on foot from the closest subway station (Old Street) and is hidden away in a side street just of one of the main roads of Shoreditch. However, the hotel can't be missed due to its unique architecture. We actually saw the building the first time when we went to Shoreditch and stayed right across from it in the Hoxton Shoreditch last year, but only recently discovered that it was actually a hotel.

While we were booking our trip a couple of months back, hotel prices in Shoreditch were quite high and the Hoxton, where we stayed last year, was almost triple the price compared to last year. The Nobu, was actually a couple of a hundred Euros less expensive and came in at around 140 Euros per night for the room. There would have been a couple of cheaper options, such as the citizenM Shoreditch, a hip hotel catering to young, budget-minded travelers, but Nobu still had one of the most competitive prices for that time frame.

The check-in was very professional yet friendly and there was enough staff available at reception to deal with a number of guests. The lobby is tastefully decorated and the hotel, just as the Sofitel, seems to have a signature scent. The receptionist took the time to explain everything about the hotel and the area in detail, and we were actually given a couple of goodies, a welcome cocktail, a free breakfast and late check-out until 4 pm, which we really appreciated as we had an evening flight back to Luxembourg. The hotel also has a spa area, which we did not visit this time around. Almost all staff, from reception to housekeeping to restaurant staff were very forthcoming and professional and you always get a friendly "hello" when walking into the hotel.

London hotel rooms are notorious for being small, however, the room at Nobu had a nice size and was well planned out, with a queen-size bed as well as a little sitting area and a large window, looking towards the back of the hotel. The window panels, one giving you some privacy, while the other completely darkens the room were beautifully done and well integrated into the design of the room, which was largely decorated with black wood panels. As our room was at the back and seemingly close to the kitchen, at some occasions you could smell some food but it was no longer noticeable after a short while.

The center piece of the room was a golden panel opposite of the bed, which hid a large flat screen TV as well as the very well stocked mini bar (though there was no price list available in the room), a tea and coffee drawer, a wine drawer as well as a drawer with snacks. The TV had a very good smart TV setup. There was an HDMI port on the side of the bed and you could directly cast videos or apps from your phone to the TV with android cast or apple screen mirroring.

Next to the bed you had a selection of different outlets, USB, European as well as UK power sockets, which was very convenient. Next to the entrance there were two large wardrobes with a spacious safe as well as fluffy bathrobes and slippers. Personally, we prefer wooden floors to carpet in hotel rooms, due to cleanliness and allergy reasons, however the carpet in our room was clean and well maintained.

One highlight of the room was the beautiful white bathroom with golden fittings. I have rarely seen such a clean bathroom. The whole room was clean but it was very obvious in the bathroom due to its color. No dark spots or mold, not even in the shower, which is unfortunately quite rare nowadays. The only downside, there was no power outlet for the hairdryer in the bathroom.

The hotel also offers a turn down service during the early evening, where a staff member prepares the room for the night, closes the window panels for you etc. Plus, you get two bottles of water each night. The room has an electronic "do not disturb" button, which is a nice upgrade compared to the paper signs you have to hang at the door.

Our room as well as the whole hotel, bar and restaurant looked very clean and housekeeping was very friendly, discreet and went the extra mile. For example, each day they made the effort to neatly put away my make up and Chris' man products in little provided boxes in the bathroom. I have rarely seen such attentive and well-organised housekeeping.

The bar is located in the basement, accessible via a long staircase via the lobby and boasts an impressive selection of drinks, many from Japan, including Japanese Whiskys. The free welcome cocktail we received was served in the bar and is one of their signature drinks, a sweet cocktail with pineapple juice. They also have an outdoor area with a large, fake cherry blossom tree.

We once returned to the bar for an after supper drink and unfortunately did not have a great experience. Chris was served a Japanese beer which had expired the day before. Though beer does not really expire that quickly the taste can however change and quite frankly, a hotel needs to have its inventory in check. The beer tasted alright but I still wanted to test the staff and see how they reacted. At first, they did not at all see our point regarding the expiry date and only reluctantly offered us another beer "if we really wanted to". It wasn't a very professional, customer service oriented response and not up to par with the rest of the staff in the hotel.

Breakfast is served in the restaurant right next to the bar, which serves Japanese fusion cuisine for lunch and dinner. We did not have a chance to check it out but it is an impressive restaurant with a large open kitchen and a nice wooden decor. They have à la carte breakfast menu items as well as a continental breakfast buffet at 20 Euros per person, which we got to try for free one morning. Considering the price for breakfast in certain other 5-star hotels, the 20 Euros price point is alright, as the food is of good quality and included eggs, charcuterie and cheese, yogurt, fresh fruit, bread and pastries as well as a few items inspired by Japanese cuisine.

The orange juice was not fresh but a very good convenience product and I especially enjoyed the Greek yogurt and the fresh fruits. Unfortunately, the cheese and charcuterie were not chilled, so by the time we arrived for breakfast, they were already "sweating", which is not very appetizing. However, this is a point which can be easily improved by hotel management.