London's most Instagramable locations: Bathroom Edition
From shattered mirror tapestries to rose quartz sinks, London is at the core of powder room perfection
While we do away with judgement of books by their covers and warn that all that glitters is not gold, many a discerning mind has expressed the need to visit a venue's bathroom to grasp a real sense of somewhere.
In an age where crowds flock past bars and make beelines for bathrooms, all to snap and share their outing with their followers, we thought we'd make some sense of the London destinations which are truly deserving of such esteem.
From shattered mirror tapestries to rose quartz sinks, London is at the core of picture-perfect powder rooms
The nostalgic one: German Gymnasian
Built in 1865 as England's first purpose-built gymnasium, this building has been transformed into a modern, all day Grand Café and bar serving Mittel-European cuisine. The bathroom, with its black and white wallpaper depicting a vista into original gymnasium activities, takes the biscuit and visitors can revel in the monochromatic decor while experiencing a vista into how life once was.
Address: King's Blvd, Kings Cross, London N1C 4BU
The escapist one: Restaurant Ours
South Kensington's culinary hot ticket Restaurant Ours is as lauded for its bathroom as it is for its menu. Little pink tiles are offset with Palmeral wall paper and industrial gold accents, conjuring sanitised California vibrations and paving the path for a great Instagram post.
Address: 264 Brompton Rd, London SW3 2AS, United Kingdom
The mirror maze: Nopi
Yotam Ottolenghi's all day brasserie Nopi, typically reserves a cramped basement space for its bathrooms. But, they have been vamped up into a glittering maze of mirrors, finished with marble and gold, that distort and echo your reflection a hundred times over.
Address: Nopi, 21-22 Warwick Street, W1B 5NE
The maximalist one: Annabels
Walking in to Annabel's Mexican floor powder room is like walking into a millennial-born, rose tinted dreamscape. With Venetian blown glass, silk flowered ceilings, rose quartz sinks and gilded swan taps, is it any wonder this is the most photographed bathroom in London.
Address: 46 Berkeley Square, Mayfair, London W1J 5AT
The monochrome one: Mondrian
With deep sinks set into a long marble slab, the Mondrian Hotel's dark, dimly lit bathroom is a dazzling backdrop for a moody cocktail-hour snap.
Address: 20 Upper Ground, South Bank, London SE1 9PD
The one with attitude: The Hunter S
The bathroom of Dalston pub The Hunter S is a far cry from the gilded taps and polished floors of central London's finest powder rooms. Urinals shaped like lipsticked mouths beckon from the walls and vintage Playboy and Playgirl prints are mounted with pride.
Address: 194 Southgate Rd, Dalston, London N1 3HT
The one in a gym: BXR London
Follow in the Instagram footsteps of models like Gigi Hadid and Adriana Lima by hitting the boxing ring at London's trendiest gym BXR, and then head into the ultra luxe changing rooms for a well deserved boast on Instagram.
Address: 24 Paddington St, Marylebone, London W1U 5QX
The one in a hotel:
With its lofty Scarfes Bar covered in illustrations by Britain's famous George Scarfes and its jewel-toned cocktails served to soft, live jazz, Holborn's Rosewood Hotel knows how to make an impression. Head upstairs to the Manor House Suite and an expansive marble bathroom and powder room plays host to Romanesque busts, stretches of marble and fresh flowers.
Address: 252 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EN
The one with celebrity mugshots: Tonight Josephine
The bathrooms in Tonight Josephine –South London's glittery, shoutiest drinking hole – harness just as much millenial character as the cocktail bar. From Justin Bieber in 2014 to Paris Hilton in 2009, each cubicle has a celebrity's mugshot printed onto the door.
Address: 111 Waterloo Rd, Lambeth, London SE1 8UL
In an age where crowds flock past bars and make beelines for bathrooms, all to snap and share their outing with their followers, we thought we'd make some sense of the London destinations which are truly deserving of such esteem.
From shattered mirror tapestries to rose quartz sinks, London is at the core of picture-perfect powder rooms
The nostalgic one: German Gymnasian
Built in 1865 as England's first purpose-built gymnasium, this building has been transformed into a modern, all day Grand Café and bar serving Mittel-European cuisine. The bathroom, with its black and white wallpaper depicting a vista into original gymnasium activities, takes the biscuit and visitors can revel in the monochromatic decor while experiencing a vista into how life once was.
Address: King's Blvd, Kings Cross, London N1C 4BU
The escapist one: Restaurant Ours
South Kensington's culinary hot ticket Restaurant Ours is as lauded for its bathroom as it is for its menu. Little pink tiles are offset with Palmeral wall paper and industrial gold accents, conjuring sanitised California vibrations and paving the path for a great Instagram post.
Address: 264 Brompton Rd, London SW3 2AS, United Kingdom
The mirror maze: Nopi
Yotam Ottolenghi's all day brasserie Nopi, typically reserves a cramped basement space for its bathrooms. But, they have been vamped up into a glittering maze of mirrors, finished with marble and gold, that distort and echo your reflection a hundred times over.
Address: Nopi, 21-22 Warwick Street, W1B 5NE
The maximalist one: Annabels
Walking in to Annabel's Mexican floor powder room is like walking into a millennial-born, rose tinted dreamscape. With Venetian blown glass, silk flowered ceilings, rose quartz sinks and gilded swan taps, is it any wonder this is the most photographed bathroom in London.
Address: 46 Berkeley Square, Mayfair, London W1J 5AT
The monochrome one: Mondrian
With deep sinks set into a long marble slab, the Mondrian Hotel's dark, dimly lit bathroom is a dazzling backdrop for a moody cocktail-hour snap.
Address: 20 Upper Ground, South Bank, London SE1 9PD
The one with attitude: The Hunter S
The bathroom of Dalston pub The Hunter S is a far cry from the gilded taps and polished floors of central London's finest powder rooms. Urinals shaped like lipsticked mouths beckon from the walls and vintage Playboy and Playgirl prints are mounted with pride.
Address: 194 Southgate Rd, Dalston, London N1 3HT
The one in a gym: BXR London
Follow in the Instagram footsteps of models like Gigi Hadid and Adriana Lima by hitting the boxing ring at London's trendiest gym BXR, and then head into the ultra luxe changing rooms for a well deserved boast on Instagram.
Address: 24 Paddington St, Marylebone, London W1U 5QX
The one in a hotel:
With its lofty Scarfes Bar covered in illustrations by Britain's famous George Scarfes and its jewel-toned cocktails served to soft, live jazz, Holborn's Rosewood Hotel knows how to make an impression. Head upstairs to the Manor House Suite and an expansive marble bathroom and powder room plays host to Romanesque busts, stretches of marble and fresh flowers.
Address: 252 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EN
The one with celebrity mugshots: Tonight Josephine
The bathrooms in Tonight Josephine –South London's glittery, shoutiest drinking hole – harness just as much millenial character as the cocktail bar. From Justin Bieber in 2014 to Paris Hilton in 2009, each cubicle has a celebrity's mugshot printed onto the door.
Address: 111 Waterloo Rd, Lambeth, London SE1 8UL
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