Mentone Hotel

The Mentone Hotel is a sweet Bloomsbury bed and breakfast with 42 immaculate rooms, a friendly staff and a “when you’re here, you’re family” vibe. It also manages that tricky feat of maintaining a quiet feel while being super centrally located.

Quick read

Pros: Excellent “central-yet-quiet” location. Homey, friendly feel. Super clean.

Cons: No elevator. Awkward “Italian-style” showers. Can get noisy. Limited reception hours.

Rooms

The simply furnished guest rooms at the Mentone Hotel are bright and airy. Many are also larger than your average European budget hotel rooms. They are decorated in muted tones (cream-and-tan print bedspreads, green-and-cream striped curtains), with reproductions of famous paintings on the walls.

Furnishings are simple and standard but in good condition. Expect a bed, dresser, wardrobe and perhaps a chair or two. All rooms are equipped with a flat-screen TV, telephone and coffee/ tea maker.

Bathrooms

All rooms have sparklingly clean (if small) private bathrooms with shower units and green accent tiles. Hair dryers are not provided in the room, but they are available at reception.

One minor inconvenience to note: Some of the Mentone’s showers have that less-than-charming “Italian-style,” with no divider to block water from getting wetting the whole bathroom floor.

Hotel

The Mentone Hotel is situated in a 19th-century building within Cartwright Gardens, a lovely Georgian crescent of historic homes. It overlooks the private garden and tennis courts, both of which guests can access.

The TV lounge has a regal feel, with heavy blue drapery, an ornate chandelier and a grandfather clock. A modern, cushy white sofa with matching oversized chair mix well with the antique furnishings to add a level of homey comfort.

Breakfast, included in the room rate, is served in a basement dining room decorated with striped wallpaper and green leather chairs. Wi-Fi is free throughout. Note that the hotel does not have an elevator.

Location

The Mentone’s unbeatable location in the heart of Bloomsbury places it between the Euston and King’s Cross stations and near the British Museum, the shops of Oxford Street and Covent Garden.

Cartwright Gardens itself is a pleasant, leafy section, home to numerous B&Bs and a fascinating, storied history as the stomping grounds of a number of London’s elite—and radical—old guard. Its namesake, Major John Cartwright was a major 19th-century reformer, and many other movers and shakers of the same era resided in the Georgian homes surrounding the lush crescent.