F5 - South Mayfair - What to See and Where to Eat and Drink (1.6 km)
- philip carey
- Jul 9, 2023
- 11 min read
Updated: Dec 22, 2024
Start at Green Park Station
Finish at Hyde Park Station
THE EXPERIENCE
The hidden areas of South Mayfair and Shepherds Market.
This discovery route explores the southwestern side of Mayfair just north of Piccadilly. The route explores Mayfair’s key locations and sights and highlights the ‘Eat, Drink and be Merry’ areas between Green Park and Hyde Park Corner. These include Shepherd Market, Curzon Street, Hertford Street, Berkeley Square, and the 5-star hotels around Hyde Park Corner.
The route is excellent for history, iconic sights, parks, hotels, few shops, narrow streets, casinos, art galleries, and places to eat, drink and be merry.
BEST TIME
Morning - Most of the route will be reasonably quiet except for the areas around Piccadilly. The best time to explore the route is early morning when the lighting is at its best and few people are around. It is also a great way to discover places for breakfast.
Day -This route will get busier during the day, especially around Piccadilly and Shepherd Market. However, there are plenty of places to stop for a light snack or a long lunch.
Evening - This route will get busy in the evening between Piccadilly and Shepherd Market.. However, there are plenty of places to stop for a drink or an evening meal.
ROUTE OVERVIEW
This 1.6 Km route starts from Green Park and briefly heads along Piccadilly before heading north up Dover Street and along Curzon Street before turning into the vibrant area known as Shepherd Market with its many eating and drinking venues. It then heads west along Hertford Street and Down Street before emerging onto Piccadilly by Green Park. The final stretch takes you past the numerous 5-star hotels by Park Lane and ends at the entrance of Hyde Park by the station.
See the route at speed (2:04)
Use this to see what the route looks like as if you were doing it at speed and to make you more familiar with what you will see along the way.
GOOGLE AND STRAVA MAPS
Use the 'My Google Maps' to explore this route's venues. If you are using a mobile device, the map can help you find the start point for the route, navigate to places of interest, and show your position on the map.
What to see and places to eat, drink and be merry.
What to See List
1 Green Park
2 Piccadilly and the Ritz
3 The Royal Institution
4 Berkeley Square
5 Curzon Street
6 Shepherd Market
7 Hertford Street and Down Street
8 Bomber Command Memorial
9 Aspley House and Hyde Park
10 Hyde Park Corner and Wellington Arch
South Mayfair Route - Pubs and Bars
There are many bars and pubs along the route, with more nearby.
Here is a listing of nearby pubs and bars.
PUBS
Blue Posts
6 Bennet St, St. James's, London SW1A 1RE
Chequers Tavern
16 Duke St, St. James's, London SW1Y 6DB
Golden Lion
25 King St, St. James's, London SW1Y 6QY
Kings Arms
2 Shepherd Market, London W1J 7QA
Rose & Crown Mayfair
2 Old Park Ln, London W1K 1QN
Chesterfield Arms
50 Hertford St, London W1J 7SS
The Market Tavern
7 Shepherd St, London W1J 7HR
www.themarkettavernmayfair.co.uk
The Footman
5 Charles St, London W1J 5DF
Ye Grapes
16 Shepherd Market, London W1J 7QQ
The King's Head
10 Stafford St, Greater, London W1S 4RX
Goat Tavern Mayfair
3 Stafford St, London W1S 4RP
The Red Lion
21 Waverton St, London W1J 5QN
The Clarence
4 Dover St, Greater, London W1S 4LB
BARS
Davy's at St James'
Crown Passage, Pall Mall, St. James's, London SW1Y 6QY
The American Bar
The Stafford hotel
16-18 St James's Pl, St. James's, London SW1A 1NJ
The Rivoli Bar
The Ritz, 150 Piccadilly, St. James's, London W1J 9BR
The Donovan Bar
Browns Hotel
33 Albemarle St, London W1S 4BP
Henry's Cafe Bar Piccadilly
80 Piccadilly, London W1J 8HX
The White Horse
5 White Horse St, London W1J 7LQ
Mr Fogg's Residence
15 Bruton Ln, London W1J 6JD
Be At One - Berkeley Square
59 Berkeley Square, London W1J 8EQ
The Terrace Bar
Chesterfield Hotel
35 Charles St, London W1J 5EB
Coach & Horses
5 Hill St, London W1J 5LD
www.coachandhorsesmayfair.co.uk
Clémence Bar
46-48 Shepherd Market, London W1J 7QS
The Dandy Bar
Mayfair Town House
27-41 Half Moon St, London W1J 7BG
Shepherd Market Wine House
21-23 Shepherd Market, London W1J 7PN
www.shepherdmarketwinehouse.co.uk
10° Sky Bar
By Hilton Park Lane
22 Park Ln, London W1K 1BE
The View at The Athenaeum
116 Piccadilly, London W1J 7BJ
Smith & Whistle Bar & Terrace
Sheraton Grand London Park Lane, Piccadilly, London W1J 7BX
Wellington Lounge at InterContinental London Park Lane
1 Hamilton Pl, London W1J 7QY
The Garden Room and Library Bar at The Lanesborough
Duke of Wellington Pl, London SW1X 7TA
Sexy Fish
Berkeley Square House, Berkeley Square, London W1J 6BR
Bollinger Bar
41A Burlington Arcade, London W1J 0QF
South Mayfair - Places to Eat
Along the route, there is a wide selection of places to eat. These links will help you find the ones that suit your taste and budget.
Open Table London prides itself on bringing together people and the restaurants they love in the moments that matter, offering dining options, experiences, and offers.
The Fork This is a Tripadvisor company that relies as much on its communities of users as its communities of restaurateurs. You can search by price, cuisine, rating, and special offers.
Hardens – This is probably the UK's most comprehensive independent restaurant guide, with reviews written by its members. It ranks each place by its food, services and ambience and has extensive search capabilities.
Design My Night This site is designed to help you discover and unlock secret, new and unique city experiences, from events to bars and restaurants, but it is also a site to help plan and book online. It has categories for restaurants, bars, pubs, clubs, and 'what's on'.
Afternoon tea This is an Afternoon Tea guide to help you find the 'perfect venue for afternoon tea' in London and the UK. It provides descriptions, offers, booking facilities and an extensive search option.
South Mayfair Route - Things to Do
This area has galleries, museums, historic houses, arcades, casinos and war memorials that can be visited. Here are some of them
Royal Academy of Arts
Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1J 0BD
The Royal Institution
21 Albemarle St, London W1S 4BS
Halcyon Gallery
29 New Bond St, London W1S 2RL
Spencer House
27 St James's Pl, St. James's, London SW1A 1NR
Burlington Arcade
51 Piccadilly, London W1J 0QJ
Royal Arcade
28 Old Bond St, London W1S 4SD
www.royalarcade.londo
Piccadilly Arcade
Piccadilly Arcade, St. James's, London SW1Y 6NH
Bomber Command Memorial
along, The Green Park, Piccadilly, London W1K 1QZ
Commonwealth Memorial Gates
Constitution Hill, London SW1A 1BW
Wellington Arch
Apsley Way, London W1J 7JZ
Australian War Memorial
4-5 Grosvenor Pl, London SW1X 7DL
Royal Artillery Memorial
London SW1X 7TA
New Zealand War Memorial
Hyde Park Corner, Piccadilly, London W1J 9DZ
Machine Gun Corps Memorial
Hyde Park Corner, Piccadilly, London W1J 9DZ
Apsley House
149 Piccadilly, London W1J 7NT
www.wellingtoncollection.co.uk
Les Ambassadeurs Casino
5 Hamilton Pl, London W1J 7ED
Curzon Mayfair
38 Curzon St, London W1J 7TY
The Palm Beach Casino
30 Berkeley St, London W1J 8EH
PHOTO GALLERY
This gallery provides a descriptive and visual reference to many sights along this route.. Double-click to see the image in full size.
HISTORY & INTERESTING FACTS
From Green Park to Berkeley Square
The Ritz
The main entrance to The Ritz is on Arlington Street, just off Piccadilly. The hotel was opened by the hotelier César Ritz in 1906 and has always been known as a symbol of high society and luxury. It is also one of the world’s most prestigious and best-known and has 111 rooms and 25 suites. It also has a casino in the basement. The Ritz’s Palm Court hosts the famous “Tea at the Ritz.”
Brown's Hotel
Brown's Hotel was founded in 1837 by James and Sa-rah Brown. The architecture of the eleven Georgian townhouses makes each room distinctly different. In 1889, the hotel was unified with the neighbouring St George's Hotel, as they backed onto each other. They were eventually merged to allow for a throughway between Dover Street and Albemarle Street.
Brown's Hotel is noted for its traditional English Victorian sophistication fused with a contemporary feel. Olga Polizzi redesigned the bedrooms, which combine modern features with traditional furnishing and are all individually decorated. The Kipling Suite is the hotel's largest, known as the setting for Rudyard Kipling's stays and some of his subsequent writings.
Today, it is owned by Rocco Forte Hotels and is considered one of London's oldest hotels.
Dover Street
Dover Street was developed in the early 18th century, around 1710. It became a fashionable address, attracting the British aristocracy and affluent families. The street was lined with elegant Georgian townhouses, many of which still stand today, showcasing the architectural style of that era. During World War II, Dover Street played a crucial role as the location of the headquarters for the Special Operations Executive (SOE). The SOE was a secret British organization tasked with conducting espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance in occupied Europe.
Berkeley Square
We have John Berkeley, 3rd Baron Berkeley of Stratton. to thank for Berkeley Square. The square was originally at the bottom of his large garden within Berkeley House on Piccadilly, and he loved the view. In 1696, when John Berkeley sold the house to the Duke of Devonshire, he stipulated that no buildings were to be built that would obscure the view from the newly named Devonshire House all the way up to Mount Street – a ruling that lasted for over 200 years.
Today, the left-hand side of the square still preserves the old townhouses, but unfortunately, there's only one which is still residential. On the right, the original buildings have been replaced and turned into offices, restaurants, and a big Bentley car showroom, but it is still a very pleasant street to walk down.
The thirty enormous London Plane trees you see here were planted in the late 18th century.
Around Curzon Street
Curzon Street dates from around 1750 and is thought to be named after George Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe, from the House of Curzon. Before this time, it was called Mayfair Row. It runs approximately east to west from Fitzmaurice Place, past Shepherd Market, to Park Lane.
Curzon Mayfair Cinema was built in 1966 and has been described by Historic England as “the finest surviving cinema building of the post-war period; it is also the least altered.”
Many of Oscar Wilde’s literary characters lived on Curzon Street, including Lord Henry Wotton from ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ and Mrs Erlynne from ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’ (who lived at 84A Curzon St).
In Chesterfield Gardens, a cul-de-sac off Curzon Street became the offices of two offshore commercial stations known as Radio Caroline and Radio London in 1964. Later that year, the sales office of Radio London was opened at number 17 Curzon Street
Crew House was constructed in the early 18th century and has been considerably modified over time. Today, the building is part of the Saudi Arabian Embassy.
Leconfield House, at the corner of South Audley Street and Curzon Street, became the home of the UK security service (known as MI5) in 1945, and remained so until 1976.
The Washington Hotel is a 4-star deluxe art deco hotel that offers 178 recently refurbished bedrooms and suites. The hotel’s origins go back to the 19th century when individual houses on this site were used as boarding houses for discerning visitors requiring a Mayfair address. They were so popular that eventually, enough houses were incorporated to allow their demolition and the reconstruction of a modern, purpose-built hotel, which opened its doors in 1913, just before the start of World War I. It was immediately taken over by the Ladies United Services Club, who assisted at Victoria Station in repatriating wounded soldiers returning from the Front.
Shepherd Market to Hyde Park Corner
Shepherd Market and Mayfair
Mayfair is named after the fifteen-day fair that took place on the site where Shepherd Market stands today. Edward Shepherd first built the market in 1746 to help gentrify the area.
In the 1920s, Shepherd Market was an ultra-fashionable address for some of London’s most refined inhabitants. In the 1980s, it was known for high-class prostitution, and today, it is known as a great place to eat and drink.
Hertford Street
Hertford Street runs from a junction with Old Park Lane at its western end to Curzon Street at its northeast end. This shows its junction with Shepherd Street.
In 1880, the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers was established at 38 Hertford Street as the Society of Painter-Etchers to promote original etching as a creative art form. This building was later the London studios of Radio Luxembourg from 1952 until 1990. Notable businesses include ‘5 Hertford Street’, a private members' club that was described in 2017 as London's most secretive club. The club has attracted visits from Harry Styles, Mick Jagger, George and Amal Clooney, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Princess Eugenie.
Down Street
‘Down Street’ (Mayfair) is a disused station on the London Underground that opened in 1907 and was operated by the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway and was a stop between Green Park and Hyde Park Corner stations. The station had a short life from 1907 to 1932. However, it became critical to winning the Second World War when it was covertly transformed into the Railway Executive Committee’s bomb-proof headquarters for Prime Minister Winston Churchill. This was where he secretly took refuge at the height of the Blitz.
Hamilton Place
It is one of the most prestigious areas in London, with three five-star hotels: the London Intercontinental Hotel, the London Hilton. and the Four Seasons. The Les Ambassadeurs Club casino and club, popularly known as "Les A", is also located on Hamilton Place. Hamilton Place's name is derived from the Hamilton family, who had a residence there. The area was developed just after the English Civil War around 1650. After the Restoration, they were leased from the Crown by James Hamilton, a courtier during the reign of Charles II who held the position of Hyde Park Ranger
The Athenaeum
The Athenaeum at 116 Piccadilly was named in 1864 when the Junior Athenaeum Club acquired the building. It was converted into apartments in the 1930s and became the Athenaeum Hotel in the 1970s when the Rank Organisation purchased Athenaeum Court and made it into a 5-star hotel. With Rank’s Hollywood links, the hotel attracted many famous guests, including Steven Spielberg, Marlon Brando, and Harrison Ford. In 1992, the Athenaeum was purchased by Ralph Trustees Limited, a family-run business. The Sheraton Grand is next door and dates from 1927.
Hard Rock Cafe
The first Hard Rock Cafe opened on June 14, 1971, at 150 Old Park Lane, under the ownership of two Ameri-cans, Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton. Hard Rock initially had an eclectic decor, but in 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 1978, a second location was opened in Toronto, Canada, and today, it has venues in 74 countries, including 172 bar or cafe-restaurants, 37 hotels, and 4 casinos.
Hyde Park Corner
During the second half of the 1820s, the Commissioners of Woods and Forests and the King resolved that Hyde Park, and the area around it, must be renovated so that it had the splendour of rival European capital cities and would complement the triumphal approach to Buckingham Palace, which had been recently completed.
Decimus Burton was chosen as the architect, and his design included the neoclassical Constitution Arch (now commonly known as Wellington Arch), ‘England’s answer to the Arc de Triomphe’, although it is slightly smaller than its Parisian counterpart.
VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE AREA
Click on the picture below to go on a 360 virtual tour of the shopping areas and look around.
Use the route to explore this location by looking around in 360, taking in the sights and sounds, listening to an audio recording about the area and going on a virtual tour.
Browse the gallery to find out what you can see along the way.
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