- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Coffee |
- All
6 reviews for Dukes Bar
All Reviews
Super cool classy English experience. Thanks to Yelp and Google Maps, J and I were able to find this little hidden gem. Just when you think there's no way anything could possibly by down this little side street, you see another even smaller side street opening up to a cul-de-sac and bam there's Dukes Hotel.
You walk into this little boutique hotel to see a doorway on the left saying cocktail bar above it and that's exactly what they mean. We quickly learned that there are pubs, bars, and then cocktail bars and this was for sure a cocktail bar.
I love Martinis and since that's what they specialize in, J got one too. We asked for a couple vodka martinis and for the server to use his discretion on what to use. So he rolls out this cart with two very cold martini glasses and proceeds to do his thing with a quick flick of something out of a little glass bottle and then a high pour of nearly frozen polish vodka. (no ice, no stirring or shaking) Then to top it all off he peels of a section of lemon, squeezes the rind into the glass and rubs the rim of the glass before dropping it into the drink.
Awesome Martinis to say the least, however it was a bit strong for J so she switched to wine, so be warned you must like a strong martini.
The service was rounded out with a couple of silver dished of bar snacks. However once J made some conversation with the Italian server we got the best fresh green olives. Granted the Italians next to us had them, but the two other American groups didn't. So I guess it helps to butter up the server with a little small talk about Italy.
All in all a great cocktail experience, definitely a place to take a date before a fancy dinner.
After reading reviews by fellow "Yelpers", and loving martini's as I do, I just had to go to Dukes Bar while visiting London. I waited in anticipation for the best martini ever ... only to be disappointed. Oh the martini was good (but not the best I have ever experienced); however, the Bartender was very "stuffy" and uncaring. He could care less we were even there. The guests in Dukes Bar were a bit pretentious ,as well. If you decide to go, bring lots of money, dress in your "Sunday best", and be prepared to talk in very quiet tones- in other words, not a place (at least for me and my friends) to go and relax and have a good time- laughing not allowed here!
Friendly advice: make friends with your company's travel agent and good things will happen to you. Staying at Dukes could be one of them.
I have traveled to London over 25 times in the last 10 years and I have stayed at some of the best and worst places in Central London, Dukes is definitely on the high end and was fabulous. Our company travel agent hooked me up big time on this one.
My room was a good size by European standards and was off the road. Decor was top notch. The bar food was great. I ate the prawn salad and the smoked salmon sandwich on separate occasions. Try a Miss Moneypenny martini--it is more like a cousin to the margarita--but it is fabulous.
Location is great with Green Park Tube station right around the corner. If you have the coin, give Dukes a try.
If you want a classy English experience, Dukes is the place for you. Set back from the Street, Dukes provides a nice break from the noises and traffic on the high street. And they make the best martini in all England. They are well known for this and make it table side. Many of the waiters have been there for decades and are quite chatty. Paintings, drawings, and prints are hung salon style in the bar and give a very cozy English feel. I go there when family visits and always leave a happy camper and a bit buzzed.
Somewhat difficult to find, but well-worth the trouble. A wonderful place to catch your breath from a day of shopping and sight-seeing. Small, quiet and dignified. Best vodka martinis you'll ever have in your life. And the way it will be prepared alongside your table will be at least half the fun. A very memorable experience.
Hidden in the depths of St. James's, Dukes Hotel is home to the discreet Dukes Bar, which is still home to the best martini I've known.
I feared the renovation of the hotel last year would take a trendy brush to the beautifully old-fashioned bar, but it is, if anything, even more cosy and unassuming these days. It is an honest place, where conservatively dressed patrons are packed in with the dark wood and oil paintings, and the martinis are deferentially mixed at your table (customarily stirred, not shaken). Please do not shame yourself with one of the fruity concoctions - choose the house vodka (frozen Potocki) or gin (Plymouth), both of which come in a chilled glass, lovingly spritzed with extra-dry vermouth and polished with a cut lemon rind. The bloody marys deserve a shout-out as well.
Cheap, no - but you could feed a family with the bar snacks (including the dreamy walnut-sized Bella di Cerignola olives), and one dry martini certainly goes a long way.
