London, United Kingdom

The Ned City of London

Price per night from$315.63

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (including tax) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (GBP250.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

Style

Heart of gold

Setting

Capital corner

Here’s a lucrative deal for you: a heist with a huge pay-off. Our target? The Ned, which may no longer be the HQ of the Midland Bank, but as a members’ club, luxury hotel and sociable gastronomic hub, gives currency to the appeal of urban resort life, jazzed up with Twenties-style glamour and rich in assets. In the Sir Edward Lutyens-designed behemoth of a building, there are 12 eateries and bars, a no-expense-spared gold vault turned spa, labyrinthine fitness space, cabaret joint and suites blessed with bygone charm, plus members get a little more bang for their buck (the rooftop views are worth every penny). Ultimately, heisters, the Ned has done the stealing here (our hearts that is), but, we’re in.

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A bottle of house red wine

Facilities

Photos The Ned City of London facilities

Need to know

Rooms

250, including 10 suites.

Check–Out

12 noon, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 3pm.

Prices

Double rooms from £300.00, including tax at 20 per cent. Please note the hotel charges an additional service charge of 5% per booking on check-out.

More details

Rates don’t include breakfast (the à la carte menu has dishes from £10, and the breakfast rate offers a £28 allowance for each guest).

Also

There are eight adapted accessible rooms at the Ned, with low-level beds, alarms, roll-in showers or seated bath tubs; public spaces are spacious and there are lifts to all floors.

Please note

The Ned Club is a separate members only area.

At the hotel

Club lounges, spa and gym; steam room and sauna; hairdressers and barbershop; charged laundry service; members-only roof terrace; free WiFi. In rooms: TV, retro phone, gourmet minibar with signature bottled cocktails, coffee machine with Grind capsules, tea-making kit, hair straighteners, bathrobes and slippers, and Cowshed and Soho Skin bath products.

Our favourite rooms

The brief the Ned’s designers were given in styling the rooms (converted from the bank’s offices), was to revert to the building’s glamorous Twenties hey-day and dress them accordingly. So, there are mirrored drinks cabinets, velvet cocktail chairs, tasselled lampshades, plump ottomans, carved-oak vanities, four-posters, rich textiles, bespoke floral wallpapers and chandeliers shaped like palm fronds. Even within categories room designs differ, so it’s hard to pinpoint a favourite, but the Heritage and Grand Heritage rooms – the offices of the bank’s directors, CEO and other higher-ups – which are mostly set on the Grade I-listed fifth floor, have plenty of boss attitude with their means-business panelling and grand fireplaces, but romance too (many have a bath tub steps from the bed). The Terrace Suite offers some rare outdoor space in the City, and the split-level Duplex Suite is a perfectly proportioned crashpad you could easily hole up in for months.

Poolside

You can’t dive into a pile of coins à la Scrooge McDuck (probably inadvisable at all times), but you can jump into the 20-metre spa pool, set in what was once the bank’s gold vault. Here, the space extends the Twenties glamour to swims with glittering mosaic tiling, chunky marble columns along the sides and chequerboard flooring.

Spa

You could potentially come out of the hotel’s spa a new person, so extensive are the treatments they offer. In the women’s changing rooms there’s a hairdressers, a barbershop in the men’s; there’s a sauna and steam room; Cowshed products are deployed with abandon; massages hone in on all problem areas; a nail salon provides mani-pedis; and CBD pampering keeps you calm enough to carry on. And then there’s the science bit: LED phototherapy, iS Clinical facials, percussive therapy, De Mamiel’s Chinese-medicine-inspired skincare, warming Akwaterra sandstone pods, physiotherapy and osteopathy. Then, there’s the gym, not your average room of stationary bikes, but a professional-quality warren of spaces with a room packed with Technogym kit; one dedicated to strength training; and studios for yoga, HIIT, Pilates and spinning.

Packing tips

No briefcases and bowler hats: the Ned carefully curates its membership list to ensure the hotel fizzes with artistic and entrepreneurial energy.

Also

Keep your eyes peeled for curious original detailing: vintage hat-storing cabinets, the arched glazed windows of the hotel’s logo, the bank chairman’s private elevator and highly Instagrammable – if vertigo-inducing – stairwells.

Pet‐friendly

Small- to medium-size dogs can stay free, but they’re not allowed in public spaces and must be leashed and attended. Any damages to the room will be charged. See more pet-friendly hotels in London.

Children

Some rooms fit an extra bed (£60), and the Two-Bed Family Suite is a spacious crashpad. The concierge can help with babysitting, and we’re sure Little Smiths will find something to eat in the six restaurants.

Sustainability efforts

The Ned is eco-conscious to a tee, earning the silver-level certification with the Green Tourism Board. This is all thanks to its Green Committee, which ensured that recycling was increased by 50 per cent, zero waste was sent to landfill, single-use plastics have been dramatically reduced, and eco-friendly bath products are used. The owners are careful custodians of the heritage building – the work of legendary architect Sir Edward Lutyens – formerly the Midland Bank headquarters. They’ve preserved the bank counters, marble reception desk and mighty emerald-green columns in the main foyer; some rooms and floors have original panelling, glazing and fireplaces; event spaces have been beautifully preserved; and there are some throwback surprises to seek out (rabbit-hole stairwells, hat cabinets, hefty vault doors). The Ned’s membership policy is inclusive too, aiming to keep the club crowd as diverse as possible.

Food and Drink

Photos The Ned City of London food and drink

Top Table

Try to sit close to the bandstand (crafted from the original marble reception desk) in the lobby – music plays every day from 4pm. And, if you can access the roof terrace, the view (from St Paul’s to the London Eye to the Shard) is captivating.

Dress Code

This is no finance-bro fashion show, since casual looks keep the creatives happy; however, with all the fanciness, you might still want to dress as if you’re about to ask for a loan.

Hotel restaurant

Sure, sure, the Bank of England next door has 400,000 gold bars in its vaults; but we don’t measure wealth in money, no, we measure it in food. And, by this metric, the Ned is high net worth, with eight eateries of different disciplines. So, don something stretchy and start in the lobby, an overwhelming space of marble, walnut-wood teller desks, colossal African verdite pillars and soaring arched windows housing an agora-style mix of dining spaces. Cecconi’s is the Soho House group’s signature Italian, where meals can run long on cicchetti, carpaccios and tartares, pizzettes, pastas and mains such as lamb cutlets in caponata and rib-eye in Barolo wine sauce. Sunday ‘feast’ days serve all the above buffet-style, plus traditional roast fixings, lobster and oysters. Millie’s Lounge has a Brit accent, with ‘shellfish’ and ‘grill’ sections to its menu, plus twice-baked Lancashire Bomb soufflé, shepherd’s pie, Hampshire pork chop with sage and apple sauce, and other comforting eats. Electric Bar & Diner crosses the pond for devilled eggs, hotdogs and cheeseburgers, pastrami cheese fries and shakes; while Malibu Kitchen embraces Cali’s healthful coastal flavours: fried sprouts with nuoc cham and pomegranate molasses; hamachi crudo with yuzu, dragonfruit, tamari and ginger. Kaia is Asian-Pacific with yakitori, dumpings, poke bowls, kaiseki menus and tempting robata grills; and Lutyens Grill is the most elevated, set in the wood-panelled former bank manager’s office, where there’s lobster and Longhorn, Hereford or wagyu steaks and gueridon service. On the lower level, the Parlour offers dinner and a show, with decadent dishes (chicken Kiev, lobster thermidor, rose veal) alongside live jazz and cabaret. And, if you’re lucky enough to hold a membership card, Ned’s Club Upstairs is a penthouse joint festooned with greenery and privy to panoramic views, plus the roof pulls back for alfresco dining in summer. 

Hotel bar

After the gorging is done, it’s time to get very merry, and with five bars it’s easily done. In the lobby, there’s the Nickel Bar, a casual catch-up space with cushioned banquettes; cocktails such as the namesake Nickel (Woodford rye, apricot brandy and maple) or the Yen (Nikka whisky, chartreuse, sweet ginger and peach) keep conversations flowing. On the lower level there’s the Long Bar and Parlour. The former is ideal for apéritifs and digestifs. It’s the only space where part of the Grade I-listed building could be demolished – a string of private consultation rooms were knocked into one long intimate space dubbed the Kennels. The latter is a sultry and sumptuous, low-lit spot, with colourful velvets and parquet flooring, where live jazz and saucy cabaret plays out on the stage. The Library Bar, open to hotel guests and members, is a hush-hush curtained-off space, set aside from the bustle of the ground floor. Behind thick vault doors is Ned’s Club Downtsairs, where you’ll need to brandish your membership card for access to the Vault, where the hotel keeps some of its most valuable assets: the two-metre-wide mechanised door at the entrance, a sparkling hall of safety deposit boxes, a metal-lined club space. 

Last orders

Closing times vary, with the earliest being at 10pm, and some spaces enigmatically open ‘till late’. Or, as we were told, ‘till the fun stops’.

Room service

If the lobby is a bit of a sensory overload (we got lost in the first five minutes of entering), there’s in-room dining round the clock.

Location

Photos The Ned City of London location
Address
The Ned City of London
27 Poultry
London
EC2R 8AJ
United Kingdom

The Ned sits in a beast of an art deco-neoclassical building built by Sir Edward ‘Ned’ Lutyens along Poultry street in the City, next to the Bank of England and opposite mayoral residence Mansion House.

Planes

London City, which has various links across Europe, is the closest at just a 40-minute drive away. And London’s big four international hubs (Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton) are all around a 90-minute ride. The hotel can help with transfers on request.

Trains

Bank Tube station is just a few steps from the hotel’s door, giving you easy access to the Central, Northern and Waterloo and City lines. For the Circle and District lines, the Mansion House stop is about five minutes down the road. You can ride down to the Docklands (nab the front seat to pretend you’re driving the train) from the Bank DLR stop; and the closest overground station is Liverpool Street, a 15-minute walk away.

Automobiles

The tangle of Tube lines nearby negates the need for a car, plus there’s Uber and Bolt and bikes and scooters to borrow, all of which are easier to use for navigating around London than your own set of wheels. But if you do need somewhere to park up, there’s an NCP in the Barbican, a 15-minute walk away.

Other

If you’re the kind of person who can say, ‘Let’s take the helicopter’ or ‘I fancy a jaunt on the yacht’, then you’re in luck – the closest helipad is at Battersea, a 40-minute drive away, and there’s a docking station for water taxis and small crafts at Tower Bridge. Private planes can touchdown at Biggin Hill (an hour away).

Worth getting out of bed for

Bank may feel officious with its neoclassical financial institutions, mayoral seat and distorted disco balls of quirkily shaped skyscrapers, but as part of the City (London’s oldest neighbourhood and a capital within a capital), there are historic treasures to unearth, well-heeled shops to hunt down and a valuable cache of culture. However, you could just hunker down in the hotel, which feels like a kind of urban resort. There are free yoga, Pilates, boxing, HIIT, dance, spinning – and more – classes in the gym; the spa could spoil you for days; live music is hosted in various venues; and different events take place throughout the year. 

Next, let’s get fiscal: learning about the noted stars of bank notes and the number of gold bars the UK has stashed away at the Bank of England Museum. Tours can only be arranged for small groups at Mansion House, but there are other iconic buildings that are easier to enter (you could even observe a hearing at the Magistrates’ Court if you really want). Head to the basement of the Bloomberg HQ and you’ll find Mithraeum, the remains of an ancient Roman settlement; St Paul’s Cathedral is a trove of art and famous entombments, but also hosts classical music recitals; and both the ‘Gherkin’ (AKA 30 St Mary Axe) and the ‘Walkie Talkie’ (AKA 20 Fenchurch Street or the Skygarden), and the Shard (actual name) have top-floor bars, from which London’s sprawl looks like a magical toytown. Climb the 311 steps to the top of the Monument to the Great Fire of London, then learn more about London’s long and twisty-turny past at the Museum of London, next door to a chunk of Roman wall. With all the wheelings and dealings of City financiers carrying on in this concentrated space, Bank has a number of very upmarket boutiques, Leadenhall Market has grandiose architecture dating back to the 14th century and the likes of Barbour, Reiss and Kandies (for cigars); while the Royal Exchange, a centre of commerce since the 16th century, is now home to Boodles jewellers, Crockett & Jones cobblers, Aspinal clothing and an outpost of Fortnum & Mason. Head East and you’ll find the Tower of London, royal prison to Anne Boleyn, Sir Walter Raleigh, Guy Fawkes and even the Krays; to the north, the Barbican is a Brutalist city of its own with an all-encompassing cultural centre; and across the Thames there’s the Tate Modern and all the excitement of the South Bank

Local restaurants

Dining out in Bank, home of the expense account, can weigh heavy on your credit card. But, standards meet the prices, so when you’ve munched your way through the Ned’s myriad eateries, explore the finer dines in life. Coq d’Argent has long been a favourite among the suited and booted for its elegant French cuisine. Expect wafts of truffle and dollops of caviar, and eats such as cauliflower in curried cream, cherry-wood-smoked sea trout with parsley beurre blanc, and rabbit braised in red wine. Also flying the Tricolore for French food is Cabotte, which is renowned for its Burgundy-sourced wines, but excels at food too, serving sea-bass carpaccio with juniper, apple, mango and chilli; Cornish plaice in a langoustine consommé; and a range of tartes and sabayons for dessert. Many deals have been brokered at 1 Lombard Street, set in a Grade II-listed building and dealing in British-leaning comfort food that’s gone up in the world: Lulworth scallops with chorizo in garlic butter, pumpkin soup with a Westcombe Cheddar scone, Old Spot sausages with colcannon in onion gravy, and Swainson House duck breast in a sour-cherry sauce. Desserts – Bakewell tart, apple crumble, sticky-toffee pudding – are densely delicious. And, Gymkhana sister restaurant Brigadiers is a wild flavour ride across Asia, with masala bubble-and-squeak vada pao, goat-belly vindaloo samosas, and beef shin and bone marrow biryani. 

Local cafés

Caravan City takes its travel-referencing name seriously, serving breakfasts, brunches and small plates that fuse flavours from all over. Fill up on charred oyster mushrooms with miso, edamame purée and wasabi; jalapeño cornbread with chipotle salsa and yoghurt curd cheese; and broken lamb meatballs with chermoula, tahini, labneh and aubergine. You’ll find Grind coffee in your room at the Ned, but you could go straight to the source – its café in the Royal Exchange. Cups of Joe abound, but there are also cold-pressed juices and a small but tasty cocktail menu – yes, they do an espresso martini.

Local bars

The City’s drinkeries embrace both the decadence of the weekday workers blowing off steam and delves into the past with historic boozers. The Bootlegger follows the Jazz Age hedonism of the hotel; a speakeasy-style bar with bow-tied staff, a piano begging to be played, and stiff drinks that’ll loosen you up. Humble Grape is a snobbery-free wine bar in a building with dramatic stone arches off Fleet Street; don’t be afraid to ask staff questions and be sure to book a tasting. Close by is the Old Bell Tavern, a 17th-century pub built by Christopher Wren (although not quite as ambitious as St Paul’s, we have to say). Be sure to try a pint of the house suds, Nicholson's Pale Ale. And, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese may have been rebuilt in the 17th century, but sits on foundations dating back four more centuries; its warren of rooms and nooks makes it ideal for an intimate date night.

Reviews

Photos The Ned City of London reviews

Anonymous review

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this behemoth bolthole in the City and unpacked their tailored suits and ticket stubs, a full account of their Square Mile and beyond break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside the Ned in London…

With our profligate spending on luxury hotel rooms, we’re probably not the people you should come to for financial advice, but we can tell you that it’s worth investing your time in The Ned. This former headquarters of Midland Bank, in City of London centre of commerce, um, Bank, is housed in a veritable temple to wealth, a Grade I-listed deco building designed by Sir Edward Lutyens (AKA ‘Ned’, from which the hotel takes its name), which is still richly regaled, thanks to a lengthy and careful renovation. 

The banking hall, with its enormous arched windows and sturdy African verdite columns, now has nine restaurants and bars (each giving a different global flavour) amid the original banking counters and in the former manager’s handsomely panelled office. Then, on the lower floor, there are more drinkeries and a jazz club tucked away behind the hefty doors of the old vaults. Then, in a cavernous space once filled with gold bars is a warren of top-to-toe pampering spaces. Then, there’s the Tardis-like gym with its dedicated yoga, Pilates and spinning studios. And, just when you think the Ned’s run out of capital, each floor has something new to offer – original glazing and panelling, decorative stairwells that spiral vertiginously down, rooms evoking Twenties-style glamour, and – if you hold a membership card – a roof terrace with a pool and a very valuable London panorama. By all accounts, the Ned gives great returns, so here’s where to lay your money – and your head – down.

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Price per night from $315.63