Warm welcomes and cold Martinis: a two night stay at Dukes
Bond purists might baulk but the best Martinis in the world are neither shaken nor stirred. Just ask the experts at Dukes in London, where Ian Fleming preferred to drink them.
Style note: I follow the convention of Lowell Edmunds, Martini expert and author of Martini: Straight Up, in capitalising the name of the beverage. It deserves it.
Confession: we decided to stay at Dukes London for my birthday trip to our capital city almost entirely because of the Martinis.
That doesn’t mean we didn’t have fond memories of our previous stay at the luxury boutique hotel in the heart of Mayfair. We enjoyed ourselves immensely on our previous visit in 2019. Dukes maintain that ‘you will arrive as a guest and leave as a friend’. Although I am always deeply cynical about any kind of corporate sloganing, this is a rare occurrence of a hotel living up to their mission statement without caveats. We were made to feel extremely welcome at every point by every single member of the team, from the moment we arrived (looking rather dishevelled, it must be said, on the hottest day of the year) from the moment they called us a cab to the train station for the journey home.
Merely being made to feel welcome might sound like a low bar when you’re paying for the privilege, but we’ve stayed in several of The World’s Best hotels where this has not been the case. Sometimes it’s the big things, other times the little things. The ones that irk the most are those which are the result of pure laziness - or heteronormative assumption-making. For instance, we’ve lost count of the amount of times we’ve been checked in as Mr and Mrs Lowbridge-Ellis because no one bothered to check whether it was two men - married at that - staying with them. This may sound like the epitome of #firstworldproblems but there’s really no excuse for it. And it’s a sure fire way to make you feel like an unwelcome guest. Dukes did not make this mistake. The only slip up - and it was a very slight one - was the disposable slippers we found in our wardrobe, with one pair labelled ‘Duke’ and the other ‘Duchess’. In case you’re interested, we took it in turns to be the Duchess.
Our room itself was a delight, with a bed more than big enough for two men, an important consideration for gay travellers (although quite how any couple - gay or straight - squeezes into a conventionally-sized double bed without immediately wanting to break up is a head-scratcher to me). There was also a colossal bath, which always earns a significant tick from us. And with such expansive bathroom mirrors, I surprised myself by resisting the urge to try out some James Bond poses while completing my ablutions (okay, I didn’t resist, but there’s no photographic evidence… this time).
Tucked away down a side street in the heart of Mayfair, it’s possible to forget about the outside world while you’re at Dukes. Indeed, it’s very easy to lose track of time. On the second night of our stay, we were almost late to the theatre because we were enjoying ourselves so much moving between the restaurant and bar. For those people who are habitually late, getting to your seats as the curtain rises may not seem especially dramatic. But it’s quite a feat for two people who are always very early for everything, a consequence of us both working in professions where timeliness is fundamental and, in the time of Covid, essential for keeping people safe.
In all honesty, prior to our two night trip away, both of us were on the verge of forgetting what having a good time felt like. The ‘real world’ and all that entails (which is a lot right now) had become all-consuming. Even when we weren’t physically at work, we were there in our minds. I’m sure we’re not alone in finding it impossible to switch off in the time of Covid. Fortunately, Dukes managed to flip the right switch in our heads. Besides the odd fleeting check of our respective emails, we managed to relax.
“[Bond] watched carefully as the deep glass became frosted with the pale golden drink, slightly aerated by the bruising of the shaker.” (Casino Royale)
At Dukes, they do not shake a Martini, unless you specifically ask for it. Although - Bond association aside - I can’t imagine why you would.
But hold off that mental image of Ian Fleming spinning in his grave for a moment. All will become clear - as clear as the finished drink.
Shaking dilutes the drink (not a good move with a Martini) and stirring is superfluous as the ingredients are taken straight from the freezer, along with the frost-rimed glass, providing the requisite coldness (and these are ice cold).
To label such an appetising sight a mere ‘glass’ doesn’t quite do it justice. This is a vitrine, awaiting the arrival of its next work of art. And like Bond, we watch what happens next very carefully...
It arrives on an antique wooden trolley, escorted by bodyguard - or whatever the term is for someone who makes sure Vermeers or Goyas or Monets get to galleries without being harmed or stolen. Again, the usual nomenclature (‘bartender?’) seems somewhat inappropriate in this context.
First in the glass/vitrine are the Angostura bitters, followed by Dukes’ own exclusive version of Sacred’s amber vermouth (a close match for Bond’s Kina Lillet, which is no longer produced). Potocki Vodka from Poland joins the installation, the ice-cold spirit sliding silkily into the wormwood-infused base. Finally, the No. 3 gin, from nearby Berry Bros. & Rudd (London’s oldest wine and spirit merchant), tops up the glass to the rim, almost to the point where you think it might spill over the edge. The art installation has become an infinity pool, stretching to the horizon - or the person sitting opposite.
The oils of a generous slice of orange peel are expressed before it slips silently into the pool like a skinny dipper sneaking in after hours.
And who knows what you’ll get up to after a Dukes Martini, which contains, in all, five shots of alcohol. Friends in the Bond community have told me stories which I don’t dare repeat on a family-friendly website. But I’m not surprised that Dukes limit all customers - regardless of purported liver strength - to just two Martinis. I only discovered this myself after attempting to order a third and was politely informed that I needed to select another drink from the menu.
Perhaps sir would prefer something a little less intense than a Martini? Say, a Negroni.
It comes to something when a Negroni is considered the sensible choice off a drinks menu.
The alcohol content is almost beside the point with these Martinis. This is not the mere making of a drink. This is a taste of sublimity. A disruption to your day whatever your plans were, are or will be. A coupe de theatre if you will, although seeing as a Vesper is not served in a coupe glass perhaps a Martini de theatre might be more accurate.
We didn’t restrict ourselves to the Vespers. Like all committed cocktail drinkers, we did our best to work our way through the menu (fortunately, we were staying for more than one night). On our last visit we had already tried the cocktails named for Bond characters Tiger Tanaka, Odd Job and Strangways. This time, we checked in with Miss Moneypenny (vokda, contreau, lime, passion fruit), as well as Casino Royale’s villain Le Chiffre. The latter was by far the most flamboyant drink we experienced. It consists of Beluga vodka, Sacred Rosehip Cup aperitivo, orange liquor, vodka infused with chilli, orange zest AND - just in case that wasn’t enough - a candy rose. Like the eponymous Bond villain, it’s a lot of fun and seductively dangerous (at least in his Mads Mikkelsen incarnation), although I’m inherently distrustful of any concoction with so many ingredients. In comparison, the Kijabe Martini, made up of only two ingredients, comes with a recommendation as potent as the drink itself. Over a waft of dry vermouth was poured a goblet’s worth of Procera gin (juniper-forward, made in extremely small batches in Kenya), which has instantly become a favourite of ours.
The only disappointment of our visit was the maestro himself, legendary ‘bartender’ and fellow Bond obsessive Alessandro Palazzi , not being able to be present. As he explained to us over Instagram, he was having to isolate as a result of his son testing positive for Covid. Having built up such a talented team, the drinks did not suffer in his absence, but I’m looking forward to seeing him when we return, which, like James Bond always does, we of course will.
'When I'm... er... concentrating,' he explained, 'I never have more than one drink before dinner.’
At Dukes Bar, you’ll find it hard to stick to 007’s dictum of having just one drink before dinner. And even though there’s a strong case for a Dukes Vesper (or two) constituting a starter, main course and dessert, you’re going to need some actual food to eat eventually.
Beyond the cicchetti (salted nuts and rice crackers) that accompany the cocktails, Dukes is not a place for dining. So if you need something substantial to help you swerve feeling tipsy, we recommend the on-site Great British Restaurant. When we made the reservation, we couldn’t recall if we had eaten there before (might have been something to do with the Martinis!) but as soon as we arrived, it came flooding back.
We requested to sit with Roger Moore - because why wouldn’t you?
Antony had the Fish Pie and I had the Monkfish Scampi in ‘Curious’ Beer Batter. Curious, in case you were wondering, is the name of a premium brewer, not a statement on anyone’s sexuality, although if the cap fits… Both dishes were exceptional: unfussy variations on classic British dishes with perfect portion size.
If you’re a fan of Fleming’s Bond novels you’ll know how he delighted as much in describing his hero’s epicurean adventures as his world-saving feats of derring-do. With a couple of notable exceptions, Bond has his memorable meals outside of Britain, which was still under rationing when the early books were written, limiting the options somewhat. Had Bond dined at Great British Restaurant he would not have been disappointed. The ingredients are almost all homegrown too, so should we face ‘the worst food shortages since the war’ as some are claiming (purportedly the result of the Covid ‘pingdemic’ and Brexit), you should still be able to get an impressive meal at GBR.
Should the worst happen, however, you can always do what Fleming would probably have done: make a beeline for the bar upstairs and have another Vesper.
Planning your own trip
Please note that this is not a promotion - we paid in full for our room, food and drinks.
You can book a stay at Dukes directly from their website https://www.dukeshotel.com/ where you can also find information about Dukes Bar and Great British Restaurant.
Reservations are not possible for Dukes Bar, unless you are a hotel guest - a considerable inducement to stay the night! - although they do have a first come-first served policy for non-hotel guests and they will do their utmost to accommodate you. Dress code is smart casual: “Leisurewear is not permitted and jackets are encouraged.”
Dukes is located a street over from Jermyn Street, where Fleming and Bond did most of their shopping for luxury goods - clothing, bath products, perfumes. It’s a great place to window shop even if you don’t plan to stop to buy.
Although nothing compares with being there in person, you can watch Alessandro Palazzi himself making a Vesper at Dukes here:
