Crowne Plaza London St. James

not very nice but acceptable, no swimming pool, not modern also.

Met with friends at this hotel recently and was pleasantly surprised. I knew of the courtyard garden but didn't realise how nice it was! A quiet enclave off Buckingham Palace Gate, the hotel is made up of three blocks - two housing the hotel bedrooms and public areas, including restaurants and spa and one housing the private apartments.
As the entrance is hidden away the hotel is quiet and exclusive-feeling. We started with drinks in The Hamptons bar. The ambiance is like a gentlemans club with relaxed leather sofas and chairs, live piano music and really attentive and freindly bar staff.

Choices for dining are varied. There's the Michelin-starred Asian restaurant Quilon, Bank Westminster modern restaurant with the adjacent funky Zander Bar. I liked the vibe in Bank - all sleek surfaces and muted silver and soft colours. In the end, we settled on dinner in Bistro 51 and had the most amazing rib eye steak. I skipped the starters ( £7 - £8.00 ) and chose my steak style, sauce ( pink peppercorn ) and sides ( potatoes dauphainise and wilted spinach - yum! ) at the more expensive end of the menu for £24.50. Desserts are £7.75 and I can recommend the sticky toffee pudding. Really good brasserie-style food and the steak was cooked to perfection!!!
Good for meeting friends, parents or clients for something different.
Looking forward to trying their Sunday roast some day for £16.50...

Shame to say the Moulton Brown goodies have gone. This isn’t the best Crowne Plaza in London.Its not as chic and modern as the Crowne Plaza at Blackfriars in the City of London and some of the rooms are a little tired. But it is in a great location for sightseeing. Buckingham Palace is a 3 minute walk away. The Houses of Parliament are close enough for me to be on the flight path of the police helicopter on budget day this week and on a nice day a stroll through the Royal Parks is a must if you have the time. Some of the rooms are quirky and if you are buying at the lower end of the range it can be a bit of a lucky dip. I had a nice room this week and the service as usual was great.

ave stayed at a number of Crowne Plazas, but this one really does stand out. Excellent customer service - really felt valued as a customer right from the moment I walked in the door.

The receptionist even showed me around the hotel.

Club rooms are spacious, clean and with a good range of refreshments. Moulton Brown toiletries in the bathroom make a difference, too!

Club lounge is a great place to relax.

Having stayed at about 20 different hotels this year, would rate this one 1st.