A Stay at The Dorsett Shepherds Bush

Well hey there. How goes it? You may or may not know (I forget what I have and haven't told people, old age, sorry) that a couple of weeks ago me and my wee Mam met in London for a couple of girly days together and a good catch up. Every time I'm down in London it's for work so we thought we'd have a couple of days of being tourists for a change. Read: eating as many afternoon teas as possible without vomiting. The Dorsett Shepherds Bush were kind enough to put us up for a few nights and it truly was a lovely stay, so I thought I'd put together a little piece on it in case anyone themselves is looking for somewhere to stay in London in the future!

First up, I should mention that the hotel's only around a 15 minute tube to Oxford Street, 5 minutes tube to Notting Hill, 10 minute tube to Paddington (handy if you're coming to or from Heathrow Express) and a 30 minute drive from Heathrow itself. Oh - it's also literally two minutes away from Westfield so if you're a big shopper it's in a bit of a dream location. The decor and tone of the hotel is Chinese-inspired and very beautiful; fancy but welcoming in one - i.e. enough to pretend you're a lady but no biggie if you accidentally dribble egg on your top. The staff are all truly lovely too, and so helpful if you need anything. The room was beautiful; big marshmallow bed, two showers, cosy robes and slippers, a desk complete with big mirror, teas and coffees a plenty, iPod dock, minibar and lovely toiletries. And, most importantly, free wifi. The only thing I'd say is that, although there's a beautiful big flatscreen, there's no option to rent/buy movies, so if you're someone who likes to have a night in with a film then that's something to think of. We were absolutely pooped the first night - too much shopping, I mean, walking - so just stayed in and got some room service. A quinoa, pomegranate and feta salad to be precise which was deliciouso.

On our last day there, after stocking up on breakfast - including the muffins above, cooked breakfast, omelette, yoghurt and fruit and, I should add, gluten free bread - we went out for a couple of hours and then came back to the loveliest of lovely afternoon teas in the Jin bar.

If you're Coeliac, GF etc etc then this is one to keep in mind - every single thing you see above is gluten free. That's right, cupcakes AND scones. Such a rarity, innit? They also offer nut free and vegan afternoon teas, which I'm sure would be equally delicious. Everything was truly lovely, with my favourite thing being the little fruit smoothie on top (my advice: drink it last so you can balance out all the cakes you've just eaten. I think that's how it works anyway) and my Mum's being the little chocolate and strawberry cups complete with flowers on top. There was a huge choice of loose leaf teas as well so it's a Tea Jenny's Heaven! It's only £24pp (a little more if you'd like champagne) so is pretty well priced for London. A definite winner!

Amy