The Maybourne Beverly Hills – The Brits have Landed!

One of our favorite brands in the United Kingdom, Maybourne, now has a sister property in Beverly Hills. The respected brand is known for sophisticated old-school luxury.

It’s the first US settlement of the storied Maybourne Hotel Group. In the 1920’s, their London Hotel, Claridges, was once known for being the base camp to London’s high society cocktail-loving creative set known as “The Bright Young Things”. One hundred years later, the group has expanded to Beverly Hills, revamping the hotel floor-by-floor, including a chic well stocked cigar and whiskey bar on the ground floor.

Maybourne, Beverly Hills

Located in the Golden Triangle of Beverly Hills, the former Montage property now has a contemporary California cheerfulness, while maintaining the luxury attributes of five-star service exclusive to this posh neighborhood. A grand combination of chic British Sensibility and Southern California Glam!

Contemporary luxury now exudes throughout the property. Light hued mid-century classic furniture and modern artwork has replaced the stuffy dark wood and heavy leather. Bright and airy, with a celebrated collection of art – as well as a curated folio of descriptions and placements!  Do ask for the little art guide at check in. Mull and marvel at whimsical and classic paintings, sculpture, and photography from the lobby arrival to the comforts of your suite, hallways are lined with photographs.

The new rooms and suites are a serene sanctuary base, convenient walking distance to discover a city steeped in Hollywood history and cultural cachet. If you’re staying in a scrumptious suite, enjoy your brekkie on the Juliet balcony with views of the plaza below. Cocktail hour peek at the scads of exotic vehicles at the entrance, it’s a certifiable concourse d’elegance!

Prepare to Pamper in the Spa. There is also a women’s only sauna, Turkish steam room, and hot tub and a male only sauna and steam room. This an important spa feature, believe me, after finding out by mistake in a Parisian steam room. A daily drop in to steam a bad case of bronchitis, legs propped up on the wall, towel loosely draped, the door opened, and I was stunned to see a man enter the Hammam. A man in swim trunks!  I don’t know which was more shocking – the swim trunks or a man in what I thought was a separate female only Hammam.

Cuisine & Tipples. The Maybourne Beverly Hills dining options offer superior quality and endless variety with everything from Pacific seafood to the perfect martini.

Cocktails at the Maybourne Bar , Beverly Hills

At The Terrace restaurant you can dine under the stars on exquisite Mediterranean influenced entrées of the finest meat, fish and market vegetables sourced from the seashore, plus house-made pastas and divine desserts.

On most southern California days, summer or winter, relish the sunshine for hours at The Terrrace, overlooking the lawns of Beverly Canon Gardens. A unique setting oozing the charm of a European piazza, with white parasols, all-day dining, and a cascading fountain within earshot. An homage to the local agriculture, each table has a small cutting board with a picture-perfect lemon, so emblematic. We sat, we gossiped, we sipped Champers, noshing on little bites and fresh fish while counting how many times one dear old guest sauntered from the bathroom and pocketed a lemon from each table! Delicious food and a casual ambience invite long leisurely meals, do opt for the garden front seats – wonderful people watching between bites!

The Maybourne Bar serves classic and innovative cocktails expertly conceived by chief mixologist Chris Amirault. The bar is a serious endeavor with a chart defining the creative cocktails and as a fervent collector of little hotel books, I was thrilled to page through a small, stylized tome with gorgeous drawings and drink ingredients. There is a high level of sophistication and client care taking place at the Maybourne! Inspiration abounds in every setting.

The hip and stylish Maybourne Café offers day-to-night dining with pastries as yummy as Paris and a view of Beverly Cañon Gardens.

After hours soaking up sunshine at the Terrace Restaurant, we moseyed upstairs to the roof top pool. The cabana-lined rooftop pool offers a panorama all the way from the Hollywood sign to the Pacific. The Rooftop Pool is one of the city’s most breathtaking spots to relax and unwind. Tote a bag of books for the quiet afternoon sunset, the service stops at sundown, but the doors remain unlocked for hours, not everyone knows you can linger after the services closes, it’s a secret!

Maybourne, Beverly Hills

Whether you choose a chaise lounge, a private cabana, or a table in the shade, you can enjoy the superlative poolside service until sundown. There is no other pool day in L.A. quite like it. Traveling with the Family Tribe? Private cabanas are open for reservations to hotel guests Monday through Sunday, and spacious enough to accommodate six guests. They’re complete with televisions, mini fridges, and complimentary WiFi.

Coming in Spring 2023 Legendary restaurant and aperitivo bar, Dante NYC, is headed West with the opening of Dante Beverly Hills in Spring 2023. A rooftop destination for poolside dining and late-night drinking, Dante Beverly Hills will bring its signature award-winning cocktails and menu of Italian and Mediterranean cuisine to be discovered al fresco with panoramic views across the city to the Hollywood Hills from The Maybourne Beverly Hills.

Proper British White Glove Service with Congenial California Style.

The Maybourne, Beverly Hills

The Berkeley, Claridges, and The Connaught hotels in London form the Five-Star group.

Soundtrack to Summer! Come summer, Beverly Cañon Gardens sings with a free program of live music every Thursday evening. Concerts on Cañon runs through June to August and welcomes local artists as well as stars from further afield. Two 45-minute shows start at 6pm and 7pm, with concert-goers setting up picnics on the lawns. Performances this year span everything from classic soul, rock and jazz to Caribbean, Brazilian and Klezmer music.

Highly Recommend!

Why Visit Beverly Hills? The Peninsula Promise

Since the 1950s, Beverly Hills has marketed itself as a high-end shopping paradise and home of the rich and famous, which still rings true today. Beverly Hills may be one of the world’s most glamorous places to live, but it is also a city designed for visitors. High-end tourism is crucial for the city’s legendary hotels, restaurants, shops, galleries, and the beauty, health and wellness services to thrive.

The Peninsula Hotel, Beverly Hills

We have a few favorite hotels on our dossier of Highly Recommend properties. Like our individual fingerprints, there is a hotel for every taste and need. Do you prefer to stay a bit out of town and hideaway in a Bungalow or is your jam to see and to be seen? Enjoy leisurely strolls and window shop, pop into a cafe for an espresso?

The Peninsula outpost in Beverly Hills offers many options with 195 rooms, including 38 suites and 17 private villas, located in its lush tropical gardens. Gossip has it that one guest so loves the Villas, they’ve stayed for 24 years! Forbes rates it at the ultimate Five Stars.

A Grand Dame of a property providing sophistication and the ultimate in glamour in the city’s swankiest neighborhood. Roll into the circular driveway, sunglasses on and be prepared for fabulous people watching, exceptionally high service and pampering! Purse puppies abound, guests dressed to the nines enjoying the best that life has to offer in Los Angeles! There were whispers of Bill Barr arriving for a noon lunch and book signing.

Set at the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Wilshire near Canon Drive, just around the corner from the Holy Grail of chic high-end shopping, 20 minutes away to popular museums and 30 minutes to LAX or Burbank airport. Rolls Royce courtesy car for transport within the city limits, what else? There is a jaunty pink Perrier Champagne Citron out front as well, if you prefer to be less seen.

The grand lobby with polished marble floors is a flurry of stylish and well-dressed patrons and locals. You may see royalty and eccentricity milling through, it’s a haven for all temperaments!  The lobby is flanked by the ornate Living Room, where the hotel’s wildly popular afternoon tea is served, come dressed! High Tea is accompanied by a harpist and on Thursday evenings, the room comes alive with a pianist. The Club Bar is a sophisticated chamber clad in dark wood panels made of California birch and deep leather chairs that circle the fireplace. A traditional yet timeless ambiance, reminiscent of an elegant gentleman’s club, if you arrive a wee early, it’s a lovely place to perch while your bags are whisked to your room. A British pair who looked as if they had just dismounted from a Hunt, were sipping G&T’s with their furry four legged friend.

Oh, don’t miss the fine-dining Belvedere Restaurant, which features a beautiful courtyard terrace. An elegant European Brasserie offering a blend of art and cuisine in a classic French-country aesthetic steeped in Southern California luxury. Here, diners are immersed in a creative experience surrounded by magnificent artwork while relishing the artistically plated cuisine, and the high fashion of their loyal patrons featured in the illustrations on the restaurant’s menus. The Belvedere truly embodies the essence of its meaning, “beautiful view.”

Advice: pace yourself as it’s easy to overindulge. When I dine with my hoteliers, they never want to deny you any delicacy! Champers at lunch is de riguer, and oh, you must try the Caviar and Lobster flatbread, do nosh on these cheese sticks, they are heavenly – morphs into the Charred Caesar with Salmon, it must not be missed – and of course, dessert…Ms. Books? Everything Chocolate or a classic Grand Marnier Soufflé?

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served here; every dish is skillfully prepared with local produce – apart from the exceptional Dover Sole, which is flown in fresh every day from the UK. Hotel guests and Beverly Hills residents alike enjoy weekend revelry with the Bubbles & Bells Free-flow Champagne Brunch.

By nightfall, if you can rouse from the food coma, the Roof Garden is a lush casual spot for a less filling meal. Accented by its iconic yellow and white striped umbrellas, it’s a favorite among area residents and hotel guests alike.

Rooms, Suites, and Villas. The expansive rooms are all nattily appointed in a chic European style, with elegant furnishings and canopy beds draped in pastel or floral-printed fabrics. All have French windows that open onto a garden or city view, but the best come with private patios and hot tubs. The large bathrooms feature original pink marble from Greece and plenty of smart touches, such as monogrammed towels and Oscar de la Renta toiletries. The pink marble originates from the hometown of the owner. Villas are surrounded by lush gardens and range in size from a studio to the two-story Peninsula Villa which feels like a luxurious residence.

At check in, I was escorted to a gorgeous suite with petite Juliet balcony, in pretty pastels and colorful touches of pinks, creams, blues and greens, Happy as a clam at the pool, I was shaken out of my sun slumber by a text from my dear rep, Jake: Ms. Books, we had a cancel in the glammy Pink Suite you swooned over, would you like us to move you? Just like that, Lickety Split to pack up the laptop and mosey to the sumptuous Grand Deluxe Pink Suite. ‘Pink,’ ‘Blue’ and ‘Silver’ Suites, are some of the grandest suites at The Peninsula Beverly Hills. The ‘Pink Suite,’ with its hues of deep rose and elegant Dior grey, is accented by crisp white wainscoting, gold and silver-leaf. My kitchen was swoon worthy, although I had no intention of meal preparation, the fridge would keep the Champers chilled. A spacious terrace with loungers and a massive dining table for late afternoon tea or in my case, perfect for al fresco brekkie. I drooled over this brilliant 2250 square feet suite of tailored raspberry walls – a deep rose suite with one bedroom, a kitchen, dining room and two bathrooms! One bathroom the size of an average living room. In The Pink Indeed!

The Peninsula Beverly Hills made staying in a suite even sweeter! Guests who book one of the hotel’s elegant suites are offered the complimentary use of a luxury BMW for the length of their stay. 

Kiddos coming along? Family travel at The Peninsula receives an upgrade with Camp Peninsula, a children’s experience that recreates the spirit of camping right in the heart of Beverly Hills. An experience that can be added onto any room reservation, the Camp Peninsula Journey begins with a special welcome from Peter Bear, the hotel’s lovable mascot, at check-in. After taking a picture with the life-sized teddy bear, kids will be whisked away to your luxurious guest-room where a charming teepee awaits.

Life Live Well at The Peninsula Spa. Named one of the Top 10 Spas worldwide by readers of SpaFinder, the Peninsula Spa incorporates highly effective treatments with the finest therapists and products.

Pool Cabanas are available for day use.  Surrounded by panoramic views of the Los Angeles and Century City skyline, The Peninsula Beverly Hills’ 60-foot outdoor rooftop pool and hot tub is an idyllic spot for hotel guests to relax and cool down in true Peninsula style.

Proper indulgence at the rooftop pool. Luxury Relax & Revive poolside in a spacious cabana with much needed pampering. Bask in the sun, with rejuvenating reflexology, a mani-pedi, gourmet dining and panoramic city views. Based on availability Wednesday and Thursday for glam grooming.

The Peninsula Hotel Spa Beverly Hills

Old school attention to service, and the recent upgrades include state of the art technology. Friendly professional staff, I ask questions everywhere! My room attendant has worked there for over ten years mentioning how employees are well treated.  Bill, the room manager escorted me to my suite, regaled with a cheerful history of the hotel, he’s been there for over 20 years. Peninsula Love is abundant, to me, that is a defining character of a brand and a hotel.

Oh, did I mention my monogrammed Pillowcase? It occurred to me to stay for 24 years!

Peninsula Pets!

Highly Recommend for luxurious comfort, serious shopping, fine dining and the ultimate in people watching – small gift shop with glorious hats if you are the Star and need to be undercover!