Hot on the Highstreet 185

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1. Playtype – Letters of all shapes, sizes and forms fill this tiny eclectic shop. Pick up an alphabet poster or buy your very own special Playtype font on a memory stick.

2. Stilleben – For 10 years, Stilleben has been a “must see” for those interested in interior design, graphic design and unique, handcrafted, modern ceramics. The two female owners have a nose for spotting the best up and coming talent and fill the store with inspiring things to create the ultimate Danish shopping experience.

3. Storm – While internationally renowned as one of the leading and most trendsetting lifestyle and fashion stores in Europe, Storm is also a lot more than a retail space. With owner Rasmus Storm acting as driver and mediator, it’s a conceptual platform where commercial and artistic expressions meet, cultural meanings are exchanged and new concepts evolve. Everyday they strive to evolve and improve the Storm vision to find and share with you our latest and greatest sources of inspiration. Beyond clothing, they carry a large selection of beauty products, music, magazines, books and always feature exciting and inspirational exhibitions in-store.

4. Acne Archive – a haven for Acne lovers, this outlet store sells past seasons rejects for a fraction of the price.

5. Hay – Designer and manufacturer of contemporary furniture, accessories and rugs. HAY’s ambition is to encourage Danish furniture design’s return to the innovative greatness of the 1950’s and 1960’s in a contemporary context. Today, ten years later that ambition has not changed! It is still a great inspiration and keeps us inspired and motivated every day in creating meaningful and sincere design.

Many thanks to the Denmark Tourist Board for their help with this trip. More information here.

Diciannove, Blackfriars

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Hotel restaurants are often average. Diciannove at the Crowne Plaza hotel, however, is not. This Italian restaurant offers fresh and tasty Mediterranean food, that doesn’t promise innovation or modernity, but succeeds because of quality ingredients and traditional cooking skills. The prices reflect this casual style of cuisine and are reasonable considering the central city location of Blackfriars.

The white wine Gavi di Gavi, chosen by our waiter because “all the ladies love it,” was absolutely delicious. Light and refreshing without detracting from the flavour of the food, it suited our meal perfectly. We started on a selection of sharing dishes: super skinny courgette fritti, polenta chips, burrata with grilled aubergines and tomatoes and rosemary focaccia, it was an array of different textures and tastes, almost like a make your own Italian platter. The burrata was our favourite, particularly creamy and fresh, it needed an extra grind of black pepper, but nonetheless was a delicious start to the meal.

The menu has several signature dishes, my friend was talked into trying the fillet of beef with soft polenta and seasonal mushrooms, while I opted for roast Luganica sausage ravioli with pinenuts and sage. The ravioli had a lovely herby buttery aroma but the pasta was over-stuffed with meat and it was simply too much for me to manage. The beef had a lovely velvety texture paired perfectly with rustic mushrooms and polenta (an ingredient I believe is under-used)!

Dessert was a struggle, a selection of three of the top puddings were delivered to our table in glasses. If only we had had the inclination to devour them… Tiramisu lacked coffee and sponge with an overload of cream, chocolate mousse with chocolate salami was as absurdly rich as it sounds, but the Zabaione lemon curd and custard dessert was surprisingly light, fluffy and tasty.

There are only a few disadvantages as a restaurant reviewer… the most painful of which is disappointing the eager-to-please waiters. At Diciannove the staff were keen to feed us up with every Italian delicacy from the kitchen. We witnessed forlorn faces as they took away half full plates.

Despite its slight drawbacks and slight lack of atmosphere, if I was staying at Crowne Plaza Hotel on business, I’d be delighted to discover Diciannove restaurant on site, a friendly and appetising Italian eatery.

More information here: www.diciannove19.com

Boscolo Palace, Rome

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Everyone has to visit Rome at least once in their lifetime, but it’s difficult to know where to stay when there is so much to see all over the city. The Boscolo brand has prestigious hotels in many Italian cities; each has a different character and feel but they all hope to evoke an elegant, authentic Italian style.

Of the three Boscolo hotels in Rome, we stayed at the Palace, which is well located for the city’s attractions and not far from Rome Ciampino airport. The most memorable aspect of our stay here was the efficient and friendly service throughout the weekend. We were picked up promptly from the airport, whisked to our hotel, given an in-depth description of the best places to see and visit, and treated to the most wonderful Thai spa experience on our final morning. I cannot fault the staff and I’m sure the excellence of the service results in a high return rate of guests.

The rooms and suites, of which there are many, are grand but a little dated and feel in need of a renovation. We were very comfortable in our huge bed and should guests need it, there is plenty of space to while away an afternoon. The grey, pink and off-white colour scheme feels a bit like a 1960s pad and not quite to my taste but definitely different. The bathroom is filled with numbered multi-coloured toiletries (1-21) displayed like intriguing test tubes – it is tempting to try them all out.

Breakfast and dinner is served downstairs in the main restaurant, a selection of Italian and continental options. When we visited, off-season, we were the only people dining for supper, the casual lounge felt a bit sad and quiet but perhaps there is most atmosphere during the summer months.

We had the spa to ourselves as well, and the team there made an enormous effort to give us a lovely and relaxing experience. After our revitalising treatments, we enjoyed a refreshing fruit tea by the jacuzzi. Sat in our soft dressing gowns, sightseeing suddenly seemed less important.

The 5 star Palace has a great variety of facilities on offer and the large luxurious rooms will provide an ideal base for your weekend away in Rome.

More information and book here: palace-roma.boscolohotels.com

Many thanks to the Rome Tourist Board for their help with this trip:

www.turismoroma.it and Tourist information service: Roma 0039 060608.