The Stafford London

"The Stafford is quaint and in a quiet area and we have been there many times over the past three years. I have only stayed in the Carriage house rooms though, at my requests. As such, I enjoy the convenience from the street and access to the American Bar patio. I recognize the staff each time and in turn I feel like I know the Hotel very well. I've had meetings there, meals, entertainment and introduced numerous guests to the amenities and the courtesies provided by the entire Hotel. Meetings in the American Bar have been very successful and personal with the décor from the states and as such the history of the Hotel and the Bar are special. London is a fantastic City and the Stafford adds to the charm."

"Great location, heart of St. James.\nFriendly and helpful staff.\nRoom was spacious and well appointed.\nSeveral trips to the American Bar.\nThey take good care of you and very solid cocktails.\nOne of my fav 🐟 and 🍟"

"I'm reviewing the Afternoon Tea only.\n\nAn underwhelming experience.\nI should have trusted the earlier review that warned about the poor quality of the afternoon tea served at this hotel.\n\nLet’s start with the positives.\nThe tea room is elegant and spacious, furnished in a classic style that avoids being overly chintzy. Service was excellent. The cappuccino was well made, and the St James tea—smoky and evocative of leather car seats—was a real standout.\n\nThe finger sandwiches were fairly decent. The tomato and cheese, and the ham and cheese options were the most enjoyable. The coronation chicken sandwich, on the other hand, was the worst: too sweet, too watery, and lacking any real curry flavour. It was disappointing—and frankly, outdated.\nWhen was the last time anyone actually bought a coronation chicken sandwich? Exactly.\nWe were hungry, so we reluctantly went back for seconds.\n\nThen came the sweets—visually promising but ultimately a let-down.\nThe highlights: the scones were excellent, as were the jam and clotted cream. Portions were small for two people, but they brought us more when we asked.\n\nThe purple daisy-shaped macaron was decent, but the rest of the limited selection fell flat. A white mouse with a pink hat was filled with bland, watery mousse and lacked any real flavour. A small biscuit topped with what I assume was a lemon-flavoured mousse (I couldn’t actually detect a distinct flavour) was finished with a white chocolate daisy. The plant pot dessert—complete with a ‘growing flower’—was nicely presented, but didn’t deliver the burst of flavour or element of surprise I was hoping for.\n\nUltimately, none of the sweet or savoury offerings justified the £78 per person price tag.\n\nI simply don’t understand how they can justify such exorbitant prices for something so pedestrian, average in flavour, and limited in scope.\n\nI left very disappointed."