Marylebone, one of the most 'posh' neighborhoods in London
In Marylebone you arrive when you have already kicked everything —commercially— “kickable” in London: you have strolled through Soho, you have dared with Convent Garden, with Regent Street, you have even made a foray into the elegant Seven Dials and the always splendid —and less and less authentic— Oxford Street.
So when you've scrutinized every business on this last avenue and you think there's hardly anything left to explore, it gives you to walk a few steps further.
After browsing through the alleys that extend to the north, in the direction of Regent's Park, suddenly, and after only five minutes, you find a very elegant neighborhood of Georgian-style houses - in which you would irremediably wish to live one day - full of shops with a lot, a lot of soul.
Friend, congratulations: you have just run into the jewel that is Marylebone Village.
Charming Chiltern Street
AND WHAT IS MARYLEBONE VILLAGE?
Well, it is one of the most valued areas of the London core and among its neighbors it has had, over the centuries, characters as respected as Madonna herself, Paul McCartney, John Lennon or the wonderful —and literary— Sherlock Holmes.
However, and despite this, Marylebone has always persisted in the maelstrom of its neighboring neighborhoods and It has managed to remain a haven of peace in the midst of the madness of the center of the capital. Tourism barely arrives here, yes, but the local people do. And what better clue than that?
The independent businesses They have been emerging for years among its main avenues, which have known how to resist the big brands.
Streets like Marylebone High Street, one of its arteries, and the little alleys that twist around it, are packed with flirty and charming shops among which there is space for fashion, decoration, accessories or food. Where to start?
Marylebone High Street, one of the main arteries of the neighborhood
SHOPS THAT TELL STORIES
In a small space on Marylebone Lane, full of cafes and independent shops, is ** Paul Rothe & Son , a storybook shop that is a true temple to delicatessen products.**
Three generations of the same family —we are talking about the fact that it opened its doors in 1900— have given life not only to the business, but also to the little bistro they have set up inside with four tables and a handful of chairs.
In the window, mountains of Wilkin & Sons jam jars They warn you that their product is not just anything. In the old wooden cupboards that decorate the interior they are perfectly organized, among many other products that are not found in the supermarket on duty, pickle jars, tea cans or containers with spices from exclusive brands.
Behind the counter, its owner is busy preparing one of his famous British-style sandwiches—the egg-mayonnaise is to die for— while the smell of soup of the day intoxicates you uncontrollably.
The body asks you to sit with a bowl full to the top in your hands and just watch life pass by on the other side of the window. But no: there is still much to discover.
A walk through Marylebone Village
For example, what's across the street. This is ** VV Rouleaux , a shop specializing in haute couture decorations ** that are equally valid for an evening dress or to decorate the curtains of your house.
More than five thousand luxurious ribbons, tassels, braids, bows, feathers and cords hang down every inch of the premises —also from the façade, something that attracts quite a lot of attention to those who pass by— and since it opened its doors in 1990, they have attracted the most sought-after designers and decorators in the country.
A little further on, on Marylebone High Street, is the flagship of By Marlene Birger, the Danish firm that revolutionized the world of fashion with its creations in 2004 , after appearing at Copenhagen Fashion Week.
Her pieces, in which she seeks to capture the elegance of modern women, they can be bought in more than a thousand stores spread over 42 countries around the world. Also in this little corner of London, of course, where design and fashion are quite strong.
In fact, you only have to walk a few steps to find another one of those boutiques with a strong personality. theory has been designing garments for both women and men for twenty years, but always wearing look for innovation, functionality and elegance in each of them.
And at Nu, a fashion retail brand, they try to "dress souls, not bodies." And how do they do it? Through an iconic and divergent aesthetic that takes shape through the work of an in-house team of designers, pattern makers and fabricators.
Also on Marylebone High Street, by the way, two more gems: ** Daunt Books , a bookstore that you shouldn't miss out on for anything in life, and Anthropology ,** another of those cute shops that, of course, has its place here.
CHANGING THE THIRD
But people don't just come to Marylebone Village to shop: you also come to pamper yourself. And to do it you can think of many ways.
Take, for example, a cult of the body: At ** Third Space , an urban sanctuary with state-of-the-art fitness facilities,** locals find time in their busy schedules to do a few laps in its 60-foot pool. , perform one of the targeted functional training sessions or relax in a Yin Yoga class. If they can, why can't you?
But if you want to go even further, it's easy: ** John Bell & Croyden **, an institution in London, is the ideal place to indulge in the pleasure of loving yourself. And not just because it has been established since no less than 1798 —220 years of life, which is said soon— in this corner of London, nor because in this time it has been in charge of introducing thousands of wellness and beauty products of global origin in the United Kingdom market.
Not even because since 1958 it was established as the official pharmacist of Queen Elizabeth II. It is, above all, because the facial treatments he performs Maria, the skin care specialist at this sanctuary to beauty, they are simply unbeatable. And if not, she tries.
TIME TO EAT
Always, always, there is time to stop and take care of another type of care: the one that gastronomy grants. And of that Marylebone Village understands quite a bit: in its streets, there are dozens of pubs, restaurants, terraces and cafes. How to know which one to choose?
A good bet is ** La Fromagerie , on Moxon Street ** —a street known precisely for its range of restaurants—. A full-fledged cheese shop where you can both buy and eat on the spot whatever suits you best. Mice paradise, simple as that.
Caldesi , however, is to take it easy. To enjoy every second you spend in there. And it is that in this restaurant with Italian roots led by chef Giancarlo Caldesi, —who has several cookbooks and a BBC program on Italian cooking under his belt, by the way—, you'll want time to stand still.
Seasonal product and top quality in each of its dishes: You will only have to take the first bite to understand that, with words, we can tell you little more. A tip? Try their pasta bolognese: it will be a memorable experience.
And the digestive, what? Well, for the digestive we propose a legendary pub: the Golden Eagle , a place that has little to do with the elegant lines of the neighborhood but that exudes authenticity in abundance.
In one of the corners a piano has been animating the roost three nights a week since time immemorial: a pianist will play what you need for you, if he spontaneously decides to delight the staff by singing a song. If you don't dare, don't worry: rest assured that the fun with those who will will be guaranteed.
TO FINISH THE VISIT
Finishing discovering the charms of Marylebone Village goes through two more sections. One of them is the cultural. Did you know that these streets concentrate some of the most famous museums in the city? For example, Madame Tussauds, one of the most entertaining and enjoyable wax museums in the world.
**Baker Street is also home to the Sherlock Holmes Museum**, where, according to the writings of Arthur Conan Doyle, the most famous detective in literary history lived between 1881 and 1904.
Another museum that cannot be missed on your tour is the fascinating ** The Wallace Collection , the incredible collection of works of art from the 15th to the 19th centuries ** that houses the Georgian mansion Hertord House. Pure delight.
To say goodbye to the neighborhood, nothing like taking a walk. So, no more. He walks aimlessly through its narrow streets, through those that maintain their grid structure from the past and also through those others, such as Marylebone Lane, which followed the whimsical shapes of the River Tyburn, which once flowed through the area.
Get lost on Harley Street , always known for concentrating the largest number of medical consultations in the city —by the way, Dickens also lived here— and enjoy yourself in the famous mews: small alleys with cobbled floors and low houses that, as if by magic, preserve in the XXI century the power to make you travel in time 400 years ago.
To the time when Marylebone Village , the neighborhood that you discovered today, began to be what you see.
Harley Street, known for concentrating the largest number of medical consultations in the city