A design-led boutique hotel with impressive green credentials (it pumps water from its own 1,500-foot borehole), this former Victorian warehouse embodies the renaissance of East London. Part of the Zetter group (see next two entries), it’s ideally located in buzzing Clerkenwell, close to the City and British Museum yet just ten minutes from the West End by taxi (or astride one of the hotel’s complimentary Brompton bikes). Rooms vary in size, from small to extremely spacious; rooftop studios have a private balcony or terrace, one with a roll-top bath for alfresco bathing. All enjoy Zetter’s signature cutting-edge design, an honesty tray of food and drink and a selection of Penguin paperbacks, as well as a monsoon shower and REN toiletries. On the ground floor, diners tuck into all-day inventive British dishes. Breakfast is a feast of hot and cold options, with a classic brunch the order of the day at weekends.