With a friend visiting from New York we foolishly decided to battle the pre-Christmas hordes of central London around Oxford Circus, which had temporarily taken up position as Dante’s seventh circle of shopping hell.

After a valiant struggle through Liberty’s and a heaving brawl through a turgid Regent Street, we took inspiration from my friend’s father (thank you Bernie!) to try out a drink at the Langham Hotel, situated right across the road from the beautiful BBC Broadcasting House.

A Brief History

The Langham is a five-star venue more than 150 years old, now lovingly owned by a very respectable Hong Kong based company that has adopted the brand for it’s global empire – praise indeed.

While it was built as one of the grandest new hotels in the world, the Langham quickly faced financial difficulties as its parent company was liquidated amid a British economic slump.

The hotel was sold soon after for half the cost of its construction. From the 1860s it was run by an ex-Union Army officer from the US, James Sanderson, who is credited with helping turn around the finances of the grand venue, particularly with his ability to cultivate American clientele.

The customers from this time included celebrities, authors and royalty. Some of the Sherlock Holmes novels are partly set here, while Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s contemporary Sir Oscar Wilde also paid visits. In the twentieth century patrons included Sir Winston Churchill, Charles de Gaulle, Diana Princess of Wales and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia.

Nonetheless after slumping through the depression and WWII the building was acquired and used by the BBC. The BBC even tried to have the building demolished and replaced by a modern structure in 1980 which was thankfully blocked.

The Venue

It’s a beautiful building indeed. The exterior featured as a setting in the 1995 Bond Film Goldeneye. Today, with it’s diametric opposition to the beautiful BBC centre it strikes a chord of quiet authority, hidden from the limelight but quite grand in its own right.

As well as high quality rooms, an exquisite palm court and fine dining, the hotel also boasts it’s own cocktail lounge: Artesian. Booking early is recommended for the beautiful venue, or be prepared to queue with good grace.

The bar atmosphere is soft, gentle and lit like a lock-in, giving everyone just enough privacy at eye-level, while the table-top lights keep your affairs in order and your aperitifs in sight.

The menu is quite something. I didn’t even get past the first page.

The Soil Martini

It is described as “an Artesian earthy twist on the dry martini.” I had to order it immediately. I could peruse the other drinks in the menu later.

The glass was placed on my table with a sprouting grass garnish, planted in a small layer of ‘soil’ already placed in the base of the coupe. The waiter then poured the martini into the glass from a prepared jug. I normally like my martinis served fast, simple and without flourish but this was certainly an interesting spectacle to watch, especially given that the server had to make sure not to aggravate the ‘soil’ sediment and create a muddy mess.

Made with high-quality vodka and sake, this cocktail is essentially a type of Saketini as much as a Dry Martini or simple Vodka Martini.

The addition of koji – a type of mould used in sake and miso manufacture – was a nice, light touch that tied in the clean cocktail flavours (particularly the sake) with the organic soil base. The drink had a very smooth mouthfeel overall with a satisfying earthy flavour.

The garnish was a beautiful sprouting plant. I’m not sure if it was specifically meant to be eaten but it had a fresh, grassy and slightly peppery flavour that I felt lightened the whole drink experience.

In most martini circumstances I would’ve preferred a v-shaped martini glass for my drink but this could’ve destabilised the soil base, which I understand.

The soil itself is made from coffee grounds – I believe they were used grounds, which is not to detract from the quality of the drink. Indeed had they been freshly ground but unused they would’ve been too strong and would’ve overly caffeinated the drink. As it was, they were soft, natural and gentle in aroma as I got closer to the end of the drink. Indeed it was like an impressionist inhale of an Espresso Martini towards the end – a beautiful, playful touch on behalf of the drink.

The Dirty Belvedere Martini

My friend ordered the Vodka Martini with Belvedere, and was asked how he would like it (always a very reassuring question in a martini bar). My friend responded that he would like it dirty.

We were not disappointed. Apart from being in a coupe glass (if I’ve not already made it clear, I like martinis in a traditional v-shaped glass, which London seems to struggle with) it was a deliciously prepared drink. It was made using dry Mancino vermouth from northern Italy and came reliably chilled, with just a hint of saline and a garnish of a Sicilian Nocellara olive. Italian taralli and more Nocellara olives, this time marinated with oil, salt and rosemary were also served on the side. These were regularly topped up during our stay, as was our table water.

The service was excellent. The members of staff were smart and charming, striking just the right balance of attentive but non-intrusive care.

The toilets were somewhat difficult to find in the building’s labyrinthine interior but the décor was beautiful all along the way. Nonetheless take note if you have any concerns about accessibility.

Otherwise, this is a beautiful bar, with excellent staff and a wonderful menu. I thoroughly recommend a visit.

At £23 per martini it might seem expensive to some, but in the previous, noisy and unpleasant pub we had visited, without table service, with sports being played on televisions on every wall, some highly mediocre cocktails were on sale at £15 each, with no snacks, no top-ups, no charming staff and little in the way of quality. The extra few pounds feels absolutely worth it, particularly for such a prestigious and pleasant venue in central London, one of the world’s most expensive cities.

So go and treat yourself – you will be in good hands!