Photo Essay: Incredible Hotel Dining Rooms

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Taking your taste buds out for dinner is a divine treat, but letting your sights feast on delectable dining rooms serves only to heighten the experience. Here are six incredible hotel dining rooms that are delicious enough to compete with the menus on offer.

1. Restaurant Le Meurice, Le Meurice Hotel, Paris, France

Opulence at Le Meurice - Image courtesy of Dorchester Collection

Luxury, glamour and a style of time gone by, restaurant Le Meurice, located at the Dorchester Le Meurice hotel, has one of the world’s grandest dining rooms dripping in gilding and bursting with chandeliers. With an eye on the Salon de la Paix at the palace of Versaille, Philippe Stark reinvented the restaurant dining room in 2007 and its art form has been impressing diners ever since. As you might expect from a restaurant occupying an enviable location on Rue de Rivoli, overlooking the Tuilleries Gardens, the restaurant feasts the sights but also offers exquisite taste with acclaimed chef, Yannick Alléno, crafting French Haute Cuisine befitting the restaurant’s three Michelin stars.

2. Vertigo and Moon Bar, Banyan Tree, Bangkok, Thailand

Dizzying sights dining at the Vertigo and Moon Bar - Image courtesy of Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts

Even the 61 floor ascent to reach the Banyan Tree’s al fresco grill and bar is not enough time to prepare yourself for the views that are guaranteed to drop your jaw as you step into the open air and become surrounded by the panorama of Bangkok’s skyline. A stylish and modern design complements the twinkling lights of the city while the fresh seafood and tender steaks complete the sense that you’re within reach of heaven. Arrive for sunset cocktails and try the signature Vertigo Appetizer plate, which includes seared scallops, foie gras, tuna tartar and lobster spring rolls.

3. Al Mahara, Burj Al Arab, Jumeriah Beach, Dubai

Subterranean feel at Al Mahara - Image courtesy of Jumeriah International LLC

Subterranean dining isn’t for everyone and Al Mahara offers an exotic compromise. Decked out with a gargantuan aquarium, it is easy to believe you have made a reservation in the midst of the Arabian Sea, particularly when the means of arriving at the restaurant include a trip in a submarine. The quirky and kitsch design of Al Mahara is seemingly in contradiction to the seriousness otherwise associated with the seven stars of Dubai’s iconic sail-shaped Burj Al Arab, considered the world’s most luxurious hotel. However, you only have to open the menu and browse through a few pages of caviar before realizing that while the surroundings are fun, the food is serious business and promises ‘simply the finest seafood in the world’.

4. Embers, Bushmans Kloof, Western Cape, South Africa

Dining room designed by nature - Image courtesy of Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Retreat

Sometimes the decorative skills that can be bestowed by even the finest designers can’t compete with the dramatic canvass of nature. Embers restaurant has been picturesquely placed within a sandstone amphitheatre naturally formed from ancient boulders. As if that were not dramatic enough, the restaurant is housed within a wildlife reserve and is surrounded by the Cederberg mountains. For extra ambiance, hundreds of candles and lanterns illuminate the restaurant and a fire burns brightly. Braai, African barbeque, is on the menu, which includes Karoo lamb and boerewors sausage. Salads and homemade breads complement the grills.

5. Suvarna Mahal, Rambagh Palace, Jaipur, India

Dine in the style of India's Maharaj - Image credit: gsz http://www.flickr.com/photos/37601286@N06/

Palatial dining comes as standard at Suvarna Mahal. Rambagh Palace is one of the Leading Hotels of the World located within Jaipur, the ‘pink city’, and was historically built for Maharaj Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur. Exquisite tapestries and lavish antiques adorn the palace, belying its regal past and Suvarna Mahal takes the space of what was once the ballroom. Today, the restaurant’s grandeur is no less present with gilding, high ceilings and Florentine frescos. Classical music and aged wines complement the ambiance, which effortlessly retains the sense of a bygone era, while the master chefs present exotic cuisine fit for the royal houses of India.

6. Bei, The Opposite House, Beijing, China

Modern fusion at Bei - Image courtesy of The Opposite House

A sparkly new feature on Beijing’s street map is the Opposite House hotel situated in the designer development of Sanlutin Village.  Contemporary, glass and gleaming, the exterior of The Opposite House couldn’t be more different to the ancient Beijing that holds the likes of the Forbidden Palace and the hotel’s modern feel continues within. Bei is as much a visual treat as it is a delight to the taste buds. A shocking pink and gloss black fusion is set off by a dropped light installation while the food fusion is distinctly north Asian with a modern take on Japanese, Korean and North Chinese dishes.

Have you been in any spectacular hotel dining rooms you’d like to share? Let me know in the comments below.

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