Studio Moren has transformed a Grade II listed City of London landmark into a new lifestyle hotel and restaurant destination.
Hospitality design specialist Studio Moren has recently completed work on lifestyle hotel Hyde London City and its destination F&B offerings, Leydi and Black Lacquer, delivered for OB Capital and global hospitality operator Ennismore.
Set within the historic City of London, at 15 Old Bailey, the Grade II listed property was built in 1874. Studio Moren’s design concept pays homage to the building’s rich history, spanning generations and set within one of the most storied neighbourhoods of the capital. Studio Moren acted as specialist architects and interior designers on the project, appointed for their creativity and depth of experience in the hospitality industry.
The hotel features three destinations within one building, delivered together as a coherent collective but all with their own distinct design concept reflecting the spirit of discovery that is intrinsic to the global Hyde brand experience.
111 guestrooms blend Hyde’s trademark bohemian chic with Victorian urban sophistication. At ground level, destination restaurant Leydi offers celebratory Turkish food by renowned chef Selin Kiazim, to be enjoyed within a convivial space with design references capturing the spirit of Istanbul. Subterranean cocktail bar, Black Lacquer, is inspired in concept and name by vinyl records. Its refined Japanese aesthetic is informed by Tokyo’s music cultural scene with its famous ‘listening bars’.
For those staying the night, guestrooms alternate between deep green and blue colour schemes, staying true to a Victorian palette. The natural world inspired soft contours, rich colours across velvet furnishings, and polished timber furniture. Maximalist wallpapers by Timorous Beasties celebrate aspects of 19th Century Britain, taking inspiration from the drama of nature as discovered by explorers and botanists, and the mesmerising patterns seen through a kaleidoscope – a fascination prevalent during the turn of the Victorian era. Within the hotel’s suite, wallpaper from House of Hackney features a heady design of lush palm leaves.
In typical fashion for Studio Moren, attention to detail and the team’s experience in luxury design elevates the guest experience throughout. Bespoke furniture features unusual forms and elegant dovetail joinery techniques, and an illuminated sleeping face playfully takes the place of traditional ‘Do Not Disturb’ signs.
At ground floor level, creative use of space planning provides a distinct change of feel as hotel guests move from the lobby to the restaurant beyond. The bar, a statement piece with its bespoke marble inlay, cleverly separates the two spaces and creates a welcoming spot to linger.
Leydi was conceived as a unique restaurant destination independent of the hotel, with its own street entrance. Informed by Istanbul architecture, Leydi features dramatic design flourishes including arched passages, pendant lighting and extensive planting. In response to Ennismore’s brief to create an experience that celebrates food and encourages guest and kitchen connection, the open kitchen adds a sense of theatre and activates the space. The walls give warmth with gradient texture, a bespoke blush plaster finish, and an eclectic artwork collection. Further texture is achieved through rattan features across banquette seating, the wine display, and wait stations. Bespoke lighting includes a statement chandelier – a modern take on a traditional chandelier as a nod to the hotel’s history.
Below ground, Black Lacquer celebrates Japanese reverence for craftsmanship and simplicity. Its moody and intimate feel is achieved through dark upholstery and midnight blue wall finishes. The refined space allows the focus to be on the considered design details like polished plaster walls with grooves inspired by the music patterns on vinyl records. The single level bar enhances the connection between mixologist and guest, providing a sense of theatre to the art of cocktail making. The space includes three alcoves for intimate conversations, lit only by candlelight. Bespoke design is in abundance, from the curvilinear burnt orange bar stools to the high-level shelving that houses the vinyl record collection, wrapping the perimeter of the room. A faux pantry shields the entrance to the kitchen behind the bar, where staff prepare Japanese-inspired snacks and sliders.
Externally, the property remains characterised by its grandeur and opulence, with ornate details such as mansard roofs, elaborate mouldings, and decorative columns. Starting life as a hotel – said to be the first in London to feature electric lighting, the building was most recently used as offices. It was a 1980s internal reconstruction that diluted the property’s Victorian charm. The challenge for Studio Moren was to reinstate elements of historic design within its interiors, adapting to the needs and taste of the contemporary guest. The team reintroduced architectural details of the Victorian era such as cornicing, high skirtings and timber flooring to work cohesively with new, bespoke joinery pieces.
Another key architectural challenge for the team was to harmoniously build an extension over an existing lightwell at the rear of the building, paying homage to the original building in appearance, and enabling the addition of 21 guestrooms to the property’s key-count.
The team drew upon its experience across previous high-profile projects, including the soon-to-open Park Hyatt London River Thames; 1 Hotel Mayfair, the first Marriott Westin in the UK; the refurbishment of Grade II listed London Marriott Hotel County Hall, and projects further afield including Rome’s Hyatt Regency and luxury resort properties in Portugal and beyond.
As part of the global Ennismore portfolio which includes Mondrian, Delano, The Hoxton and SLS brands, Hyde London City is the hotelier’s debut British property within the Hyde collection.
www.studiomoren.co.uk | IG: @studio_moren
