With a separate street entrance, The Kitchen at Holmes is a good spot to know about even if you aren’t staying at the hotel. The look is all grey tub chairs, marble-topped tables, portable brass carriage lights, grey walls and parquet flooring. Illustrations line the walls in heavy set black frames next to trendy industrial-style lights. It shares the space with the bar, which was quite lively on the Monday night that I arrived, and as such the atmosphere filters through (to a quieter restaurant). Whimsical cocktails include Sherlock’s Pipe served in a teapot as a nod to Ms Hudson’s teatime ritual.

The casual, all-day dining menu is a journey to navigate; starters have a raw, fried and smoked section. "Raw" might feature yellowtail tiradito, red prawn carpaccio and Scottish Black Angus beef carpaccio. "Fried" may include chipirones, ham croquettes and courgettes. For "Smoked" it could be eel, wild boar salami and Crottin cheese. Choose a few of these to share before moving onto the stir fry, grill, fish or soup/salad courses. It's a real mix of cuisine – with heavy Japanese, Italian and Spanish influences. And steaks, but no burgers.

Breakfast is a continental buffet with the usual spread of fresh fruit, cold cuts and pastries (I even spotted a Bakewell tart-like treat), cereals and yogurt and you can order pancakes, french toast, eggs any way and full English.