Courthouse Hotel, Shoreditch, London review
The Courthouse Hotel, in East London’s trendy Shoreditch area, has a unique provenance within an imposing Edwardian Baroque exterior.
This Grade II-listed building was the former Old Street Magistrates’ Court from 1903 until 1996. You can still see the signs on the exterior wall. After that, it became a police station until 2008 and finally became a five-star hotel, looking very magisterial after a bumper £40 million transformation. Imagine the stories if those walls could talk.
The Courthouse Hotel has maintained some original features such as wood panelling, mosaic floors and stained-glass windows and an impressive lobby and staircase where a bronze beefeater guard looks on.
The reception is tucked away in a room to the left, and I must have looked somewhat lost because the concierge came to the rescue and showed me the way. Nevertheless, once found, the service was impeccable, and I made my way to the room.
The Courthouse Hotel lobby
Once settled, I explored. It was quite a buzz to be sitting in the very cell that East End gangsters, the Kray twins, were banged up in during the 1960s. There are five cells still with thick jailhouse doors. They are a little more luxurious now with brown leather banquettes, perfect as private drinking boltholes. They can be reached via the Jailhouse restaurant, originally Courthouse number 1.
Jail room where the Kray twins were incacerated.
It’s all a little intriguing, and plenty of surprises too. There’s a rooftop bar, a subterranean bowling alley, a plush cinema and a luxurious spa and pool in the basement. Boredom is not an issue here.
Who for
The Courthouse is very spacious, from its lobby, restaurants and bedrooms. Anyone passing through, especially business travellers wanting to be close to the city’s banks in Shoreditch, would enjoy a comfortable night or two at this hotel.
Accommodation
There are 128 rooms comprising 86 guest rooms and 42 suites located on the top two floors. Mine was room 304 a Deluxe Studio Suite called the Hoxton Suite. with a settee area with a TV, a bedroom with a king-size bed and another TV, and a stylish bathroom with yet another TV.
The room’s hues are sedate, perhaps a tad generic in a masculine way, yet spruced up with the odd artwork or furnishing adding colour. I appreciated the work desk with its sockets for charging in every format.
There are all the mod cons you could wish for and a bed so comfortable, a good night’s sleep is a given.
Food & Drink
The Courthouse Hotel has three dining options. The first is on the ground floor – Jailhouse bar and restaurant, originally courtroom 1 is a comfortable and easy eating offering that leads to the jail cells where you can enjoy your favourite tipple. Sipping a tipple by the bar is a bit disconcerting as Mona Lisa in handcuffs looks.
The Judge & Jury is a rather beautiful room located in the old courtroom itself, with wood panelling and a glass roof. This is where a reasonable buffet breakfast is served.
One of the highlights is the rooftop bar on the fifth floor, but as the weather was inclement that day – thats London for you – it was closed.
Rooftop terrace at Courthouse Hotel, Shoreditch
Room service is available too.
Facilities
There are three head-turning facilities on offer at The Courthouse Hotel: a single lane bowling alley, a full size cinema and an incredible spa and pool in the basement where you can chill out in a 33-foot long Jacuzzi or heat up in a dry-hot sauna room and a steam sauna room.
How much
Rooms start at £196 per night, which is great value when compared to other hotels in London.
What’s nearby
The Courthouse Hotel is a couple of minutes’ walk from Old Street tube station, a 16-minute drive from London City Airport and 13 minutes on foot from Old Spitalfields Market and the iconic Brick Lane.
VERDICT: The Courthouse Hotel has an impressive and beautiful exterior in the heart of the city. Its history is intriguing, rooms are spacious, and for those looking for R&R, the spa is a sensational space. Above all, service is right on point.
Courthouse Hotel Shoreditch, 335-337 Old Street London EC1V 9LL
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