Shopped till you dropped on King’s Road? Got sore feet after stomping around the museums? Look no further for refreshment and nurturing than the Kensington Hotel’s Aubrey Bar.

The Venue
The bar is an anthem of slate floors, wood panelled walls and breathtaking chandeliers. There are distressed mirrors behind the bar, a deep blue glass ceiling and lots of lovely squashy leather chairs. It's a perfect place to take the weight off and relax with a cocktail. Or two.

The Atmosphere
Early evening, the bar is quiet, but it soon fills up with bright young things whose conversation sparkles along with the chandeliers. If it gets a little too sparkly for your taste, retire to one of the interconnected lounge areas. Decorated eclectically, these are showcases for the pieces the three Doyle sisters — who founded the Doyle Collection hotel group — have collected on their travels. As such they feel intimate and cosy, like someone’s living room or a very select private club.

The Food
With an excellent restaurant within staggering distance, the Aubrey Bar doesn’t go too mad over bar food, but if you’ve missed last sitting in the former, the latter will happily provide nibbles — including olives, nuts and popcorn — up to 10.30pm. More substantial are vine leaves, with couscous rather than rice, homemade spring rolls, focaccia bread with parmesan chunks and mini Thai fishcakes. None cost more than £4, and you may choose three for £8 or six for £15.

The Drink
As you’d expect, the Aubrey does a very good line in cocktails, with the same attention to detail that can be seen in the excellent restaurant. While the classics — including a cosmopolitan, mojito and a mai tai made with 15-year-old rum (£9.50) — are much in evidence, the Aubrey’s mix-meisters are not afraid to experiment. It’s probably a fair bet that you’ve never had a teabag in a cocktail before. This recent innovation - the Aubrey has been using the Teaforté bags for around a year - is specially designed to infuse in cold liquid, which ordinary teabags don’t. So to give extra depth to a beautifully judged Queens Gate Garden, made with flowery Hendricks gin, St Germain elderflower liqueur and topped up with tonic, is Teaforté lemongrass mint. Equally good is the Bourbon County, which is made with Woodford Reserve bourbon, apricot jam, peach bitters, lime juice and the Teaforté lavender citrus.

If you pitch up at Aubrey before 7pm, Aubrey’s signature and classic cocktails are just £6. A bargain in a glass, if you failed to find one in Knightsbridge.

The bar also offers an extensive range of wines by the glass, starting with a Chilean unoaked Errazuriz chardonnay at £5 and a merlot-cabernet red version, a prosecco (£7) or a Moet at £10.50, plus a full list by the bottle. Premium spirits are also found in abundance and with such largesse, it’s hard to know where to start. Or where to stop.

The Last Word
Whether you’re dining or just imbibing, allow yourself to be treated by this most relaxed of hotel bars. It will be just your cup of tea.

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