We recently told you about the relaunch of The House of Peroni at 41 Portland Place. It looks great, but in reality, is it worth the trip? Ariane Buteux visited on behalf of This Little Lady to find out…
On paper, the House of Peroni has all the ingredients of a culturally rich day or night out; promising fashion, film, food and drink all under one roof. Indeed the pedigree of the latter two – the Michelin-starred Costardi Brothers and award-winning Gerry Calabrese – alone are enough to tempt us through the door of this month-long pop up to try it on for size.
And first impressions don’t disappoint. The coolly-lit, well portioned interior of the vast townhouse tucked behind Oxford Street, a stone’s throw to the south of Regents Park, is certainly fitting for somewhere which grandly proclaims to be ‘celebrating the new wave of Italian culture’.
A huge central staircase spirals up through the heart of the building which is owned and operated by the Academy of Medical Sciences. Lofty reception rooms have been carefully decked out with low hanging rectangles of white cotton onto which short films are projected and reams of billowing fabric help connect the individual rooms together.
Clever, modernist light installations reflect through white cotton hangings, iPads detailing the whos, hows and whys of the conceptual space are artfully scattered and everywhere you turn there’s a relatively abstract, but curiously quirky, piece of art or sculpture including a man and woman made entirely from paperclips.
A cocktail made from (or ‘infused with’ as Peroni like to put it) beer isn’t my first port of call when it comes to a ‘go to’ drink but the six unusual choices at the House certainly have you pondering a move away from the more ‘traditional’ mixes you see on your regular cocktail menu. Indeed so expertly are these mixed that it was only after two or three and some serious flavour analysis that we detected the subtle notes of the beer.
A ground floor cinema room showing fashion shorts and a pared down restaurant area operated by the Costardi Brothers completes the venue. Dishes on the menu include a simple yet incredibly tasty tomato risotto which was on offer when we visited, with smaller bites such as a creamy Foie Gras crostini and cones of deep fried spaghetti a must try.
Only on offer to Londoners throughout the month of November, we’d recommend hot footing it down sooner rather than later to off-set the ever decreasing temperatures and sample some of the best collaborations this side of the Mediterranean this winter care of the fashionable team at Peroni HQ.
To find out more visit the House of Peroni website.
