La Darbia
Chianti, Italy
Sometimes it’s no bad thing to fall for the Tuscan clichés: cypress trees, sun-bleached stone farmhouses and sloping vineyards. Less than an hour’s drive south of Florence, La Darbia is set in an 11th-century hamlet. In restoring it, architect brothers Gian Carlo and Matteo Primatesta kept the materials strictly regional: pietra serena, the “stone of the Renaissance”, a firm favourite of Michelangelo; terracotta from Impruneta, the town that made the tiles adorning Florence’s cathedral dome; and travertine from centuries-old quarries in Rapolano.
“We weren’t looking for a famous destination for its own sake,” says Gian Carlo, “but for somewhere with a strong sense of place and a genuine identity.” The restaurant, led by chefs Matteo Monfrinotti and Sebastiano Pagliaro, honours the estate’s agricultural rhythms. Its olive oil comes from the on-site grove and 40 beehives produce lavender honey.
chianti.ladarbia.com
La Darbia’s restaurant
(Image: Giulia Maretti/Courtesy of La Darbia)
La Darbia’s restaurant
(Image: Giulia Maretti/Courtesy of La Darbia)
A room at La Darbia
(Image: Giulia Maretti/Courtesy of La Darbia)
Overlooking the Chianti hills
(Image: Giulia Maretti/Courtesy of La Darbia)
The Companion
Vienna
Berlin-based architect and interior designer Piotr Wisniewski was entrusted with the interior design of The Companion on Mariahilfer Strasse in the Austrian capital. He has revitalised the historic Wilhelminian building with contemporary clarity. Columns marked by time are flanked by black-lacquered metal beams; terrazzo floors reference the city’s material heritage; and shelves made from bubinga veneer surround the lobby fireplace. At restaurant Boca, chef Lauryn Therin, who sharpened her skills at London’s Ottolenghi, delights with communal Mediterranean dishes such as tuna skewers with pistachio, tahini and sumac.
companion-hotels.com
Lobby at The Companion
(Image: Courtesy of The Companion Vienna)
Perroquet
Fort Lauderdale
In Fort Lauderdale, where ever-larger resorts continue to reshape the “Venice of America”, Perroquet has taken a less brash route. Hidden on a leafy residential street between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, the 37-key hotel occupies a 1950s motel that has been turned into a polished retreat by Belgian architect Bernard Dubois.
The emphasis is on quiet craftsmanship versus the spectacle that often typifies south Florida – neighbouring Miami, in particular. Rather than erasing the building’s history, Dubois has embraced it. Its original low-rise footprint remains, while lush landscaping and carefully choreographed outdoor spaces unfold gradually from arrival to the pool.The guest rooms continue that narrative with custom furniture, Sferra linens, Byredo amenities and an art collection featuring works by Jean Cocteau and Jeff Koons.
Perroquet has opened at a time when Fort Lauderdale is broadening its cultural appeal. Las Olas Boulevard’s boutiques, the 14-hectare Bonnet House Museum and Gardens, NSU Art Museum and the beach are all within a 10-minute drive, making the hotel an appealing base from which to explore the city’s pizzazz.
perroquethotels.com
Dive in at Perroquet (Image: Courtesy of The Perroquet)
Casa JK Place
Rome
Walk into a room at the new Casa JK Place in Rome and it’s clear that this is far more expansive than the average hotel. Each unit is an apartment imagined on a grand scale, with five-star services and amenities. In the living rooms, gold-handled double doors seem to lead in every direction.Through one doorway, a black marble bathroom; through another, a sprawling Calacatta marble-topped kitchen, then bedrooms with walls painted Venetian red, ivy green and tobacco tones.
“Everyone dreams of a home that’s like a hotel and a hotel that’s as cosy as a home,” says Michele Bönan, the Florence-based architect of Casa JK Place and its European counterparts. The hospitality group has become synonymous with a lavish aesthetic: Florentine grandeur rendered in richly saturated tones, chrome and velvet, with antique statuary and vintage pieces akin to a collector’s house.
“Michele and I have developed a hospitality concept that’s become iconic over 25 years of working together,” says Ori Kafri, the owner of the JK Place group, which also has properties in Capri, Paris and a 41-key hotel opening next year in Milan. “Our clients are looking for privacy and flexibility,” says Kafri.
jkplaces.com
Casa JK Place’s Al 22 Bistrot (Image: Leonardo Magrelli)
Rome address book
Amanita
The Italian contemporary art gallery opened an outpost in New York before finally setting up a base in Rome.
spazioamanita.com
Cantina Pipistrello
This intimate wine-tasting space is a new extension of beloved natural-wine bar Fischio.
Piazzale degli Eroi, 7, 00136
Drink Kong
Rome’s hottest cocktail bar has a new location next door to Casa JK Place.
drinkkong.com
Le Tre Sarte
This Roman brand, which tailors clothes from dead-stock fabrics, launched a second boutique this year with matchy-matchy outfits for children and parents.
letresarte.com
Retrobottega
Rome’s torchbearer for innovative cuisine and great natural wine. Now, it has been reborn as a rooftop venue at the Jean Nouvel designed Rhinoceros hotel.
retro-bottega.com
Teatro della Cometa
A vintage theatre that has been relaunched by Fendi designer Maria Grazia Chiurias as a fresh home for culture.
teatrodellacometa.com
Rome City Guide
Explore the breathtaking beauty and illustrious cultural heritage of the Italian capital, while eschewing the tourist traps, with our in-the-know travel guide.
