The much-anticipated reopening of Sea Point’s landmark Winchester Boutique Hotel (previously the Winchester Mansions) has finally happened, and locals who were worried about what Newmark Hotels might do to the old favourite will breathe a sigh of relief.
The Cape Dutch Revival icon may have reinvented itself for the 21st Century but the one-time block of Edwardian flats is, we can report, as welcoming as ever. The courtyard, scene of so many laidback Sunday jazz afternoons, retains its cool and Harvey’s Bar, traditionally a place of meeting for promenaders for post-walk sundowners, has reopened its popular veranda to all-comers.
New to the property is Shoreditch on beach, foodie Rory Jossel’s full-service restaurant (which also services the courtyard). Shoreditch’s focus in on hearty, people-pleasing meals – dirty rib-eye steak, charred linefish, peri-peri chicken – and the look and feel is contemporary European with a strong Scandinavian orientation.
Inside the hotel and in the rooms is where most of the R90m has been spent; classic black and white Hollywood glamour has been used to accent an early 1920s feel (when it was first built). Suites and bathrooms continue the glamour ambience, an amalgam of local and international design elements. And under the skin it’s a wholly modern transformation; the successful marriage of past and future includes entirely new plumbing, contemporary electronics, updated safety protocols and behind the scenes upgrades to kitchens and work areas.
Other properties in the Newmark Hotels portfolio include The Drostdy Hotel in Graaff-Reinet, The Victoria & Albert Hotel at the V&A Waterfront and the recently reimagined Onyx Apartment Hotel on Cape Town’s Foreshore. Newmark, owned by Capetonian Neil Markovitz, also operates in the Timbavati (Motswari) and the Great Karoo (Mount Camdeboo Private Game Reserve), among others.
The Winchester Boutique Hotel is running an opening special of R2 960 per room, per night which includes dinner, bed & breakfast, valid until 8 December.
Visit: newmarkhotels.com
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