Brooklands Bar

Brooklands Bar runs along the east side of the eighth floor of The Peninsula London, above Hyde Park Corner. It shares the floor with Claude Bosi's two-Michelin-star restaurant, and it takes the same subject: the Surrey racetrack where British motorsport and aviation began. The ceiling is a red and metallic lattice drawn from a 1930s twin-engine bomber, the chandelier is built from turbine blades, and the petal-shaped bar of black marble carries fascias taken from the bodywork of a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost.

Seating is cognac leather banquettes, velvet armchairs and Pierre Jeanneret chairs, set against floor-to-ceiling glass. The view takes in Wellington Arch, Green Park and Buckingham Palace, and after dark the City skyline and the Eye. The interiors are by Archer Humphryes Architects, the practice behind Chiltern Firehouse. The cocktail list follows the racing theme, with vintage cars and speed-record machines giving drinks their names.

The bar takes private cocktail parties with canapés for up to 60 guests, and pre- and post-dinner drinks for parties dining next door. At the far end of the bar sits the Napier Railton, a private room clad in riveted aluminium after the 1933 car that still holds the Brooklands lap record, which receives up to 16. Hire is handled by the Brooklands events team, and the house makes the introduction.