JK Place Paris hotel review: live la dolce vita in France courtesy of Italy's chicest hotel group

Times

14 hours ago

Since Ori Kafri opened the first JK Place in Florence in 2003 he's had an enviable reputation for creating super-stylish hideaways loaded with the holy grail of hospitality: a home-from-home ambiance. This place, one block from the Seine on the Left Bank, is no exception. Downstairs, a series of eclectic salons masterfully mix marble fireplaces, flea-market finds, elegant antiques and coffee-table tomes with tribal masks and contemporary sculptures. They have enviable lounging potential as well as charming views over the Italian restaurant in its covered courtyard. Upstairs, understated bedrooms are as light and luscious as a madeleine cake. There is also a dinky pool and a spa featuring skincare by a Nobel prizewinning chemist.
This article contains affiliate links, which may earn us revenue
Score 9/10The 29 rooms feel as discreet and debonair as the diplomats who frequented the building when it was still the Norwegian embassy. All are individually designed, and high ceilings and soaring sash windows ensure they feel airy, as does the clever use of space to create walk-through wardrobe areas between bedroom and bathroom. Expect panelled walls in putty-coloured whites, pared-back four-poster beds and mid-century furniture upholstered in plum and navy velvet. Geometric carpet designs, abstract art and impressively curated tactile lamps and ornaments add energy and a modern edge. Most rooms have only showers, but their jaunty black-and-white marble interiors and silver fittings are classy, as are the Dyson hair appliances. Complimentary soft drinks in the minibar are a nice touch too.
Score 8/10 The dining room is within the hotel's charming internal courtyard, protected from the elements by a glass roof, although there's an area for alfresco tables when the weather permits. Lit by lamps and candles, festooned with chunky pots planted with orchids and with a central table sagging with hardback books, it dances smoothly between French and Italian influences. Start your evening with a cocktail in the sexy bar before ordering unashamedly Italian fare, served by charismatic and knowledgeable Italian staff.
This is the fourth in the much-loved Casa Tua restaurant chain. Its flagship is in Miami Beach, so you won't be surprised that there are hamburgers and club sandwiches on the menu, but most diners stay true to those Italian roots, choosing classic dishes such as flavour-packed burrata drizzled with balsamic oil and dressed with sun-dried tomatoes and radicchio, as well as mains such as robust Milanese-style veal with smashed potatoes and rocket salad and moreish porcini risotto. The next morning, with light streaming through the glass roof, it becomes a delightful breakfast venue where you will be joined by chic French couples and their pocket pooches for pastries, pain perdu and crêpes and wickedly good Monte Cristo ham and mozzarella sandwiches.
• Book a table at the best restaurants in Paris• More great hotels in Paris
Score 9/10The subterranean spa has a petite heated swimming pool, a treat for such a small Paris hotel. There is also a sauna and steam room, as well as a decent gym. Its prize, though, are the treatments using Noble Panacea, a super-effective skincare brand developed by Fraser Stoddart, who won a Nobel prize and knighthood for his research and lifetime contribution to organic chemistry. The facials are expensive — as are the products — and be warned: you'll become addicted to how glowing and youthful they make your complexion.
Score 9/10You won't believe that you can be a stone's throw from the Seine and yet in such a quiet street. And while there are no Instagrammable views through these windows, the Musée d'Orsay is on your doorstep and the Louvre and Jardins des Tuileries are a pleasant stroll across the river. The buzzy neighbourhood restaurants, cafés and interesting independent boutiques of St-Germain-des-Prés are an easy 20-minute walk away. The Invalides and Solferino metro stations are nearby for forays further afield.
Price B&B doubles from £745Restaurant mains from £29Family-friendly YAccessible N
Susan d'Arcy was a guest of JK Place, Paris (jkplace.paris)
• What to do in Paris• Best affordable hotels in Paris under £170