The Library bar at NoMad

Cultured cocktails

Becoming a classic normally takes time, but Manhattan's new, Art Deco-themed NoMad hotel hit instant legend status in the bar stakes with the Library - a real, split-level Atonement-style library, in a room off the main bar. Think dark woods, low lights, silk sofas and a 200-year-old French spiral staircase - along with staff in bespoke suits serving cool beers and classic cocktails.
The clincher: The 3,500 books - both new and used - were hand-picked to evoke "the private reading salon of an eccentric, well-travelled millionaire".

New Virgin Upper Class service to JFK

The new hard left

Airlines need to know when to sweat the small stuff and when to back off and let a man enjoy the ride. Team Branson always manages to walk the perfect service line between dutiful and breezy, and its sharper Upper Class from London to JFK is little different. New wider sleep seats (now with an 87ins bed surface), an improved entertainment bay (with a 12.1ins touchscreen compatible with your own tablet) and some fancy architectural lighting that conveys just the right amount of sci-fi, mean turning left has never felt so vital.
The clincher: A newly designed upper bar (above right) so sleek (and well stocked) you'll forget all about finishing that presentation.

Coastal Cambodia

The new Maldives
"Thailand meets the Maldives" may seem like an impossible dream, but it's one that Cambodia, with its silky beaches and island-specked share of the Gulf of Thailand, is now living. Boutique accommodation, from sumptuous colonial villas to jungle-deep eco-resorts, gravitates around pretty seaside Kep, and this year's opening of Song Saa, a magnificent 27-villa resort spread across two offshore islands, ramped up the super-luxe factor. The clincher: The unforgettable local dish Kep crab, plucked from the water before your eyes, cooked with fragrant Kampot pepper.

songsaa.com

Destiny

The new Halo
If you're a fan of video games, you're a fan of Halo. Over the last decade the developer, Bungie, has worked solely on the interstellar epic, but in 2013 it's preparing to release a new title, Destiny. Detail is scant, but this much we know: it's a sci-fi, Call-Of-Duty-esque run-and-gun, out first on Xbox 360, and later PS4.
The clincher: Bungie intends it as a tent-pole franchise - three sequels will follow, with the last in 2019.
The first instalment of Destiny is expected in the autumn.

Nicholas Kirkwood shoes

Stepping up

If your girlfriend has a penchant for statement shoes (we're talking heels made of shaved stingray, laser-cut leather and cobra scales), you'll no doubt be familiar with Nicholas Kirkwood's designs. And now you can get a piece of the action, as the shoe designer dips his toe into menswear with the launch of his debut men's shoe line. Expect classic designs with eccentric detailing.
The clincher: Nicholas Kirkwood knows what he's doing - he used to lodge with Isabella Blow and work for Philip Treacy.
Nicholas Kirkwood's men's collection launched at London Collections: Men in January 2013. nicholaskirkwood.com

the plasses

wath about this???

.Lima

The South American revolution
The Peruvian cuisine groundswell that Ceviche began early in 2012, Lima in Fitzrovia has perfected with chef patron Virgilio Martinez (ex-Astrid y Gaston) delivering authentic dishes (sweet, sharp, hot) with a modern twist that look as good as they taste.
The clincher: If you need an endorsement (other than from GQ) that Peruvian is where it's at, El Bulli's Ferran Adria agrees with us.
Lima, 31 Rathbone Place, London W1. 020-3002 2640, limalondon.com

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الاثنين، 18 نوفمبر 2013