The Gantry London Hotel Review: Where to Stay in East London

Ask most people where to stay in London and they will name the West End, somewhere near the theatres or Covent Garden, within reach of the usual sights. I understand why. Every part of the city has its own feel, though, and some of the better ones sit away from the obvious route.  East London is a good example. I spent a few days at The Gantry in Stratford recently, and it changed how I think about where a London trip can be based.

The Gantry London Hotel Overview: Curio Collection by Hilton in Stratford

The Gantry opened in November 2021 as part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, the group the company uses for hotels with a strong local identity. It has 291 rooms in an 18-storey building and sits in a part of Stratford that was largely rebuilt after the 2012 Olympics.

I’d call it an urban resort. There is a restaurant and sparkling bar on the first floor with a terrace, a coffee shop on the ground floor, a small gym in the basement and room service if you want to stay put. The lobby is laid out for meeting people, whether you’re catching up with friends or sitting down with colleagues before a busy day. It suits business travellers and leisure guests equally well, and you don’t feel the formality of a West End hotel. Most of the appeal comes from the surroundings, so that’s where I’ll start.

Location: Stratford, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and ABBA Voyage on the Doorstep

Getting to The Gantry is simple. The hotel is directly opposite Stratford International, a major hub with the DLR, the Underground and national rail all in one place. High-speed trains reach St Pancras in about six minutes, so it works well for the Eurostar, and London City Airport is roughly twenty minutes away by taxi. Stratford station is a short walk and adds the Central, Jubilee and Elizabeth lines and the Overground. It’s easy whether you’re flying in from abroad or travelling across the country.

Once there, you realise the area has a completely different personality from the rest of London. It is built around Westfield Stratford City, an enormous shopping centre and one of the largest in Europe with fashion, jewellery, bars, restaurants, a cinema and gaming. There is a casino in the complex too, so if you’ve come to shop, or fancy a flutter, everything is a few minutes from the hotel. Parking is the one catch, as the hotel has none of its own, but guests get a discounted rate at Westfield.

Past the mall is Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, a ten to fifteen minute walk. The park covers around 560 acres and grew up around the venues from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It has become a micro city of its own, with parkland, waterways, sports venues, studios and housing. The London Aquatics Centre, designed by Zaha Hadid, still has an Olympic-sized pool, and London Stadium, home to West Ham United, hosts football, major sporting events and big concerts throughout the year.

Then there is ABBA Voyage, which I’d recommend even if you only half like the band. I loved it. The show is held in the ABBA Arena, a venue built for this one production, with room for 3,000. The group appears as digital versions of themselves, similar to holograms, backed by a live ten-piece band.  Performance is so convincing that you could be watching a concert from the seventies or eighties with the four of them in the room. It’s a full on party vibe with 17-70s dressing up and belting out all of their songs as if they were doing Karaoke.

Hackney Wick lies in the other direction, a favourite with a younger crowd for its music, street art, restaurants and nightlife. I’ll admit the immediate surroundings of the hotel, with the station and the shopping centre, feel more commercial than a traditional neighbourhood, so I’d suggest walking a little to find the character. It’s there.

Architecture: The Gantry London’s Flatiron-Inspired Exterior in Stratford

From the street, The Gantry looks like one of the glass office towers that fill the area, tall, sleek and mirrored, and I could easily have walked past it taking it for a corporate headquarters. That is probably the intention. The architects, ICA Studio, worked with a narrow triangular site and shaped the building after New York’s Flatiron, a thin wedge that cuts through the streets around it. Ardmore, who built The Ned and Corinthia London, handled construction.

The facade has glass and slim vertical fins in a brassy tone. They are there for a reason. The site belonged to the Stratford Railway Works, which ran from 1840 until 1991, and the fins echo the lines of railway track. Depending on the light they shift from a warm metallic glow in the morning to a darker, more graphic look at dusk.  Revolving doors lead into the lobby, and the interior is bright from the first step.

Interior Design at The Gantry London: Lobby, Lounge, Bar and Terrace

I’d describe the interiors as industrial chic  with a bit of a steampunk vibe. Gears, copper and other industrial details appear as design features, and exposed concrete and metal finishes are softened by parquet floors, brass fittings and designer lamps. The furniture is colourful, with jewel-toned armchairs, mid-century sideboards and sofas in mustard and cobalt blue. The public spaces feature a mix of graffiti, sculpture, neon and posters that adds a good dose of East London attitude.

The lobby feels like a living room, with warm lighting and soft sofas, and people use it that way, sitting with laptops or meeting friends. Hermanos, a Colombian coffee shop, sits just beside it on the ground floor, and it’s handy whether you want a quick bite on the way to a meeting or a slow coffee in the morning before going out. Locals use it as much as guests, which keeps the entrance busy.

Upstairs on the first floor is a comfortable lounge with a long bar, good for cocktails and a chat, and the decor is lovely. It suits a date night, or a drink before you go out. The drink to order is the Book of Hedonism, a cocktail built on a blend of whiskies: pandan-infused Woodford Reserve, Bankhall British blended whisky, Bulleit rye and Hedonism, a bourbon barrel aged blended Scotch. Diplomático Reserva rum, caramel, vanilla, tonka bean and Angostura bitters bring sweetness and spice, and a finish of smoke makes it a drink to take slowly.

On a fine evening the outdoor terrace is the spot to aim for. It works as an al fresco bar, with views over the skyline, plenty of seating, concrete tables and a fire pit, and enough lounge space that you can stay for a drink or settle in for lunch.

Rooms and Suites at The Gantry London: Skyline Views in Stratford

The rooms continue the industrial theme, with the Flatiron and railway references still in the decor. There are dark wood floors, cobalt blue panelling, brass lamps and copper bedside tables, with crisp white bedding against it all. Many rooms have a velvet chaise longue at the end of the bed, and the old tin and leather trunks used as chests of drawers are a nice touch. Even the standard rooms are fairly generous in size so there’s plenty of room to spread out.

The floor-to-ceiling windows are what you’ll remember. Every room has a good outlook across the surrounding neighbourhoods, whether the skyline or the green of the park, and it looks especially good at night. The higher the floor the better. From the 16th and 17th floors you can see the London Eye, St Paul’s Cathedral and The Shard as well as the Olympic Park, so request a high floor when you book. Blackout curtains help with the early light, and the rooms are quiet considering the stations and shops outside.

Where to Eat at The Gantry London: Union Social, Coupe and Afternoon Tea in Stratford

Union Social, on the first floor, is the main restaurant, and it serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Large windows look out over Stratford International, and the kitchen is open, so you can watch the chefs working. The menu leans healthy and includes steaks, along with small and large plates, salads, pizzas and sandwiches.

The gambas make a good start: pan-seared garlic prawns with Peruvian sweet drop peppers, served with sourdough crostini. For a main, the lamb shank is a generous 15oz cut, slow-cooked until tender in a fragrant mint and rosemary jus, and it comes with buttery mashed potato and tenderstem broccoli. It is comfort food done properly, and the portion means you won’t leave hungry.

You could stay in for the weekend between Union Social and Hermanos and not feel short of choice, though the restaurants and bars around Stratford give you plenty of reason to go out.

Why Stay at The Gantry London: A Smart Alternative to Central London

I’d happily go back to The Gantry for a few days. You are outside the centre, but the underground and the major train links are right there, so the rest of London is never far away. For a weekend built around a match or a concert, a trip to the casino, a serious shopping list or an evening of ABBA, the location can’t be beaten. It is a real alternative to central London and has plenty to offer on its own.