Sunstreet Hotel

I wanted to love this hotel, but despite its charming interior and location in buzzing Shoreditch, the service and lack of amenities made me question its 5-star rating. It felt much more like a moderately dysfunctional 4-star hotel. Let’s start with the positives. The hotel is relatively new and boasts modern facilities in space filled with old-world charm. The rooms and common areas are elegant with a library chic vibe. We stayed in a spacious loft room with a very comfortable king bed, dressing area, and large bathroom featuring a separate tub and rainfall shower. Water pressure was great, and the heated bidet was a nice touch. The hotel features a small bar, restaurant, rooftop courtyard, and four unique, richly colored common rooms with ample, comfortable seating. (The rooftop courtyard is ideal for a quick smoke, but does not offer any spectacular views or other aesthetics to draw you out.) Breakfast was excellent. The servers were pleasant and attentive; the food, tasty and fresh. Bar service was awkward at times, however the bartenders kindly made us affogato, even though it wasn’t on the menu. Now for the negatives. The TV service was out, and there was ongoing construction in and outside the hotel, which would have been nice to know in advance, especially for a 5-star establishment. Most hotels would have offered some form of service recovery, such as including breakfast free of charge. Ironically, the hotel promised complimentary first-round drinks, as part of our stay, but were double charged instead. Upon arrival, our room wasn't suitably clean; I found a lot of hair and a press-on nail and some surfaces were very dusty. Daily cleaning and turndown service was inconsistent, not that it was entirely skipped, but certain details were missed. The room's layout was impractical. There was only a small desk, entirely taken up by a coffee machine and phone (those went on the floor) and a wardrobe with limited storage. The small bathroom vanity, devoid of ledges or shelves, left little room for toiletries, and the blow dryer had to be used in poorly lit areas outside the bathroom. It's simply confounding, given how much floor and wall space is available in the room. My kingdom for a hook! Service was hit or miss. Some bar staff were overly casual, acting more as if they worked in a pub, and the front desk seemed uninterested or untrained. There was no doorman or valet, which is a basic expectation for a 5-star hotel. There was some confusion about whether our room was clean upon check-in, and when I inquired about the construction and other issues, the staff were indifferent. Our biggest frustration was at checkout. We asked to store our luggage but were told to leave it unsecured in a corner with no receipts. The front desk didn’t inform us that the restaurant opened later on weekends, which left us scrambling for coffee in the rain with our luggage. The attendant didn’t even hold the door for us as we struggled out. This latest incident led me to rate the hotel 3 stars instead of 4. Lastly, the hotel lacks 5-star amenities like a concierge, spa, pool, or airport transfer services. Other hotels we stayed at in Europe, including 4-star ones, offered much more and better service. Unfortunately, I can't recommend this hotel until there are significant improvements to their service and more amenities.