DUKES bar - review

The buzz: the bar in Mayfair’s boutique hotel, Dukes, where Ian Fleming ordered the martinis that supposedly inspired the “shaken not stirred” line.

The deal: a grand, grown-up bar that feels like an intimate sitting-room with velvet brocade armchairs and family portraits. Legendary Alessandro Palazzi wheels his shiny trolley of various potions right to your table to rustle up their world-renowned martinis, which are pricey at about £16 but one’s enough.

Good for: grown-up meetings with long-lost godfathers — this is a big-occasion kind of place, not a hipster destination.

Order: Fleming’s classic Vesper of course — No 3 gin, Potocki vodka, Angostura bitters and Dukes amber vermouth. Or tell them what you like: they’ll tweak it to suit.

By the way: the new Bond film, Skyfall, is out next month. Go to a martini masterclass to get into the spirit.