The Clubhouse Press Release

Press Release - Winter 2009/10

Escapism

Now in its sixth winter season, France's first ever mountain boutique hotel and members' bar launches Alpine Escapes. The Clubhouse offers the very best ways to escape the pressures of the city. Push new boundaries and challenge yourself to something new and invigorating, or ease away the strain and let your mind meander through the mountains, just taking in the view.

The Clubhouse is whatever you want it to be. We can organise a full week, action-all-the-way schedule, sensibly balanced with the best valley food, finest wines and classic cocktails. Or let you ease yourself out of your own grueling schedule with suggestions, peace and pampering.

Concierge
Creating inside track itineraries from valley veterans and Chamonix regulars is our speciality. In our sixth year we pride ourselves in working with the very best guides, instructors and professionals to create a concierge service second to none. So if you are new to Chamonix let us do the logistical leg-work before you get here, and all you need to do is the mountain-side leg work when you arrive. We’ll collect you from the airport, have your lift-pass ready and provide a friendly team of staff to look after you during your stay.

Whether it’s off-piste adventure, airborne over Italy, Bond-style glamour, back-country boarding, or trying something completely new such as cross-country skiing, ice-climbing or a moonlit Valle Blanche descent, we have a variety of itineraries for all-round adventure. Plus off course, excellent après-ski treatment menus for the mind and body and of course our great food and world famous bartenders to cater for your every whim.

This means that once you are off the plane, we take the strain – allowing three days to a week of pure unadulterated escapism!

Food and drink
For winter we have devised a new menu selection like no other in Chamonix combining modern European favourites with bold Asian flavours. A sample menu can be found online here.

Choose from Wednesday’s ‘Big Bowl’ of hot-pot favourites, Thursday’s infamous Snow BBQ and the best Sunday roast in the valley. Fact! On Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays you could choose from our terrifically great value à la carte menu (25/30€- Monday & Tuesday with a more extravagant menu on Friday and Saturday 30/35€ ) and be eating wild mushroom veloute with garlic croutons or seared yellow fin tuna tataki with ginger, soy & wasabi for starters. Perhaps you might follow this with parmesan risotto and smoked haddock, herbs and a soft poached egg or daube of Charolais beef on a horseradish mash. And if that’s not enough for you then finish off with a chocolate brioche & butter pudding for dessert or a Mirabelle plum and almond tart with Calvados custard. After coffee you’ll struggle to find a better selection of fine and rare Scotch, bourbon and Armagnac.

For press enquiries, please contact
Sandie Tozer
+33 (0) 4 50 90 96 56
sandie@clubhouse.fr
www.clubhouse.fr

NOTES TO EDITORS

Centrally located in a traditional 1920’s stone built Savoyard mansion at the heart of French Alpine ski town, Chamonix, The Clubhouse is an all year holiday destination to rival anything found in a capital city or adventure resort anywhere in the world.

All contemporary designed suites and team Bunkhouse rooms boast large his-and-hers, teak-decked, power showers, Italian Frette linen and fat duvets. The Myla suite comes with a 2.7m wide bed, sex toys in the mini-bars and a panoramic view of Mont Blanc. The private galleried den on the first floor has stunning mountain views of the massif. Downstairs, members enjoy proper après-ski with a state-of-the-art sound system in The Clubhouse bar and dining room, offering delicious meals and the best cocktails in Europe.

The Clubhouse was opened in Dec 2004 by Jonathan Downey, owner of Soho's private members' clubs Milk & Honey (Time Out Bar of the Year 2004 and The Best Place in Britain for a Drink, The Observer), The East Room – New World Wine Room, Roof Garden, Dining Room and Terrace, and The Player.

The House
The Clubhouse is a 'classical-contemporary' boutique hotel that sits inside a magnificent Art Deco mansion. Built in 1927 in high Alpine territory, the building has undergone a major €1M refurbishment to create 7 ultra-modern rooms with accommodation for up to 20 guests, The Clubhouse Bar, dining room and treatment suite. Original features include ceramic tile mosaics, wood panelling and galleried entrance hall. The bar area features pressed tin panels imported from New York with a mezzanine den and outdoor wood-decked bar terrace seating up to 30 guests for après-ski.

The Rooms
The Clubhouse sleeps up to 20 people in a range of rooms at a variety of prices starting from €77 pp per night half board for a bunk room and €135 pp per night half board for The Myla Suite. Rather than go for the usual options of either cheap and cheerful or exclusive and dull, all of our guests get great rooms at good prices; from cosy sharing to spacious luxury. All rooms feature the best in contemporary design and have stunning views of the mighty Mont Blanc Massif and come with crisp Frette linen, teak-decked 'rainforest' showers; mini-bars stocked with Myla sex toys and boys toys in the form of DVDs and plasma screens. Members of The Clubhouse enjoy heavily subsidised room rates.

The Clubhouse Bar
The Clubhouse Bar is a sister bar to Milk & Honey in New York and London and has been designed to recreate the warmth and intimacy of The Red Room at Milk & Honey London. Using 'The Milk & Honey Method', drinks at The Clubhouse Bar will be made with only the best ingredients and staffed by some of Europe's most highly trained bartenders and secondees. The bar is open every day throughout the season from midday to 1am and a sample drinks list can be found online at clubhouse.fr.

The Membership
Members of Milk & Honey, The East Room and The Player automatically get International Membership of The Clubhouse. For other guests who wish to visit The Clubhouse, there are three types of membership and details of these can be found online at clubhouse.fr.

The reviews
“The hottest boutique hotel in the Alps.” The Times
“The Clubhouse is part bond lair, part world-class cocktail bar, part ski-hub.” The Observer
“The restaurant is the place to dine.” Elle