Banke Hotel and Josefin Restaurant, Paris

The hotel for our week in Paris was Banke Hotel, located on Rue Lafayette, a quick walk from Les Grand Magasins - Galleries Lafayette and Printemps. It was also a short walk from the Opera Garnier, Le Louvre and many other sights.

Situated in a former bank headquarters, Hotel Banke is housed in an early 20thcentury building designed by architects Paul Friesse and Cassien Bernard. The building was refurbished to become the hotel in 2009. The stately facade dominates the corner of Rue Lafayette and Rue Pillet Will with a style that revives the charms of Paris's Belle Epoque.

The hotel makes a statement with it's spectacular mosaic floored lobby crowned with a glass cupola. The lobby retains many of the original bank features like the teller counters and safe deposit boxes. The colours are predominantly deep red and gold, lots of gold. A decor that blends original architectural elements with contemporary design bringing a 21st century touch to a Hausmann style building.

We were quite fortunate that we were able to try two different room types during our stay. Our first room was a Superior room, mid tone woods, rich burgundys and a velvet head board with lots of designer touches. Our second room was an Executive room which had the same colour choices, a bit more room, and the main feature in this room was a leather headboard, leather woven rug and leather sofa. Stencil furniture prints were painted on the walls giving a whimsical touch to the decor. Both rooms had well sized marble bathrooms with good sized tubs and seperate toilet which for some reason made Vikki happy. WHile not the largest room we have stayed in they were very comfortable and had plenty of storage space with great wardrobes and sufficient drawer space.

During our stay at Banke Hotel, we decided to try the hotel’s restaurant, Josefin.

The stunning glass domed lobby is home to the reception desk, restaurant and bar. On one side of the spectacular mosaic tiled floor is the restaurant and the bar is opposite. 

Glamourous gold leather banquettes, dark wood and leather chairs, gold metal and crystal chandeliers with dramatic red and black highlights were the feature of both the restaurant and bar. Along the old teller counters were whimsical little displays, plants and flowers. 

 Our amuse of salmon:

Beautiful freshly baked breads served with our favourite butter, Beurre d’Isigny:

Unusually for us we both opted for seafood entrees. I ordered the tuna Tataki:

Vikki ordered the carpaccio of lobster with aged balsamic and Spanish extra virgin olive oil:

For main Vikki had a panfried duck breast with wok fried vegetables. Which she said was quite light even though it was duck:

I love seafood so I had scallops with a shellfish foam and mushrooms:

We skipped dessert as we had a big lunch.

Banke Hotel is a great spot to drop your bags and stay in Paris, and is easy to walk to most places. Metro stations are a short walk in several directions. We walked from Banke Hotel to Le Tour Eiffel and Sacre Coeur. Both are big walks but enjoyable and you get to see a bit more of the real Paris.

Unfortunately we forgot to take photos of Hotel Banke so have "borrowed" some from their website.