Miss Clara by Nobis has been on my hotel wish list since opening in 2014 and finally the dream became a reality when we stayed for a few nights on our recent visit to Stockholm.
Miss Clara is a stunning design hotel housed in a 1910 Art Nouveau building on a corner of Sveavagen boulevard in Stockholm’s central Norrmalm district. It’s a hotel with an interesting history, as it was the private Ateneum girls’ school for over 40 years. In fact, the school’s popular headmistress Clara Stromberg was the inspiration behind the hotel’s name.
Part of the renowned Nobis Hospitality Group, Miss Clara is the more accessible younger sister of Stockholm’s luxurious flagship Nobis Hotel, but with the same high end touches.
Design
Swedish architect Gert Wingardh was entrusted to renovate the building, preserving many of its original features, including its arched windows and the sweeping main staircase where you can imagine unruly schoolgirls scrambling down at the sound of the bell. These institutional interiors are elevated with striking contemporary photography, including Max Modén’s ethereal ballerina series.
Arrival
On arrival, we were warmly welcomed by the lovely, chatty staff who very kindly upgraded us to a beautiful Deluxe Room on the first floor. Having spent the previous night at the idyllic, peaceful Hotel J – another Nobis hotel with a fabulous waterfront restaurant – I did wonder if our room might be noisy in comparison, but for such a busy area there was no disturbance at all.
The Room
Our room was very spacious and bright with high ceilings and lots of natural daylight coming in from the arched windows. Tasteful and restrained in style, all rooms at Miss Clara have a simple palette of white, brown, grey and black, with well-chosen Swedish furniture, touches of natural tanned leather and dark parquet floors. There are also home comforts like a large flatscreen TV, a window seat with storage space underneath and a brown suede chaise-longue for curling up on.
We found the king-size bed extremely comfortable and plush, with a bent wood headboard by Swedish company Gemla, a laptop table for eating or working on and a gorgeous herringbone wool throw. A quirky touch is the single chair back at the bottom of the bed, of which we imagined a number of different uses.
The white tile and limestone bathroom was truly impressive with a walk-in rainfall shower, enormous bathtub, thick cotton towels and bathrobe and slippers. An extra perk for guests is the holy grail of bathroom amenities – a full set of beautifully-scented Byredo Bal d’Afrique products. For that extra spa touch, you can also take advantage of Miss Clara’s 24-hour gym and dry sauna.
Dinner at Pizzeria Giro
For dinner, stay close to home and grab a table at the hotel’s two destination restaurants. Miss Clara’s Restaurant, overseen by Executive Chef Daniel Guest, has a modern bistro menu and is hip and seductive with dark corners lit with glowing pendant lamps, plus an exclusive terrace for watching the world go by.
Meanwhile next door, Pizzeria Giro is an exciting collaboration between Nobis Hospitality Group and the world-renowned L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele. This relaxed, walk-in only pizzeria has a fun vibe and its Neapolitan pizza is definitely the real deal.
We stopped by for dinner and found the menu surprisingly extensive, from the classic Marinara to the luxurious Tartufo, as well as calzone and pizza bianca. We ordered a typical Margherita and a Diavola topped with spicy salamella toscana – both were exemplary with springy, blistered dough, lots of juicy organic tomato sauce, creamy fior di latte, parmesan DOP 24 month and organic extra-virgin olive oil.
On Sunday morning, we treated ourselves to breakfast in Miss Clara’s Restaurant (at a reduced rate for residents) and it was truly spectacular.
Breakfast
From a generous buffet we enjoyed the most creamy scrambled eggs and crispy bacon, smoked salmon, local cured meats and cheeses, home-baked rolls, mini pastries and kanelbullar, cupcakes, chia pudding shots and yoghurt. We also loved the make-your-own waffles with a choice of sauces and the tea bar with plenty of high-quality loose-leaf blends.
Location
If you need any more persuading that Miss Clara is the hotel for you, I can tell you that it’s a two minute walk from Hotorget metro and within easy reach of shopping gems such as Acne Archive and the upscale Nordiska Kompaniet department store. You can also eat well in this neighbourhood with authentic Mexican tacos at La Neta, exquisite patisserie at Art Bakery and the fabulous Urban Deli just a few doors up.
Miss Clara Hotel is the perfect city bolthole with lots of style, atmosphere, personality and home comforts. I’ve definitely fallen in love with Stockholm and am dying to return and experience the iconic Nobis Hotel or this summer’s new opening, Blique by Nobis.
For more information and booking, visit: www.missclarahotel.com
All photos by Chérie City
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