Top London hotel bans sale of alcohol

Bermondsey Square Hotel is thought to have become London’s first hotel to ban the sale of alcohol “in accordance with Sharia law”.

London’s Bermondsey Square Hotel has banned the sale of alcohol in what reports claim is a bid to adhere to Sharia law

The four star boutique venue was recently acquired by a Middle Eastern businessman who on Tuesday implemented a policy forbidding the sale of alcohol and pork, reports the Daily Mail.

Patrons will now only be permitted to buy soft drinks, and food which has been made using alcohol, such as beer-battered cod and “drunken” cherries, have been pulled from the menu.

A statement on the £220 a night hotel’s website states: “We no longer sell alcoholic beverages” and instead asks prospective customers to look at the hotel’s “comprehensive selection of soft drinks”.

However, a spokesperson for the hotel’s management company Bespoke Hotels said that guests who have booked a reservation before the implementation of the policy this week will still be served alcohol, and that future guests can bring their own alcohol into the hotel.

Robert Holland, general manager for the hotel, told the Independent: “We have recently made decisions to change some elements of the business, as any business owner is entitled to do.

“These are in the best interests of the future of the hotel. We always have, and continue to, welcome guests of all shapes, sizes and denomination.”

The restaurant’s bar and grill was previously run by Masterchef’s Greg Wallace. Bermondsey Square Hotel was voted the UK’s trendiest hotel by TripAdvisor in 2010.