Marc Evans enjoys a taste of East London chic, and a formidable late breakfast, at the Andaz Liverpool Street

Forgive me for starting at the end, but chronology was never my strong point.

Brunch is now my favourite meal of the day. I didn’t previously believe brunch was an actual thing in this country – just an excuse to eat breakfast late. But now I’m a total convert.

My Road to Damascus moment came after a night at the achingly cool Andaz in Liverpool Street, a luxury hotel making the most of its hip East London location and combining the traditional and modern to great effect.

Attached to the hotel, like the greatest food court you could imagine, are no less than seven restaurants and bars, including the Eastway brasserie, which specialises in the aforementioned breakfast/lunch hybrid.

It was here my wife and I rolled up on Sunday at 11am, ever-so slightly the worse for wear after trying to keep up with the bright young things of Shoreditch the night before.

There has to be an element of hangover cure about a brunch menu, and the Eastway’s certainly hits the target in that regard. Especially with its hair-of-the-dog do-it-yourself Bloody Marys (£9).

The Arctic Monkeys put it perfectly when they sang “a Bloody Mary lacking in Tabasco, remember when you used to be a rascal?”, but there’s no excuse here as you can add whatever spices you want – well-known brands as well as home-made concoctions. There’s a huge choice of vodkas, neat or infused, and you can even add a crispy rasher of bacon to it. Trust me, bacon in drinks is going to be the next big thing.

Food-wise, you can get a full English or something a bit more sophisticated. We tried the lovely cheddar and blackberry blintez pancakes, before a classic eggs Benedict and a not-so-classic eggs Sanchez, with chorizo instead of ham. A perfect pick-me-up on a beautiful spring morning.

Rewind 24 hours, and our arrival at the Andaz resembled something out of a Ridley Scott movie. There’s no traditional reception desk, but plenty of staff with iPads at the ready to greet you and check you in. It is slightly disconcerting, but you soon get used to it.

The hotel boasts 267 rooms, and we were in one of their ‘Rooms with a View’ – decorated by a local artist in their own style to reflect the area. Our’s was the latest, created by Patrick Morgan, and is the antidote to anonymous hotel room syndrome. Very stylish. Very East End. A bit like falling asleep in an art gallery. It has others by artists ILoveDust, Patrick Vale and Paul David and Chris Price, whose room gives guests a funky take on the Cockney Pearly Kings and Queens.

The building itself was a Victorian redbrick railway hotel, but it has been transformed internally in stunning style.

You’ll give yourself a neck-ache marvelling at the architecture and design all around you as you move through the building.

It’s superbly positioned for anyone wanting to explore the capital, whether it’s the museums and galleries or the curry houses and street art of Brick Lane that float your boat.

We explored the Victoria & Albert Museum, and its current exhibition What is Luxury?

Having never been to the V&A before, I was as impressed with the surroundings as I was with the displays. Its huge courtyard shone in the afternoon sunshine, while the exhibition read like a rich man’s shopping list (gold hat anyone, or a diamond made out of a movie script?).

But if you’re not planning on moving too far away from your room, there’s more than enough to keep you occupied in the Andaz itself. As well as the Eastway, there’s also British fine dining in 1901 Restaurant & Wine Bar, drinks in the Catch Champagne Bar & Lounge, Japanese cuisine in Miyako or pub grub at The George.

I’m still regretting not opting for the delicious looking Miyako bento box that evening, instead ending up in a peculiar bar/nightclub/restaurant in Shoreditch, watching The Magnificent Seven in silence on a loop.

Before venturing out, though, we did get the chance to indulge in complimentary drinks and canapes in the hotel reception between 6-8pm, and we filled our boots – pigging out on superb smoked salmon blinis, roasted peppers with cream cheese and aubergine caviar crostini, washed down with wine. Pretty as a picture, and it tasted as good as it looked.

Fast forward to the next morning and, despite my best intentions, I gave the health club and steam room a miss for a lie-in in the giant bed. It took the promise of brunch to finally get me out of my lair.

Check-out time, and it was back to the iPad crew. No queueing, no fuss...I could get used to this.

The essentials

Andaz Liverpool Street’s Room With A View large king rooms are from £378 on weekdays (Sunday to Thursday night) and £252 on weekends (Friday and Saturday).

For more details, contact: Andaz Liverpool Street by telephone 0207 961 1234 or visit andazliverpoolstreet.com