Dusting Off the Stogie's Stodgy Image

(WSJ) With its bespoke wicker chairs, neatly trimmed herbaceous borders and cool breeze, the Garden Room at the Lanesborough Hotel in London is a welcome retreat from the hustle and bustle of nearby Knightsbridge. However, if you come here seeking a spot of botany, you will be disappointed. For this verdant subterranean hideaway is arguably London's most stylish and comfortable place in which to enjoy a cigar. Yet far from being exposed to the elements, by a quirk of engineering and careful reading of planning regulations, it is all but inside. The room is covered at the top; however, a gap at the edge of the ceiling, filled with slatted glass, as well as flower-filled open sides, allows smoking to take place legally. Continued