Bonjour! It’s Paris Fashion Week, and we’re catching up with Wolk Morais‘ Brian Wolk and Claude Morais on their favorite stay in the City of Lights. Below, check out the designer duo’s diary from their chic stay at The Mandarin Oriental Lutetia’s divine suite.
Some hotels host fashion, but The Mandarin Oriental Lutetia embodies it. Nestled on the Left Bank of Paris, where philosophy and style are comfortable bedfellows, the Lutetia has once again reclaimed its throne as the grand duchess of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. This majestic Art Deco landmark, built in 1910 by the visionary founders of Le Bon Marché, was conceived as a stylish refuge for their cosmopolitan clientele. Over a century later, following a meticulous reawakening by the Mandarin Oriental group, the Lutetia is not just restored—it’s reborn.
Brian Wolk and Claude Morais
Our recent pilgrimage to the Lutetia began, as all proper fashion adventures should, with a spontaneous photoshoot. The Art Deco geometry and poetic patina of the public spaces demanded it. Lit by soft Parisian sunlight, with mirrored columns and marble mosaics as our mise-en-scène, our silhouettes wove in and out of time. The architecture whispered stories of a bygone elegance—of Chanel, Schiaparelli, and Rykiel, who walked these halls before us, of soirées attended by Yves Saint Laurent, and clandestine cocktails sipped by the Left Bank intelligentsia.
The hotel’s namesake—Lutetia, the Roman moniker for Paris—echoes through its luminous corridors, each one a portal to a different era. The past lives here gently: Picasso painted here, Joyce proofed Ulysses, and Matisse once found refuge in its rooms. But don’t mistake history for stasis. This is a hotel where the ghosts wear silk jacquard and where the present sparkles as vividly as the past.
Brian Wolk and Claude Morais
After our lens clicked its last frame, we sauntered into the Bar Joséphine, where the cocktails are theatrical and the live jazz is flirtatious. Beneath a celestial ceiling fresco, we toasted to la vie bohème with a pair of negronis and a side of Edith Piaf, enveloped in an atmosphere that felt equal parts cinematic and surreal.
Brian Wolk and Claude Morais
Dinner that evening was an intimate affair at Saint Germain, the hotel’s jewel of a restaurant, where each dish was plated like a masterwork and served with the warmth of old Parisian hospitality. It was the kind of meal where conversation meanders, courses extend, and time—thankfully—slows.
Back in our suite, we were greeted by an expertly curated library of fashion and art tomes—a dream for two visual obsessives. Between pages of Guy Bourdin and Yves Klein, we found ourselves reflecting on the hotel’s current renaissance. The Lutetia is no longer just a monument to the past; it’s a beacon for the future of Parisian luxury—one where history, hospitality, and style coexist effortlessly.
Brian Wolk and Claude Morais
The next morning was reserved for the iconic pool and spa, a subterranean sanctuary of white marble and hushed tranquility. We floated in silence, beneath arches and soft light, in a moment that felt both indulgent and spiritual. Before our departure, we made one last stop—The Library. A jewel box of literary treasures, it felt like the inner sanctum of Lutetia’s soul. Surrounded by rare volumes and velvet upholstery, we scribbled notes in our journals and whispered thank yous to the muses who made this place possible.
Brian Wolk and Claude Morais
Paris has many palaces—but only one Mandarin Oriental Lutetia. It is a hotel not just with a past, but with a purpose. For those who seek the poetry of the Left Bank and the glamour of Parisian high style, this is your address! Until next time…
Brian & Claude’s Left Bank Must-Do’s
From the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, here’s Brian and Claude’s quick cheat sheet for where to sip, shop, and stroll like a Left Bank local!
La Société: Philippe Starck–designed glam meets Left Bank cool. The terrace is a people-watching paradise, and the sleek black-and-white dining room feels like a set from a Helmut Newton photo shoot.
Brasserie Lipp: An eternal classic. Order the choucroute and imagine you’re arguing about existentialism with Sartre beneath its gleaming Art Nouveau interiors and stained-glass ceilings.
La Rotonde Montparnasse: Belle Époque elegance with a dash of Hemingway. Grab a corner banquette and stay awhile.
Café de la Mairie: The unofficial HQ of Saint-Sulpice. Coffee, contemplation, and the occasional couture sketch, all with a view of the Saint-Sulpice Fountain. And if you’re lucky, you just might catch a glimpse of Catherine Deneuve on her terrace above, gazing down as you nibble on a croque madame in the Parisian twilight.
Debauve & Gallais: Royal purveyors of chocolate since Napoleon—and before that, to Marie Antoinette herself. Their pistoles are edible history.
Le Bon Marché: The world’s first department store, and still the chicest. A cathedral of fashion, design, and gourmet dreams.
Bisous,
Brian & Claude
All photos: Matthew Allen/Courtesy of Wolk Morais
