"Set the scene: BBC Radio 4 is burbling from a Roberts radio on a wooden stool, beside a bottle of Cowshed hand sanitiser and a sealed face mask. Welcome to Mykonos in the age of coronavirus. Soho Roc House – the group’s first foray into Greece – has had a softer, later opening than planned, but the feel-good vibe is, dare we say, infectious. Perhaps it’s the summery soundtrack, pitched at just the right volume for toe-tapping and rosé-sipping on the chunky daybeds surrounding the undulating pool. The glimpses of sea, glinting between the Moroccan cushions and jute rugs scattered around the gardens; or the heady sensation of picking your way over huge, smooth boulders to a wooden deck and plunging into the ice-cool Aegean. Months of confinement will be washed away in an instant – along with the monumental hangovers that are inevitable on Greece’s wildest island. On Mykonos, it’s easy to feel ripped off, let down, or weirdly disoriented. But here, you feel like you’re in with exactly the right crowd. What’s the story? The huddle of white, typically Cycladic buildings used to be San Giorgio, a pop-up Design Hotel that was so successful it became a permanent fixture. In 2019, Soho House offered Heyne and Hertel an undisclosed (but irrefusable) sum to take over San Giorgio and Scorpios, their phenomenally successful beach club on the opposite side of Paraga beach. After a subtle makeover and rebrand, Soho Roc House is the latest addition to the group's ongoing global expansion. What can we expect in our room? The 45 rooms range from the usual Soho House Tiny to Extra Large. Pressed plaster the colour of sand runs across the floors, benches and built-in beds, which are dressed in crisp white sheets and swathed in voluminous mosquito nets (slightly stifling for this restless sleeper). The rest is a mood board of neo-bohemian must-haves: rattan armchairs, earth-toned kilim cushions (too scratchy when wearing a bikini), wicker lampshades, a weathered wooden console for a minibar, folk art that looks more North African than Greek. A handful of new rooms, facing Paraga beach, offer a quieter aspect and homelier atmosphere, with squishy sofas and a sprinkling of pale textiles. Rooms on the upper floors have better views and often bigger balconies, some with tasseled hammocks. How about the food and drink? Breakfast, served poolside, is a nod to the group's British origins: bacon and egg baps, porridge and honey, or a full English, with a stiff shot of Shoreditch Grind espresso. Plus of course, the usual millennial suspects: açaí, goji, avocado. The all-day menu, dreamt up by Athinagoras Kostakos, the executive chef of Scorpios and owner of Meraki restaurant in London, is a Mediterranean mash-up of on-trend ingredients: a pleasingly light spaghetti with lemon, saffron and feta; juicy sea bass baked in a salt crust with grilled broccolini; gutsy courgette and aubergine tempura doused in smoky paprika with a Greek yogurt sauce. It’s all unpretentious, easy to share, and an excellent foil for an Aegean Spritz with prickly pear, lemon and tsipouro. Anything to say about the service? Slightly out of synch. A merger of the old guard and the new vanguard, the staff haven’t quite figured out whether to be insouciantly cool (like the cheesecloth-clad waitresses at Scorpios) or sassily familiar (like the personable, multi-cultural managers brought in from other Soho House properties to shake things up). The newest team members — brought in at the last minute in such an unpredictable season — were a little unsure of themselves, but refreshingly honest about it. What sort of person stays here? Kittenish wisps and their well-honed, honey-toned boyfriends, aglow with confidence. Long-haired yogis and their much younger model girlfriends. Middle-aged movers and shakers who are comfortable in their skin and don’t feel remotely threatened by the youthful demographic. What’s the neighborhood scene like? Pumping. If you want to let rip after lockdown, the thumping, sweaty clubs of Tropicana, Paradise and Cavo Paradiso are lined up along Paradise beach, a short walk to the left. In the opposite direction, it’s a 10-minute tiptoe along the soft sands of Paraga beach — past a youth hostel, poor little Tasos taverna, hemmed in by blaring Sueno, Kahlua and SantaAnna beach clubs — to Scorpios, which commands its own peninsula. Soho House members and guests get priority access to Scorpios, where the sunset rituals are the hottest ticket on Mykonos (minimum spend for the hoi polloi in high season: 5,000 euros). Anything you’d change? There’s not a single drawer for guests to stash all that designer swimwear and cupboard space is surprisingly tight. Reading lamps by the bed would be more practical than the pretty, but overly bright, hanging basket lights. Soho House really should buy out Tropicana and Cavo Paradiso nightclubs, too: the bleeping techno blasting out at both sunset and sunrise is a buzzkill. Anything we missed? A personal trainer pummels and prods guests into action at the outdoor, sea-view gym. There’s also a massage cabana, screened by rolling raffia mats. The intriguing program of field trips and experiences — mosaic workshops, crystal bowl meditation sessions, a boat trip to Delos with a picnic and cocktails — was scaled back this season for obvious reasons. Is it worth it – why? Rates are a bargain by Mykonos standards, where a sun bed will set you back around 150 euros and you’ll struggle to find a decent meal for less than 100 euros a head. Although the basic breakfast combo included in the room rate felt a little stingy, the consistently delicious food and well-balanced cocktails are reasonably priced." - Rachel Howard
