Created in partnership with Portfolio, Condé Nast's new business magazine, our city business guides offer guidance for business travelers hoping to maximize their productivity (and enjoyment) while on the road. Stay tuned for more guides in the months to come.

London is buoyant on a tide of money. The capital of the United Kingdom is where American consultants, European bankers, Russian oligarchs, and Middle Eastern oil barons converge. Its civic ego is burgeoning, the real estate market is booming, and the flush financial community is buzzing with the idea that London may soon surpass New York as the financial center of the world, particularly with the success of the Alternative Investment Market, a cheaper, less-regulated alternative to the NASDAQ.

Where to Sleep
The arc from Mayfair through Belgravia—the queen's backyard—to Knightsbridge and Kensington includes London's priciest and poshest neighborhoods. This is Hedge Fund Alley, home to expatriate bankers and businessmen who prize its central location. The opulent Dorchester, in Mayfair, hasn't lost any of its luster: The president of Pakistan and Courtney Love checked in on the same day recently. Nearby, the contemporary Metropolitan continues to be a favorite of movers in the often-overlapping worlds of media, movies, music, and models. Once a dowager, now a grande dame, Claridge's draws diplomats and heads of state. Entertainers and celebrities opt for Soho. Among the most notable digs are Charlotte Street (Gwyneth Paltrow), Covent Garden (Giorgio Armani), and the Soho (Penelope Cruz). The stealthy wealthy stay at Number Eleven, in Cadogan Gardens. In the financial world, many international companies own apartments for their top execs. The City, the original Roman walled square mile and still the financial hub around which metropolitan London has grown over the centuries, is a place to work, not to stay.

Where to Eat
London's multiculturalism is reflected in its restaurants. Refined Indian dishes are served to politicians, spin doctors, and lobbyists at the Cinnamon Club (no membership required), close to the Houses of Parliament. In Soho, Yauatcha is a glamorous, twinkling dim sum eatery downstairs and a calm teahouse at street level. Zuma, popular with Mick Jagger and Russell Crowe, is an upmarket take on traditional Japanese izakaya (tapas) dining in Knightsbridge. Its media-land sister, Roka, focuses on the robata grill; Michael Eisner is a fan. Multi-starred Gordon Ramsay produces classic dishes with a twist both at his flagship Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea and at Claridge's. Impress by booking the Chef's Table here—a private space in the middle of the kitchen—for lunch ($1,200 for up to six) or dinner ($1,500). The once-moribund but always beautiful Greenhouse is back in fine form, with probably the best wine list in London, enjoyed by John Kerry, among others.

Where to See and Be Seen
The hottest seat in town is at Scotts, a recently destitute London institution in Mayfair. Now rescued by vast amounts of money, it is once again at the top of its game—which is fish—and filled with the aristocracy of the financial world. On Piccadilly, the Wolseley offers all-day menus in Mitteleuropean grand café tradition, attracting FTSE 100 executives and media movers from morning to night. Hollywood stars and media bigwigs (think Rupert Murdoch) head for haute cuisine at glitzy Hakkasan (Chinese), newly cool Cecconi's (Italian), and Robuchon's sexy L'Atelier (French). Nobu's Japanese fusion food still attracts Tinseltown's biggest stars like Angelina Jolie and George Clooney. Insiders are already anticipating Ducasse at the Dorchester, which opens in October, and Cha Cha No Hana, Alan Yau's take on stylish Japanese, debuting in July. London's lively bar scene centers on its top hotels. Perhaps the most famous is Claridge's, where Kate Moss had her notorious thirtieth birthday bash.