Kettner’s Townhouse | Wonderfully Old-School Glamour in Soho
Here’s what we know about Napoleon.
Very little.
We do, however, know quite a bit about his nephew’s personal chef. His name was Auguste Kettner, and in 1867, he founded Kettner’s in Soho, which had been going strong for literally a century and a half serving guests from Oscar Wilde, to Winston Churchill, to Agatha Christie, to Robert De Niro, to literal royalty before shutting down.
Well, now it’s back.
And this time, it’s part of the Soho House group, who have turned Kettner’s Townhouse into a hotel, restaurant, and bar, with as many of the original features lovingly preserved as possible. And importantly, you don’t have to be a Soho House member to visit. Starting with the part that’s most likely to be of interest:
THE RESTAURANT
Given how old the place is, it comes as no surprise that many of the individual features were actually Grade-II listed, and they’ve all been painstakingly restored – from the mouldings to the mirrors – to sit alongside classic white tablecloths, richly embroidered chairs, and elegant parquet flooring.
Kettner’s menu has been inspired by the restaurant’s French roots, and so you’ll find classics from across the channel like confit rabbit with mustard sauce; steak frites, Dover sole meunière, and côte de porc with café de Paris butter leading the charge on the mains. As for desserts, think tarte tatin, tarte au citron and crème brûlée. Which brings us nicely on to,
THE BAR
On the way to the restaurant you’ll pass through the Piano Bar with its own live pianist, where you can score signature cocktails like the Champagne-spiked Sparkling Sazerac, a generous selection of wines by the glass thanks to the Coravin system, and a handy platter of oysters and such for when you get peckish. And if after a few of those you feel like retiring there’s always,
THE HOTEL
Upstairs you can now stumble into one of their 33 boutique rooms – all given a subtle ’20s-style feel thanks to some art nouveau touches – including one which was supposed to be a cinema, until soundproofing issues made them abandon the idea, and turn it into one vast suite instead. Being their biggest room, it’s probably not best to plan on retiring up there, however…
…if you’re a little short.
NOTE: Kettner’s Townhouse is open daily for breakfast, lunch & dinner. You can find out more, and book a table, on the Kettner’s website.
ALSO NOTE: Napoleon was actually of average height. Which is a little known fact.
Kettner’s Townhouse | 29 Romilly Street, W1D 5HD
Making a night of it? Peruse the best bars in Soho