Maison Estelle, the ultra-luxury private London club frequented by celebrities, royals and Mayfair dealmakers, will reopen next month under "strict conditions" while police investigate allegations of threatening behaviour and a potential weapon linked to a member. The club, where membership costs £4,250 a year, was granted permission to reopen in November by Westminster Council following a closed-door hearing this week. The council said it had decided not to revoke the licence and had "imposed additional conditions to ensure that the necessary changes in conduct and practice are put in place so that the venue remains safe."
A person close to the situation said the club will operate with curtailed licensing hours, similar to pubs and bars that close at 1.30am. The nightclub area will run at a lower capacity and offer only waiter service rather than a bar. The venue, a Grade I listed Georgian townhouse in Mayfair spanning seven floors, was founded by hospitality entrepreneur Sharan Pasricha and his wife Eiesha Bharti Pasricha, daughter of billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal. The couple also run Celeste in Notting Hill and Estelle Manor in Oxfordshire, where Eve Jobs, daughter of Steve Jobs, held her wedding reception last year.
The club closed at the end of September after an alleged incident involving a member who was denied entry on a busy Saturday evening. According to a person with knowledge of the situation, people affiliated with the member were then seen with a firearm or imitation firearm further down Grafton Street. The Metropolitan Police asked Westminster Council to review the club's alcohol licence, saying the premises were "allegedly associated with serious crime, or serious disorder, or both."
Maison Estelle said the closure followed "a serious public safety incident on Grafton Street" on 20 September, which remains subject to a police investigation. The Met said a live criminal investigation into an incident in the vicinity of the venue remains ongoing, and that the premises licence will remain suspended for a further two weeks, with additional conditions imposed when it is reinstated.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing