This story originally appeared in the March/April 2018 issue of Elite Traveler.
The London club of choice for fashion icons, actors, aristocrats and royalty, Annabel’s has been synonymous with style, glamour and debauchery since it opened in 1963. During its 55 years, Valentino, Richard Nixon, Tom Ford, Jack Nicholson, Anna Wintour and Jerry Hall are just a few of the luminaries who’ve wined and dined by candlelight under the vaulted ceilings, and Tina Turner, Ray Charles and Diana Ross are among its legendary performers.
The members-only club has upsized to a grade-one-listed, 18th-century Georgian town house, two doors down from its original Berkeley Square address. Annabel’s spent $75m for designer Martin Brudnizki (The Beekman, The Ivy, Sexy Fish) to transform the new space’s interiors, retaining the club’s colorful traditional style (even keeping some of the original artwork, such as the Modiano cigarette-paper print) but with a modern update.
Brudnizki explains, “the design for the new Annabel’s had to tell a story rich enough to last another 50 years. With its new location, the revived Annabel’s has been handed a fresh lease on life that we felt ought to center around the verdant landscape of the square. So each floor has been inspired by a different garden from art and history. Each space is draped in exquisite detailing, finishes and layers of fabric, and almost every item of furniture is bespoke. The whole club is like nothing we’ve ever designed before—it’s the Garden of Eden, and temptation is abundant.”
Joining fees range from $330 to $1,670 depending on age, and annual subscription fees range from $1,000 to $3,665. Contact membership@annabels.co.uk, +44 207 629 1096, annabels.co.uk
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We love… Charles Avalon
To celebrate the launch of Annabel’s new location, Charles Avalon was commissioned to paint the London club’s chic terraced garden in his signature Art Deco style, perfectly capturing the laid-back elegance. Charles Avalon, Annabel’s Club limited-edition poster, $535, pullmaneditions.com
