Kettner’s opened in 1867, taking its name from the founder, Auguste Kettner, a chef to the French Emperor Napoleon III.
It soon became the place to be seen – and not just because of the high standard of its cuisine.
If London’s high society, royalty, aristocrats, artists and kings of industry were not dining on the ground floor, they could be found in clandestine meetings in the private rooms above.
The visitors included Edward and Mrs Langtry, especially when the acclaimed Victorian beauty, socialite and actress was performing across the road at the Palace Theatre.
Even royalty with a renowned reputation for extra-marital activities with other men’s wives, like Edward VII, had to be careful. Rumour has it that he had a tunnel dug directly from the theatre to provide a direct and secret route so the lovers were able to indulge their passion in Kettner’s private dining room, safely hidden away from the disapproving glare of his ever-despairing mother, Queen Victoria.
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