Lutyens in Fleet Street now open

June 2009

Lutyens Restaurant, Bar and Cellar Rooms opened in June 2009.

Located in the former Reuters building in Fleet Street, it is named after its architect, Sir Edwin Lutyens, with the design being led by Sir Terence Conran, his wife Vicki and a design team from Conran & Partners.

The listed site, at 85 Fleet Street, was also the birthplace of Samuel Pepys and the overall design and detail draws strong reference from all three of its illustrious predecessors, Lutyens, Pepys and Baronvon Reuters.

The original building was built in 1939 and the design team has created a space that reflects this period but is finished in a modern style and with subtle references to Art Deco and modernism of the 1930s.

Floor to ceiling windows flood the main restaurant with natural light and offer stunning views of St
Bride's Church. Beautiful porcelain lights by Diffuse hang in the restaurant and bar.

Features include immaculately restored Spiderback Lutyens chairs, a tall Lutyens clock from the original building that has been beautifully restored and Italian Travertine flooring, sourced to match the flooring used in the original building.

The colour scheme in the restaurant is light with Eau de Nile green leathers and fabrics which contrast with the darker marble tones and Brazilian mahogany in the bar area, which also has a ‘tumbling block' design smoked mirror behind the bar.

Benchmark Furniture has provided most of the furniture and built all the interior fittings and bars
including a small crustacea and sushi bar and special wine dispensing area in the restaurant. We have used their Normandie dining chairs all with black gloss lacquered frames and a mixture of bird's eye maple and Brazilian mahogany backs.

The Cellar Room will be a private members club in the basement. It has its own bar and a dining area for light meals and is equipped for meetings and presentations with a large plasma screen.

There are also four private dining rooms each equipped for meetings and decorated with Lutyens original architectural drawings from the RIBA archive.

Art from Terence Conran's private collection will be displayed throughout the restaurant and club
as you enter, alongside pictures and objet that have been sourced by Vicki Conran including original Punch magazine cut outs, the front page of the first ever Times newspaper and original drawings of the great fire of London.

Several old photographs of the building, portraits of Baron de Reuter and Vanity Fair cartoons have been supplied by Thompson Reuters. The private dining and meeting rooms have each been named after buildings designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, and architectural drawings from them have been etched onto the walls of the private dining rooms.

Studio Conran have developed all of the graphics and restaurant identity.

Terence Conran comments:
 "We looked at the space and its history and said let's create something that reflects the period of this time and finish it in a contemporary style. We were also very keen to draw reference to Lutyens, Pepys and Reuters who have given the building so much character.''

"It has been a wonderful project to work on and the team from C&P have made a huge contribution in creating a beautiful restaurant, bar and private members club. I would also like to say a personal thank you to the Lutyens family, and in particular to Martin Lutyens who has been more helpful than we could have ever have hoped from start to finish.

 The design team at Conran & Partners and Studio Conran included Isabelle Chatel de Brancion, Jonathan Peek and Louise James.