London's Cafe Royal closes its doors

19-Dec-2008 - Last updated on 01-Dec-2010 at 09:49 GMT

The 143-year-old venue will trade for the last time as the Cafe Royal on Sunday before work starts to turn it into a luxury hotel

London’s historic Cafe Royal will close its doors for the last time on Sunday for work to begin to transform it into a luxury hotel.

The lease for the landmark building on Regent Street, which opened in 1865, was sold to Israeli developers Alrov Properties earlier this year in a £90m deal.

Alrov Properties plan to turn the site into a 131-bedroom hotel after signing a 125-year lease with owners The Crown Estate.

Contents from the building, including brandy caskets from the cellars and Venetian chandeliers from the Napoleon suite, will be sold at auction on January 20 from the Knightsbridge salerooms of auctioneers Bonhams.

The 120 lots will be on view on Sunday 21 and Monday 22 December at the cafe.

Throughout its 143-year history, the Cafe Royal has played host to a number of influential figures, including Oscar Wilde, Winston Churchill and Princess Diana.

It is also the spiritual home of black tie dinner boxing and where chef Gordon Ramsay and his wife Tana celebrated their wedding reception.

Over the last few years the venue has been run by Starwood Hotels & Resorts as a conference and banqueting venue.