ABSTRACT
Grillion’s, frequently referred to as Grillon’s, was opened in 7 Albemarle Street in 1803 by the Frenchman Alexander Grillion, who had previously been the chef of Lord Crewe, a politician. he hotel was renowned for its cuisine and quickly attracted a clientele of aristocrats as well as visiting royalty, as the regularly published lists of fashionable arrivals in London papers such as The Morning Post document. A major event occurred in 1814 when Louis XVIII, the hitherto exiled French King, who had been in England since 1807, descended at the Grillion. Subsequent to Napoleon’s abdication, Louis XVIII had been proclaimed king of France on 7 April, quit Aylesbury and on 20 April enjoyed a triumphant welcome in London, where he held a reception at Grillion’s Hotel; he left for Dover on 23 April.5. Many of the elite hotels had an affinity with clubland due to their geographical proximity and because they catered for the same clientele.
