Being in a members’ club in London has long been part of the capital’s social fabric. Over the years they’ve shed skins, morphed into different beasts and evolved with the times. Back in the 1700s, they started as laid-back coffee houses where men could go to drink and chat. Then came more upmarket affairs: formal dining rooms, grand libraries, lavish parlours (think Annabel’s; Home House). The dawn of the 21st century brought with it a nostalgia for muted glamour and understated wealth (Soho House; 5 Hertford Street). Now, members’ clubs seem to have gone full circle with the launch of Apollo’s Muse in Mayfair.
Hidden at the back of Bacchanalia, London’s most decadent new restaurant, the club is a masterclass in ‘more is more’ design, complete with floor-to-ceiling marble and ancient Greek and Roman artwork and sculptures – some even dating back to the 1st and 2nd centuries. Marketed as the “most private of private members’ clubs”, only 500 people will be granted membership – making it London’s most exclusive private members’ club and one of the most exclusive clubs in the world.
Designed by Richard Caring, Mayfair’s billionaire club mogul, the impressive Greco-Italian space follows suit from the impressive Martin Brudnizki and Damien Hirst touches in Bacchanalia. Rivalling some of the world’s top museums and galleries, guests can marvel at a series of priceless antiquities, including a Roman marble Venus (circa 1st/2nd century AD), a Greek funerary Lekythos (circa 4th century AD) and of course, the club’s namesake: Apollo’s Muse (2nd century AD). Mirrored tables, velvet-clad bar stools, bespoke wine glasses from Murano, and gold-leaf-inspired napkin rings add to the room’s overstated magnificence.
The drinks menu had much to stand up to, but a selection of rare vintages, old Burgundy, Bordeaux and Barolos, and a series of carefully crafted cocktails do the trick. The Apollo’s Martini is a work of art itself: created using as many different elements from an olive tree as possible (including the leaves, olive oil and olives themselves), the bar team tasted over 100 olives to pick the right ones for the drink. The martini is served with a selection of four olives to garnish the drink: green kalamata, red kalamata, smoked olive and lemon-stuffed olive. The final step is a spritz of aromatic olive oil (we did warn you, more is more here).
There is also a selection of elevated bar snacks. We tried a deconstructed BLT made of tomato marmalade, crispy prosciutto and croutons, served in an ice-gem leaf; deviled eggs topped with crab and lemon zest and tortellini stuffed with burrata and drizzled with a roasted chicken sauce.
Larger dishes include a Beluga-caviar-topped jacket potato, a wagyu burger with melted gorgonzola, caramelised onions and black truffle mayo, and a lobster brioche bun with a smearing of horseradish mayonnaise and caviar.
Members will have access to a private concierge to help with any booking requests, activities or transport in the city, plus there will also be a line-up of events, monthly wine dinners and weekly live music and DJ acts.
Address: 1-3 Mount Street, Mayfair, London W1K 3NA
Website: apollos-muse.co.uk