AU REVOIR LE RITZ: It was a full house at the Ritz Paris. By early evening Tuesday all but one of the hotel’s 159 rooms were booked for its final night before closing for extensive, two-year renovations. The reserved rooms include the Coco Chanel suite, which went for 9,950 euros, or $12,212 at current exchange.
“We have guests coming specifically to spend a last night at the Ritz,” said a hotel spokesman. “July has been a great month; reservations were up compared to last year.”
This story first appeared in the August 1, 2012 issue of WWD. Subscribe Today.
The Ritz is not yet taking reservations for its targeted reopening in summer 2014. While Paris’ Royal Monceau Raffles hotel in 2008 hosted a legendary “demolition party” before closing for its major revamp, there is no such plan at the Ritz tonight.
“The Ritz is classified as a historic monument; it cannot be demolished,” explained the spokesman.
Instead, around 50 guests enjoyed a special last dinner at the hotel’s fine-dining restaurant, L’Espadon. The menu, concocted by executive chef Michel Roth, included ritzy duck foie gras; blue lobster with raspberry vinaigrette and caviar; steamed sea bass with shellfish; truffle vol-au-vent; chocolate soufflé, and “peach Melba Ritz 2012.”
A Champagne reception for employees is planned for today in the Ritz’s garden.
