The annual Estates Gazette Auctioneers Lunch was back at the Ivy this month.
A packed room heard a whistlestop review of the year from Estates Gazette editor Damian Wild while enjoying champagne, fine wine and a delicious three-course meal in one of London’s best known restaurants.
The Ivy had undergone a five-month refurbishment since last year’s event. A twinkling bespoke bar, a stunning collection of contemporary art and a hand-woven camouflage carpet may have been among the new additions, but there was enough that was familiar to comfort the great and good of the UK auctions business. The famous harlequin stained glass windows and oak panelling were unchanged.
Symbolically, it was an auction that triggered the restaurant’s transition. In March, owner Richard Caring sold off dozens of items, from a table which hosted both Diana Princess of Wales and Lady Thatcher, to a front door.
But the familiarity of the faces meant that the lunch remains a highlight of the auctions calendar. Guests were toasting a positive 2015 and a promising-looking 2016 until dusk.
