In the midst of a number of modern concrete and glass office blocks near Liverpool Street Station is Devonshire Square where, perhaps unexpectedly, sits a delightful pre-Georgian town house that is the home of the Worshipful Company of Coopers.
The building is a late 17th-Century merchant’s house, built on land that once formed part of the gardens of Devonshire House. Coopers’ Hall is one of the City’s oldest livery halls and is elegantly appointed and decorated, representing an exquisitely preserved example of a town house of this period in the heart of the City of London.
The Paviors’ Luncheon Club was privileged to use the Hall as a venue for a dinner on 9 October. Members gained access to the Hall through a beautiful entrance hall and climbed the magnificent staircase that spirals up the entire height of the house. With the dining room only large enough to accommodate just over 30 guests, the evening proved to be an intimate occasion.
Following a champagne reception, the small group of Paviors and their guests enjoyed a fascinating starter of a Cornish Brie, red onion and fig tart with lemon thyme dressing and a baby-leaf salad. This was followed by a main course of breast of pheasant, parsnip tart tatin, quince, wild mushrooms and chestnuts. Dessert was a rum baba.
The event proved to be a most pleasant evening in good company, surrounded by sophisticated domestic grandness. Many thanks to Tom Barton for organizing the evening.