The Ritz Paris

Ritz and Escoffier

The Swiss hotelier César Ritz and the French chef Auguste Escoffier had worked together in Baden-Baden and at the Savoy in London before opening their own hotel in Paris. They chose a townhouse on Place Vendôme whose facade had been designed by the architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart in the early 1700s.

Ritz hired the architect Charles Mewès to turn the house into a modern hotel while keeping its classical front. The Ritz Paris opened on 1 June 1898, offering private bathrooms, electric light and Escoffier's cooking.

Famous guests

The hotel quickly became the place to be seen in Paris. The writer Marcel Proust, the novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway were all regulars, and the word ritzy entered English as shorthand for stylish luxury.

The designer Coco Chanel lived at the Ritz for more than thirty years, across the street from her rue Cambon fashion house. Several suites are named after famous guests, including the Coco Chanel suite.

Bar Hemingway

Hemingway's love of the hotel is celebrated in Bar Hemingway, a small wood-panelled bar filled with photographs and memorabilia. The Little Bar was renamed in his honour during a renovation in the 1980s and is famous for its classic cocktails.

The hotel also hosts the Ritz Escoffier cooking school, set up in 1988 to honour the chef, which runs classes in French cuisine and pastry for amateurs and professionals.

Escoffier's influence on the hotel went beyond the menu. He organised kitchens into specialised stations, known as the brigade system, so that each cook focused on one task such as sauces, fish or pastry. The approach helped kitchens serve many complex dishes quickly and is still the basis of professional kitchens today.

A long restoration

On 1 August 2012 the Ritz closed for the first time in its history for a complete restoration. The work took almost four years, and the hotel reopened in 2016 with updated rooms, a new garden and modern systems hidden behind historic decor.

The Ritz has appeared in novels, plays and films over the years. For visitors who are not staying, the bars and restaurants remain the easiest way to see inside.

The restoration refreshed the Ritz Club, the hotel's spa and swimming pool, while keeping period details such as gilded mirrors, chandeliers and Louis XV style furniture. Behind the decor, wiring, plumbing and air conditioning were replaced so the old building could meet modern standards.

← Monaco Yacht ShowThe Savoy, London →