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French bistro to auction 'classic' interior decor

News imagePA Media A woman sits at a table holding and looking at a enamel sign. All around her are prints and signs from the 20th century.PA Media
The auction of prints and advertising signs begins on 28 December

A French bistro that has been operating in Covent Garden since the Second World War is selling its interior decorations ahead of a refurbishment.

The restaurant was founded in 1943 by two brothers and sold to the establishment's maitre'd Alain Lhermitte in 1973.

Mon Plaisir is described as "London's oldest family-run French restaurant".

A selection of the venue's French interior decorations, including advertising signage, art posters, clocks and cockerel will be up for auction from 28 December.

News imagePA Media A selection of French art posters hanging on a wall. PA Media
French interior decorations, including art posters, will be auctioned

Mr Lhermitte passed the restaurant over to his family in 2017 before his death in 2022.

Now Mon Plaisir is under new family ownership who are planning a refresh of the decor - but leaving the original 1943 dining room unaltered and keeping the copper-topped bar.

Steven Stockton, of Catherine Southon's Auctioneers and Valuers, said the auction is "a rare opportunity to acquire an affordable slice of London gastronomique history".

He added: "Since 1943, Mon Plaisir has been at the heart, and stomach, of Covent Garden.

"Everyone I speak to seems to have a Mon Plaisir story, all given with a deep fondness.

"One London-based French couple told me they loved it because it reminded them of home - the food being great, the interior stylish and the waitresses oh so rude!"

A timed auction will begin on 28 December and end on 11 January.

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