Every memorable room tells a story, and Mr Button, in New Delhi, tells one beautifully, a residence that feels as though it has been lived in for a century, kept warm by candlelight, leather and an excellent bar.
This season, it became the natural home for the eighth edition of Tastemakers' Table. French Press Global and Maison French Press joined hands with Not So Serious by Pallavi Mohan to stage a Halloween Ball within its panelled walls. The pairing was effortless. A house built on story and ceremony made the ideal stage for a night of costume, conversation and theatre.
The Tailor Who Dressed an Era
Every great house begins with a character, and this one begins with Henry J. Button. Born in 1893, he became a celebrated Savile Row tailor in the roaring 1920s, dressing kings, dukes and ministers at No. 15, Mr Button & Co. In the 1930s he set out to see the world with his wit, his wardrobe and a treasured collection of antique buttons, finding his way from the palaces of the Far East to Havana, and to evenings with Hemingway and Hepburn.
He turned up wherever history called for a witness: the palaces of the Far East, the back rooms of Havana, nightcaps with Hemingway and martinis with Hepburn.
A Residence Tailored in Elegance
Mr Button is imagined as his home, and the design commits to that idea in every detail. Cream panelled walls glow beneath alabaster sconces. A brass chandelier is caught twice over in an antique mirror above a ribbed fireplace. Deep tufted leather wingbacks flank low marble tables, each set with a single flickering candle.
The objects read like souvenirs from his travels. A rotary telephone rests on a stack of art books. A crystal decanter waits on a lacquered tray beside a gilded globe. A framed royal warrant sits on the mantel. Further in, a library lounge pairs a Chesterfield sofa with shelves of bound volumes, and the back bar rises in illuminated tiers of bottles. The effect is intimate and assured, a room that invites guests to settle in and stay late.
A Cocktail Atlas
The cocktail programme reads like Button's travel diary. It moves in order through his life, from Roaring London in the 1920s to the Far East, a summer in Cuba, post-war Europe and, finally, Hollywood in the 1950s. Each drink names its place and its moment, and each one seats the guest at his table.
The menu is the work of Head Mixologist Sandeep Sreshtha. He is a graduate of the Maison Programme by Pernod Ricard, run with the École hôtelière de Lausanne. His career runs through The Library Blu Bar at The Leela Palace Chennai, Mövenpick Resort Maldives and People of Tomorrow in Delhi. At Mr Button, he brings craft, technique and storytelling together in every pour.
The menu is the work of Head Mixologist Sandeep Sreshtha. He is a graduate of the Maison Programme by Pernod Ricard, run with the École hôtelière de Lausanne. His career runs through The Library Blu Bar at The Leela Palace Chennai, Mövenpick Resort Maldives and People of Tomorrow in Delhi. At Mr Button, he brings craft, technique and storytelling together in every pour.
A few chapters worth ordering:
The Ritual. The house welcome. Sparkling wine, mango cordial and orange blossom in a flute, recalling the evening ceremony at Button's Mayfair residence. Fruity, fragrant and bright.
Lady Mary. The Botanist Islay Dry Gin with pine tea, cedarwood and a rain-air foam. It remembers a summer afternoon at Royal Ascot in 1925 and a race card slipped beneath a teacup. Earthy, woody and refreshing.
Crown Jewel. Bombay Sapphire Gin, saffron and lime, inspired by Button's 1932 welcome in Jaipur by Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. Delicate, floral and gently spiced.
High Stakes. Creyente Mezcal with purple cabbage, bell pepper and a spicy tincture, poured in honour of the card tables at Havana's Hotel Nacional. Smoky, earthy and effervescent.
For guests who prefer a zero-proof glass, the house pours equal imagination into serves like Kyoto Bloom, with strawberry, jasmine tea and fizz.
A Table Set for Celebration
The food at Mr Button follows the same well-travelled instinct as the bar. Plates are generous in flavour, precise in finish and made to share across a candlelit table. Each one arrives on handmade stoneware that suits the warmth of the room.
Truffle Mushroom Croquettes. Crisp, deep-bronzed croquettes rest on an earthy mushroom purée, crowned with a snowfall of aged cheese, dots of aioli, micro-greens and a drizzle of chilli oil. A natural partner for a spirit-forward whisky serve.
Fresh rice-paper rolls. Delicate and translucent, filled with crunchy vegetables and herbs, set in a light, fragrant broth and topped with a spicy mayonnaise and young sprouts. Clean and bright alongside a gin.
A lacquered centrepiece. Glazed until glossy and caramelised, laid beside a velvety golden sauce marked with toasted pine nuts and drops of chilli oil, and finished with a curl of fine herbs. Comforting, refined and made for the table.
A Masquerade at the Residence
For Tastemakers' Table Edition VIII, the Residence played host to a masquerade of a different era. Candlelight deepened the shadows of the panelled rooms, and the leather wingbacks became thrones for guests in full costume. Not So Serious by Pallavi Mohan brought its signature playfulness to the evening, and French Press Global and Maison French Press brought together a room of tastemakers, creators and friends of the house.
The bar poured its chapters through the night, the kitchen sent out plates for sharing, and the conversation ran into the small hours, much as it once did behind the brass plate on Savile Row. It was a fitting tribute to a man who always found his way to the most interesting table.
A Toast to the Residence
Mr Button is a bar, a kitchen and a story told in equal measure. It has already welcomed guest shifts from celebrated bars around the world and across India, and it extends its programme to settings as far-flung as the snowfields of Gulmarg. Yet its greatest charm remains the simplest: an invitation to take a seat, raise a glass and step into Henry J. Button's world.
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Read these on the house, with our compliments.
A selection from the current issue, open to all readers. Read them in full. The rest is one decision away.
Every memorable room tells a story, and Mr Button, in New Delhi, tells one beautifully, a residence that feels as though it has been lived in for a century, kept warm by candlelight, leather and an excellent bar.
This season, it became the natural home for the eighth edition of Tastemakers' Table. French Press Global and Maison French Press joined hands with Not So Serious by Pallavi Mohan to stage a Halloween Ball within its panelled walls. The pairing was effortless. A house built on story and ceremony made the ideal stage for a night of costume, conversation and theatre.
The Tailor Who Dressed an Era
Every great house begins with a character, and this one begins with Henry J. Button. Born in 1893, he became a celebrated Savile Row tailor in the roaring 1920s, dressing kings, dukes and ministers at No. 15, Mr Button & Co. In the 1930s he set out to see the world with his wit, his wardrobe and a treasured collection of antique buttons, finding his way from the palaces of the Far East to Havana, and to evenings with Hemingway and Hepburn.
He turned up wherever history called for a witness: the palaces of the Far East, the back rooms of Havana, nightcaps with Hemingway and martinis with Hepburn.
A Residence Tailored in Elegance
Mr Button is imagined as his home, and the design commits to that idea in every detail. Cream panelled walls glow beneath alabaster sconces. A brass chandelier is caught twice over in an antique mirror above a ribbed fireplace. Deep tufted leather wingbacks flank low marble tables, each set with a single flickering candle.
The objects read like souvenirs from his travels. A rotary telephone rests on a stack of art books. A crystal decanter waits on a lacquered tray beside a gilded globe. A framed royal warrant sits on the mantel. Further in, a library lounge pairs a Chesterfield sofa with shelves of bound volumes, and the back bar rises in illuminated tiers of bottles. The effect is intimate and assured, a room that invites guests to settle in and stay late.
A Cocktail Atlas
The cocktail programme reads like Button's travel diary. It moves in order through his life, from Roaring London in the 1920s to the Far East, a summer in Cuba, post-war Europe and, finally, Hollywood in the 1950s. Each drink names its place and its moment, and each one seats the guest at his table.
The menu is the work of Head Mixologist Sandeep Sreshtha. He is a graduate of the Maison Programme by Pernod Ricard, run with the École hôtelière de Lausanne. His career runs through The Library Blu Bar at The Leela Palace Chennai, Mövenpick Resort Maldives and People of Tomorrow in Delhi. At Mr Button, he brings craft, technique and storytelling together in every pour.
The menu is the work of Head Mixologist Sandeep Sreshtha. He is a graduate of the Maison Programme by Pernod Ricard, run with the École hôtelière de Lausanne. His career runs through The Library Blu Bar at The Leela Palace Chennai, Mövenpick Resort Maldives and People of Tomorrow in Delhi. At Mr Button, he brings craft, technique and storytelling together in every pour.
A few chapters worth ordering:
The Ritual. The house welcome. Sparkling wine, mango cordial and orange blossom in a flute, recalling the evening ceremony at Button's Mayfair residence. Fruity, fragrant and bright.
Lady Mary. The Botanist Islay Dry Gin with pine tea, cedarwood and a rain-air foam. It remembers a summer afternoon at Royal Ascot in 1925 and a race card slipped beneath a teacup. Earthy, woody and refreshing.
Crown Jewel. Bombay Sapphire Gin, saffron and lime, inspired by Button's 1932 welcome in Jaipur by Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. Delicate, floral and gently spiced.
High Stakes. Creyente Mezcal with purple cabbage, bell pepper and a spicy tincture, poured in honour of the card tables at Havana's Hotel Nacional. Smoky, earthy and effervescent.
For guests who prefer a zero-proof glass, the house pours equal imagination into serves like Kyoto Bloom, with strawberry, jasmine tea and fizz.
A Table Set for Celebration
The food at Mr Button follows the same well-travelled instinct as the bar. Plates are generous in flavour, precise in finish and made to share across a candlelit table. Each one arrives on handmade stoneware that suits the warmth of the room.
Truffle Mushroom Croquettes. Crisp, deep-bronzed croquettes rest on an earthy mushroom purée, crowned with a snowfall of aged cheese, dots of aioli, micro-greens and a drizzle of chilli oil. A natural partner for a spirit-forward whisky serve.
Fresh rice-paper rolls. Delicate and translucent, filled with crunchy vegetables and herbs, set in a light, fragrant broth and topped with a spicy mayonnaise and young sprouts. Clean and bright alongside a gin.
A lacquered centrepiece. Glazed until glossy and caramelised, laid beside a velvety golden sauce marked with toasted pine nuts and drops of chilli oil, and finished with a curl of fine herbs. Comforting, refined and made for the table.
A Masquerade at the Residence
For Tastemakers' Table Edition VIII, the Residence played host to a masquerade of a different era. Candlelight deepened the shadows of the panelled rooms, and the leather wingbacks became thrones for guests in full costume. Not So Serious by Pallavi Mohan brought its signature playfulness to the evening, and French Press Global and Maison French Press brought together a room of tastemakers, creators and friends of the house.
The bar poured its chapters through the night, the kitchen sent out plates for sharing, and the conversation ran into the small hours, much as it once did behind the brass plate on Savile Row. It was a fitting tribute to a man who always found his way to the most interesting table.
A Toast to the Residence
Mr Button is a bar, a kitchen and a story told in equal measure. It has already welcomed guest shifts from celebrated bars around the world and across India, and it extends its programme to settings as far-flung as the snowfields of Gulmarg. Yet its greatest charm remains the simplest: an invitation to take a seat, raise a glass and step into Henry J. Button's world.
TO BE CONTINUED, FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.
This is where the surface ends and the reporting begins.
The complete piece, the full archive, and access to The French Press Circle. Reporting answerable only to its readers.
Already a subscriber ?
Login
Read these on the house, with our compliments.
A selection from the current issue, open to all readers. Read them in full. The rest is one decision away.