{"id":164168,"date":"2026-03-15T14:21:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T14:21:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/164168\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T14:21:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T14:21:12","slug":"margot-hauer-king-on-channeling-jeremy-kings-hospitality-at-new-yorks-peoples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/164168\/","title":{"rendered":"Margot Hauer-King on Channeling Jeremy King\u2019s Hospitality at New York\u2019s People\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated5 min read<\/p>\n

In London, few restaurateurs loom larger than Jeremy King<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For decades, alongside his longtime business partner Chris Corbin, he helped define the city\u2019s restaurant culture, creating institutions such as The Ivy and Le Caprice\u2014rooms where theater stars, politicians, and society regulars mingled over polished service and quietly confident cuisine.<\/p>\n

More recently, King has returned to opening restaurants of his own, launching The Park in Bayswater in 2024 and the European-inflected Arlington in Mayfair. He was also the original force behind The Wolseley on Piccadilly, long considered one of London\u2019s most glamorous dining rooms.<\/p>\n

Now, nearly two centuries after it first opened, another London landmark is returning. In March 2026, King will reopen Simpson\u2019s in the Strand at 100 Strand, reviving one of Britain\u2019s most storied dining rooms, where diners once included Charles Dickens and King Charles.<\/p>\n

\"london,Dave Benett\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Jeremy King, restaurateur and founder of The Ivy and Le Caprice<\/p>\n

The restored space will include two bars\u2014Simpson\u2019s Bar and Nellie\u2019s\u2014and two restaurants, the Grand Divan and Romano\u2019s, along with a small ballroom, the Assembly Room. The Grand Divan will again feature the restaurant\u2019s famed tableside-carved roasts, while Romano\u2019s will offer a more relaxed dining experience.<\/p>\n

But King\u2019s influence today stretches far beyond London\u2014and into the next generation. Across the Atlantic, his daughter, Margot Hauer-King, is carving out her own hospitality story in New York with People\u2019s<\/a>, the downtown cultural salon she co-founded with Emmet McDermott.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Inside the salon of People\u2019s in New York City.<\/p>\n

The Legacy of a Dish<\/p>\n

Recently celebrating its first anniversary, the space has quickly become a quietly magnetic gathering place for artists, financiers, performers, and downtown regulars alike\u2014an eclectic mix that would feel familiar to anyone who has spent time in one of King\u2019s dining rooms.<\/p>\n

This January, that family connection came full circle. People\u2019s hosted a pop-up menu paying homage to Jeremy King himself, offering guests a taste of two of his most beloved dishes. The idea began as a tribute from Hauer-King and McDermott\u2014and turned into something more personal.<\/p>\n

\"Video<\/p>\n

Jeremy King on a Facetime call with Margot and Emmet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, when you suggested the idea of that little tribute,\u201d King told his daughter over FaceTime, \u201cI considered it a very heartfelt tribute from you, because you and Emmett have done such an amazing job with People\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

The dishes themselves carry decades of history. One of them, Bang Bang Chicken, originated at Le Caprice under circumstances King still remembers vividly.
<\/p>\n

\u201cBang Bang Chicken came out of a terrible visit to a Chinese restaurant,\u201d he recalls. \u201cA lot of things in life\u2014we learn from what other people perhaps do badly, but we see the potential. The more we see potential\u2014whether it\u2019s dishes, people, or even sites\u2014that\u2019s what makes us better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another dish also eventually became a signature\u2014The Scandinavian Frozen Berries\u2014a detail King added after hearing about the fruit from someone who had worked with Sir Paul Smith.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pastry chef at the Caprice created a classic dish,\u201d King says. \u201cOne that\u2019s been eaten by some of the most interesting people in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ADavid Manrique<\/p>\n

The King\u2019s Menu at People\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Still, he admits there is a certain nervousness in handing it over. \u201cThere\u2019s a real knack to it,\u201d he says, laughing.<\/p>\n

A New Generation of Hospitality<\/p>\n

At People\u2019s, the dish has been gently reimagined. \u201cWe couldn\u2019t completely copy it,\u201d Hauer-King explains. \u201cWe had to have our own slight spin.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead of presenting the Scandinavian berries flat with the sauce poured over, the People\u2019s team experimented with a different plating, giving the kitchen creative freedom while preserving the spirit of the original.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe dishes are fun,\u201d she says. \u201cDad describes them as quietly confident and unassuming, and that feels very People\u2019s. We never wanted to be showy\u2014we want people to have fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

That philosophy echoes the approach she grew up around. \u201cHe always said to us when we were young: the most interesting person in the room is not necessarily the one spending the most money,\u201d Hauer-King says.<\/p>\n

When King first began opening restaurants in London, Hauer-King\u2019s mother worked in theater, and the dining rooms were filled with actors and creatives alongside society figures. That mixture left a lasting impression.<\/p>\n

At People\u2019s, Hauer-King has recreated that same cross-pollination. \u201cWe have a real mix. What\u2019s gorgeous is how much people know each other\u2014or are getting to know each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Bar<\/p>\n

The Gallery room at People\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Rather than a traditional members\u2019 club model,People\u2019s operates through referrals and community connections, cultivating what feels less like exclusivity and more like a shared cultural ecosystem.<\/p>\n

Reimagining New York Nightlife<\/p>\n

For McDermott, the idea for People\u2019s emerged from a sense that something had disappeared from New York nightlife. \u201cWhen I moved back to New York from L.A., I had this acute awareness that something was missing,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\"newPatrick McMullan\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

A party at The Beatrice Inn on February 6, 2007 in New York City.<\/p>\n

He had come of age during the era of legendary downtown spots like The Beatrice Inn and Bungalow 8\u2014rooms that drove the city\u2019s social life in the early 2000s. \u201cThere was Rose Bar as well,\u201d he adds. \u201cThese places really defined New York for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pandemic accelerated their disappearance. But when McDermott met Hauer-King, the idea of building something new began to take shape. \u201cIt\u2019s not that we decided to do this,\u201d he says. \u201cIn a way, it was already happening, and we were just in the right place.\u201d<\/p>\n

Art, History, and Community<\/p>\n

The space itself reflects that sense of layered storytelling\u2014it\u2019s home to what used to be the first commercial art gallery in New York City, The Downtown Gallery, by Edith Halpert. \u201cThis year is the centennial year of a gallery that used to be in this space,\u201d Hauer-King explains. \u201cIt\u2019s the reason we are a gallery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Working with curator Anne Parke<\/a>, People\u2019s rotates exhibitions from emerging artists and galleries, transforming the venue into a hybrid of nightlife destination and living art salon.<\/p>\n

\"24701<\/p>\n

People\u2019s used to be the historic Downtown Gallery in New York City. Today, it offers a collection of works curated by Anne Parke.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to find these little pockets of opportunity to tell a story,\u201d she says. \u201cTo honor history but also add something new.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even in a city with one of the world\u2019s densest restaurant and bar scenes, the pair felt there was still room for reinvention. \u201cIt always feels ridiculous to say something was missing in New York,\u201d Hauer-King admits. \u201cI think New York is one of the top three cities in terms of restaurants and bars per capita.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, People\u2019s has managed to carve out a distinctive niche, partly by embracing an almost radical concept in 2026: privacy.<\/p>\n

A Velvet-Rope Spirit\u2014Without the Phones<\/p>\n

Inside People’s, phones are discouraged. The policy is less about exclusivity than atmosphere. McDermott and Hauer-King wanted to recreate the kind of nightlife environment that flourished before social media turned every evening into a performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn old-school velvet-rope New York nightlife, there were always interesting, cool people in the mix,\u201d McDermott says. \u201cPart of the freedom for them was that we didn\u2019t all have social media out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"24701<\/p>\n

A look at the old-school velvet rope glamour at People\u2019s.<\/p>\n

The rule protects the eclectic crowd the venue attracts. \u201cIt would be cheeky of us to name names,\u201d Hauer-King says with a smile. \u201cBut I will say\u2014Jon Hamm loves a karaoke moment at People\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whoever you are, though, celebrity or newcomer, the philosophy remains the same. \u201cIf you\u2019re in this community,\u201d she says, \u201cyou\u2019re part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Passing the Torch<\/p>\n

For Jeremy King, watching his daughter build a new hospitality world of her own has been quietly gratifying.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love this transfer,\u201d he told her during their conversation. \u201cAs one gets older, one sees the children become the adults.\u201d With the reopening of Simpson\u2019s in the Strand and the growing success of People\u2019s in New York, the King family legacy now spans continents and generations.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Jeremy King and daughter, Margot Hauer-King in 2014.<\/p>\n

And if both father and daughter share one defining belief, it\u2019s that restaurants are about more than food or glamour. \u201cThey want a good drink, they want to eat something nice, they want the room to be pretty,\u201d Hauer-King says.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut they\u2019re coming for something more.\u201d To create that, she adds, \u201cyou need to give them a story.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Isabel McMahon is the social media editor at Town & Country. Previously, she ran socials for Women\u2019s Health, where she won multiple Webby and Anthem awards. Follow her on Instagram @ismcmahon.\u00a0<\/p>\n