For decades, London’s private members’ clubs have defined a certain vision of luxury: discreet townhouses, influential guest lists and dining rooms where the biggest deal of the evening might never be mentioned. Now that model is rapidly making its way across the Atlantic.

Over the past year, a string of London’s best-known clubs have announced or opened New York outposts. Robin Birley has launched Maxime’s on the Upper East Side, while The Twenty Two has established a Manhattan location following its debut in London’s Grosvenor Square. Annabel’s is also preparing to open in the Meatpacking District, continuing the British invasion of New York’s members’ club scene.

The latest arrival, however, has encountered resistance. Maison Estelle, the Mayfair club founded by Sharan Pasricha’s Ennismore hospitality group, plans to transform a five-storey mansion between Madison and Fifth avenues into a private club complete with a rooftop terrace. The proposal has drawn objections from neighbouring residents concerned about late-night noise and the impact on what is primarily a residential neighbourhood. The local community board voted 29 to 13 to recommend rejecting the club’s liquor licence application.

The debate highlights a cultural contrast between London and New York. In the British capital, private clubs have become fixtures of neighbourhoods such as Mayfair, where restaurants, bars, hotels and members’ spaces exist side by side. In Manhattan, the recent wave of luxury clubs has been greeted with greater scepticism, particularly when they arrive on quieter residential streets.

Whether New York embraces London’s members’ club culture remains to be seen. What is clear is that some of Britain’s most influential hospitality brands now see the city as their next great opportunity, even if winning over the neighbours proves harder than attracting members.