Established in 1798, the Covent Garden institution has served generations of diners through wars, changing tastes and redevelopment threats. London’s oldest restaurant, Rules, has entered a new chapter after the historic building that houses it was donated to the National Trust.
The annual rent from the restaurant business will also support the charity’s conservation work, the Associated Press reported. The donation includes visitor books, menus, photographs, caricatures, stained glass and signs that document the restaurant’s history.
Rules restaurant’s 228-year history
The restaurant has welcomed notable figures including Charles Dickens, Charlie Chaplin, David Bowie and Madonna. Rules’ survival, however, was not always guaranteed. Poet John Betjeman spoke in its defence at a planning meeting, arguing that the atmosphere of a historic establishment could not simply be recreated elsewhere. One of its dining rooms is now named after the poet in recognition of his role in its preservation. The restaurant also endured the Second World War and the Blitz.
In 1971, plans by the Greater London Council to turn the Strand into a dual carriageway threatened the restaurant with demolition. In a 2001 report for The Guardian , restaurant critic Jay Rayner recounted Betjeman’s defence of Rules and noted that the restaurant was saved following the planning meeting.
King Edward VII also reportedly met his mistress there, according to an Associated Press report published by ABC News. Rules continued serving traditional British food through wartime shortages and rationing, helping preserve culinary traditions that became less common elsewhere in Britain, according to the National Trust.
The restaurant business itself is owned by Ricky McMenemy, who has worked at Rules for 35 years. He will continue running it as a commercial tenant under the National Trust, allowing the restaurant to retain its identity and continue welcoming diners.
