Rules Restaurant London National Trust: Oldest Restaurant Donated

Rules Restaurant London National Trust is the new chapter for London's oldest restaurant. Owner JP Mayhew has donated the historic building at 34 and 35 Maiden Lane to the heritage charity. The restaurant was founded in Covent Garden in 1798 and has changed hands only three times. Learn more on the official Rules website.

The £11m gift is one of the most valuable in the charity's recent history. It marks the National Trust's first move into the restaurant business. Rules has become a National Trust historic restaurant without losing its old world charm.

Rules Restaurant London National Trust Gift Explained

Mayhew bought Rules in 1984. He said the restaurant survived redevelopment plans, changing tastes and the blitz. He believes the National Trust will protect the place in a way no one else could. He added that the charity will safeguard its bricks and mortar, its famous interior and its invisible atmosphere.

Mayhew is donating the building and its contents. He sold the restaurant business in 2022 to Ricky McMenemy, its longstanding general manager. McMenemy will now become a commercial tenant of the National Trust.

What Will Change at London's Oldest Restaurant

Very little will change for diners. Lucy Porten, a national curator at the charity, said involvement day to day will be very light touch. The restaurant will always be run as a restaurant. She said it is not a National Trust menu and there will be no scones.

The menu stays determinedly meaty. Dishes include rabbit rillettes, shin of veal and roast guinea fowl. National Trust members will not get preferential access or prices. Porten said it is a business and it has to be successful. The charity is looking at virtual visits so people can feel they are visiting from afar.

A Historic Restaurant With Famous Guests

Rules has outlasted nine British monarchs and 45 prime ministers. Charles Dickens and Thackeray loved the place. It inspired Graham Greene. Charlie Chaplin, Laurence Olivier and Ava Gardner were favourites too.

The four storey building is packed with historic playbills, vintage caricatures and gilded antlers. Its interior is little changed from the 19th century. The trust already looks after 39 historic pubs and several country house hotels, including Cliveden in Buckinghamshire.

Porten said the site helps the charity tell histories that are hard to tell elsewhere. She called it an extraordinary slice of the social history of London.

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