£11m site of London’s oldest restaurant given to the National Trust

The home of London’s oldest restaurant has been donated to the National Trust.

The charity said the £11 million freehold gift of 34-35 Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, central London, which has housed Rules since 1798, would secure the future of a building where “kings dined and writers and politicians plotted”.

The donation, from the restaurant's owner of 40 years J-P Mayhew, also covers items such as visitor books, menus, caricatures, photographs, stained glass and signs.

The gift also includes the annual rent from the ongoing restaurant business which will go into conservation work each year.

Since opening as an oyster bar at the end of the 18th century, Rules has outlasted empires, survived the Blitz and plans for a dual carriageway, and welcomed generations of high-profile figures from Charles Dickens to Charlie Chaplin, as well as Edward VII, who would rendezvous with his mistresses there.

Its diners have also included Liza Minnelli, David Bowie, Harrison Ford and Madonna.

There are rooms named after poet John Betjeman, who gave an impassioned speech in defence of the restaurant and its “invisible atmosphere” when Maiden Lane was under threat of development, and writer Graham Greene, who had birthday meals there and featured it in his novel The End Of The Affair.

The trust described it as a “rare example of living heritage” where both the historic structure and the original use of the building – a restaurant – remain intact.

Its interior is very well preserved and has seen more than two centuries of continuous restaurant operation, which since the 19th century has maintained the tradition of English “country house” cuisine, the charity said.

Hilary McGrady, director-general of the National Trust, said: “This place is an outstanding piece of living history, with its corners where kings dined and writers and politicians plotted, and the traditions it kept alive through wars and upheaval.

“It has defied the odds to be standing here today, doors still open and treacle sponge still on the menu.

“Mr Mayhew’s extraordinary generosity, and the care he has poured into Rules over many decades, mean this beloved place has a future measured not in years but generations.

“His gift ensures that one of London’s great living institutions will remain part of the city’s cultural life, with all its stories, traditions and character intact.”

Mr Mayhew said: “There are few restaurants in the world that have endured the test of time like Rules.

“With many years of hard work, and some extraordinary strokes of luck, it has survived everything from redevelopment plans and changing tastes to the Blitz.

“When John Betjeman defended Rules from the GLC’s (Greater London Council) plans to turn the Strand into a dual carriageway in 1971, he spoke not only of the paintings, sculptures, stained glass and red plush seats, but of its ‘invisible atmosphere’.

“My gift to the National Trust is in answer to that appeal.

“The Trust will protect this place in a way that no-one else could, safeguarding its bricks and mortar, its famous interior and its invisible atmosphere, too.

“I am grateful to them for believing in this idea and for protecting this building and two centuries’ worth of stories for people to enjoy forever.”

The restaurant’s proprietor Ricky McMenemy, who has worked there for 35 years, will become a commercial tenant of the National Trust.

He welcomed the donation to the National Trust, saying: “As an independent business, it gives us both the security and peace of mind that our home will be in very good hands and be protected and secure going forward.

“Having already established a very amicable working relationship with the Trust, we look forward to another two centuries in this, our home.”

While the National Trust cares for 39 historic pubs which continue to operate today, from the George Inn in Southwark to the Crown Bar in Belfast, 34-35 Maiden Lane will be the first building in the charity’s care to house an historic restaurant that is still in operation, it said.