The freehold of the building housing London's oldest restaurant, Rules in Covent Garden, has been donated to the National Trust. The charity announced that the £11 million gift, including the building at 34-35 Maiden Lane and historical items, will secure the future of a site where "kings dined and writers and politicians plotted."
Rules has operated from this location since 1798, when it first opened as an oyster bar. Over more than two centuries, it has witnessed the rise and fall of empires, survived the Blitz, and resisted plans for a dual carriageway. Its clientele has included Charles Dickens, Charlie Chaplin, Edward VII, Liza Minnelli, David Bowie, Harrison Ford, and Madonna.
A Gift of Living Heritage
The donation was made by J-P Mayhew, who has owned the restaurant for 40 years. In addition to the building, the gift includes visitor books, menus, caricatures, photographs, stained glass, and signs. The National Trust described it as a "rare example of living heritage," where both the historic structure and its original use as a restaurant remain intact.
The trust noted that the interior is exceptionally well preserved, with continuous restaurant operation for over two centuries. Since the 19th century, Rules has maintained the tradition of English "country house" cuisine. The gift also includes the annual rent from the ongoing restaurant business, which will fund conservation work each year.
Preserving an Invisible Atmosphere
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" ensures that "one of London's great living institutions will remain part of the city's cultural life," she added. The building includes rooms named after poet John Betjeman, who in 1971 defended Rules against Greater London Council plans to turn the Strand into a dual carriageway, and writer Graham Greene, who celebrated birthdays there and featured it in his novel The End of the Affair.
Future Secured for Generations
Mr Mayhew explained his decision: "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 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."
He added that the Trust will protect the building, its interior, and its "invisible atmosphere" in a way no one else could, safeguarding "two centuries' worth of stories for people to enjoy forever." Ricky McMenemy, the restaurant's proprietor who has worked there for 35 years, will become a commercial tenant of the National Trust. He welcomed the donation, 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 that continue to operate, including the George Inn in Southwark and the Crown Bar in Belfast, 34-35 Maiden Lane will be the first building in the charity's care to house an historic restaurant still in operation.
