The Rex Whistler Restaurant

Restaurant · Westminster

The Rex Whistler Restaurant

Restaurant · Westminster

1

Tate Britain Art Gallery, Millbank, London SW1P 4JU, United Kingdom

Photos

The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by Jeffrey Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null
The Rex Whistler Restaurant by null

Highlights

British cuisine, fine wines, mural by namesake artist  

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Tate Britain Art Gallery, Millbank, London SW1P 4JU, United Kingdom Get directions

@tate

$$

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Tate Britain Art Gallery, Millbank, London SW1P 4JU, United Kingdom Get directions

+44 20 7887 8825
@tate
𝕏
@Tate

$$

Features

alcohol
wine
lunch
brunch

Last updated

Oct 26, 2025

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@eater

Tate Closes Rex Whistler Restaurant After Criticism of Racist Mural - Eater London

"The Rex Whistler at the Tate Britain, a restaurant inside the prestigious Pimlico art gallery named after the artist, has permanently closed — a decision which comes nearly two years after the dining room’s mural, The Expedition in Pursuit of Rare Meats by Whistler, commissioned in 1926 — a work which features numerous racist images — faced a widespread backlash." - Adam Coghlan

https://london.eater.com/23006523/rex-whistler-restaurant-racist-mural-tate-britain
View Postcard for The Rex Whistler Restaurant

You Z

Google
Unlike many other comments, RW becomes one of my best memories in London. Food was superb. Service fine.

Matthew de Ridder

Google
My partner and I had an excellent experience today and so we will definitely be back. Very nice starter - I had the veal - my partner was delighted with the beef main course. Nice desserts and greats wines... We always like to see Kate and the waitresses and manager were accommodating and gracious.

Simon Phipps

Google
We came for brunch on a Saturday. Everything about the experience was excellent - perfect presentation, fresh ingredients, excellent friendly service and a historic location set in the centre of Rex Whistler's magnum opus. We especially like the fact the restaurant takes stand on paying staff a living wage and not requesting tips as a result. The fact the profits support public art is also rewarding.

Alexandra Gralla

Google
We went for the jazz brunch and decided not to have eggs, but oysters and other dishes from their lunch menu. The location is beautiful, completely unexpected in the Tate. We particularly liked the staff, who were professional, yet very approachable and had a good sense of humour.

Oran Davis

Google
Surprisingly bad service at this classic English restaurant. Be aware you need to like high brow English food or you might be disappointed. The service was sub par both unfriendly and slow a deadly combinations for enjoyment. Paid £71 for 2 people 3 course meals which was marginal value. Beware of the optional but included £1 donation and if you proceed without warning to desert, you're being charged for 3 courses

Paz Beniamini

Google
The food was very refined and the dishes were well designed and crafted, especially the mint flavoured mousse. The atmosphere was very pleasing, but also quite posh. Prices are somewhat on the high side.

Ed Burgess

Google
Very poor and pompous service from waiters. Nearly empty so not good atmosphere. But to top it all I was m poisoned with cockles that smelt strongly of ammonia - they should never have left the kitchen. Am holed up with food poisoning - great!

Mukul Raj Rai

Google
Excellent food. Was there for my sisters birthday. The best part was how knowledgable servers were about the wine and the food that goes with it. Wine was also very very fine. I highly recommend.
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Alice C.

Yelp
We had not reserved enough time to visit the Tate Britain. On top of that, we didn't have lunch and were feeling rather hungry. Luckily, the current generation of art museums usually offer decent contemporary cuisine, and the Tate is one of them. We decided to dine here to absorb in the atmosphere before running to the exhibit.. on hind sight, we might have spent too much time eating, too little time browsing the exhibits. Ah well, you gotta make do! The lunch menu is scrumptious, to say the least. It is a set lunch but you can choose the number of items you want. The lamb chops with potato au gratin was excellent, especially the potatoes -- everyone raved about them. The sea bass over a cream sauce with peas and leeks was seared to perfection with crispy skin. Everything is almost too fancy for lunch. The portions were just right (not too large, not too skimpy), and the setting does make the price worth it. If only they do dinner service, then you could go round the exhibits before stuffing yourself silly!
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Mei S.

Yelp
Bought my friend here for a birthday treat and she loved it, felt thoroughly spoilt. An excellent venue for a special occasion, including a visit to the beautiful art gallery. The service was excellent and so was the food, beautifully presented, and organic white wine, in a carafe, great if you don't want a whole bottle, and a glass is just not enough. Book the set menu and you can have a really good value fine dining experience, in a relaxing and beautiful dining room.
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Paul G.

Yelp
A recent lunch was a revelation. Wild duck had more flavour than I've had in duck in many years. Vegetable sides are extra, but their chips are superb. Butternut squash ravioli was nice if you like that sort of thing. For dessert I had Black Forest Gateau - not the sixties wedge, but a sundae of chocolate mousse, cherry compote, and chocolate cake. Brilliant. Great Illy coffee. Now, if only Jeffrey Archer hadn't been dining there, it would have been perfect! Good service too. Pricey though - £60 for two, and 15% service added automatically. The a la carte runs out at roughly £6 per starter, £15 per main, £4 per side, £6 per dessert. It's popular none the less. Worth it for an occasional splurge.
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rich k.

Yelp
This was an unexpected find given that it is located in a museum, however, the food was exceptional and accompanied by a premier wine list. Be prepared to pay for a gourmet meal.

Julie H.

Yelp
I had the scallops and the trout. Apparently the complaints of those who got just two scallops were heard - now there are three. The scallops dish was good but not fabulous. The trout was kind of lame - trout, sweet potato and broccoli doesn't really work together. Pretty venue and good service.

Oran D.

Yelp
Food was acceptable but overpriced. Service was borderline rude. Slow waiters wandering around in a half empty restaurant at 1pm on Saturday before the last week of Hockney's exhibition shows that word had gotten around about this lousy service experience.
google avatar

Qype User (impavi…)

Yelp
I had a truly sumptuous and delicious English breakfast in this restaurant, one of the best ever. The cappuccino was top. I had to have two as it was the best I had outside of Italy. Top marks for this restaurant, though expect to pay for this level of service and food. Ideal for the occasional splurge though and to impress visitors.

Qype User (emian…)

Yelp
After seeing the brilliant and beautiful Henry Moore exhibit last night, our party needed some refreshment. We headed to the cafe', but it was closed. So, the friendly maitre d' directed our attention to the restaurant and what a lovely surprise it turned out to be. Dinner is by set menu: £20 for two courses or £25 for three, a selection of sides for £3.95 each, and a stunning wine list. I chose the blood orange and carrot soup starter and the pasta with spinach, mushrooms and cream. The soup was spot on for a cold, rainy night chill with the tartness of the blood oranges tempering the sweetness of the carrots. The consistency of the soup was great - grainy enough so one knew it was made freshly, yet not stodgy - and they used the slightest smidge of cream as a garnish, rather than basing the soup in cream. The pasta was well cooked, but not al dente (but that's ok with me sometimes) and the mushrooms were very tasty. My dining companions were as pleased with their meals as I was with mine. Service was friendly, attentive and prompt. Much more so than I would have expected. Kudos! The restaurant is situated in the basement of the museum and has no windows. That is ok, actually, because the walls are decorated by a, literally, fantastic mural painted in 1927 by Rex Whistler especially for the Tate. According to the website, "in the mural Whistler presents an imaginary world in which Classical, Renaissance and Georgian architecture sit next to ancient chariots, modern bicycles, and landscapes ranging from the far east, jungles and the pastoral European countryside."
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Qype User (emjess…)

Yelp
My better half treated me to a stunning three-course lunch here on my birthday last week, and I was thoroughly spoilt rotten with the food, service and atmosphere. The wall-to-wall Whistler mural makes this restaurant a pleasure to eat in, absolutely beautiful and definitely keeps you occupied while waiting for service although we never had to wait for service at all despite it being 2pm and a full house. The boy had the a la carte and I went for the set menu (purely because it had every dish I wanted on it). I tucked into a lentil mulligatawny soup warming but light and full of nice little chunks; then onto a melt-in-the-mouth roast chicken breast followed by a huge choc and cointreau torte (which I couldn't finish despite really wanting to!). Hubby had a giant steak and posho onion rings and we both agreed it was the best food we'd had in a good while. The three-course set menu was £25 and I don't think I've ever thought food should cost that much, but this is actually worth the splurge! Plus the matching wines\ports\sherries are reasonably priced with the set menu both my port and the half-bottle of pinot noir we had were to die for. I think the a la carte three courses were nearer £50, which is the only reason we wouldn't be regular visitors! But I couldn't recommend treating yourself to this little gem enough.
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Chris B.

Yelp
Top of the line restaurant. Marvelous service. Had a wonderful Pimms. Truly enjoyed the fish and wine. Bit on the pricey side, but worth every penny. And yes, the have linen serviettes (something top eateries were missing)