Tea at The National Gallery

We don't know why we've never come here before, but we're very glad we've rectified that. It's surprisingly decadent for a gallery cafe. Some of them are pretty hideous after all. Yes, we're including the Tate Modern and British Library in that.

National dining rooms is different. It's a restaurant in its own right. The menu is full of everything you could ask for from afternoon tea to a full three course meal. And it actually seems pretty reasonably priced.

We only stayed for tea (£2.20 for a large pot) and we were shocked at how relaxing it was in here. Despite the fact that it's very swish. There are booths hidden away so you don't feel like you're being imposed on by the next table. The staff are polite and the tea was actually really good. And you know how much Glitterbitch likes her tea. Although looking at the cocktail menu we were tempted by those as well. Even if it was only midday.

We wish we'd found out about this place before. Now we have somewhere in town we can meet people and read books while we wait. It's somewhere that no one else seems to know about. Perhaps that's because only tourists go to the gallery now? Maybe it's best kept that way. That way we'll always be able to get a table at lunchtime.

You can find the National Dining Rooms inside the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. If you see Glitterbitch with a book and a cup of tea, try not to disturb her.

Flickr image from rudolf_schuba's photostream.