The Wallace Restaurant

***Warning***
This girl has only had high tea once at Patisserie Valerie and she thought it was great.
On the tea trays the little nobs on the bottom were popped off of some of them. She didn’t mind.
Judge away.
So, now I’ll start my review. Aside from slow service, the afternoon tea I had with my husband and parents was wonderful. They were happy to provide us with vegetarian finger sandwiches instead of the usual ones with meat and the pastries and scones were truly lovely. The ambiance is also incredible because you’re sitting in these really cozy outdoorsy couches under a massive skylight in the middle of the Wallace Museum. Very very nice.
Afternoon tea is around 18.50 per person which is a much better deal than a lot of places. With that deal, you probably get slower service and a tea tray that has the bottom knob popped off. That was alright with us. The place was beautiful!

One of my favorite treats is to enjoy a day looking at beautiful art and have a great lunch when I need a break in the action. The Wallace provides top-​tier experiences in both categories!
Entrance to the Wallace Collection is free. Simply walk around either side of the grand staircase, through the beautiful room of French paintings to the interior glass-​covered courtyard, where you can enjoy the natural light all year and dine in either the café or the restaurant. Reservations are a good idea, since both fill quickly and diners tend to linger.
The food in both venues is delectable. On my last visit to the café, I had a wonderful cold roasted cauliflower and charred broccoli, crisp Parma ham, cumin yoghurt dressing. My good manners kept me from licking the plate!
The Peyton and Byrne-​run venues are perfect for tea or a special event. I attended a wedding shower there that was attentively served.

If you’re looking for that perfect afternoon tea experience, then don’t come here.
If you’re looking for an average food experience, with not expensive prices, in a beautiful setting, and you’re not after the very best of service, then this place might be for you.
If you’re new to the afternoon tea experience, this this might be a good start.
The museum is free, so I suppose that’s a bit of a saving grace, should you be making a day of it.
The food offerings were just about OK. The service was less than par. The crockery/​utensils were far from the best. But if you’re after a nice place to relax after visiting the Wallace Collection, then this might work for you. But don’t expect perfection.

Great for afternoon tea, and very affordable! The service was good and the scone was fresh. After wandering the Wallace, this is a good way to cool down or kill time.

The restaurant is situated in the picturesque inner courtyard of the Wallace collection, and is exactly the place to go for tea. The covered courtyard makes for a pleasant airy feel rain or shine, and the fare doesn’t disappoint.
The tea as you might expect is really just an excuse for the decadence of the food. The finger sandwiches are nice, the scones take it up a level, and the desserts will knock your socks off! The chocolate cake is literally a show stopper, we all had trouble finishing it.

I’ve been to the Wallace Collection a number of different times when I used to live in the heart of the city. It’s a beautiful building with a great history and an amazing set of artefacts. I’ve never been to the restaurant prior until a friend of mine who was visiting London suggested we go there. What a mistake.
The service was literally abysmal (as one Unilocaler had already put it). We ordered two Cornish Cream Teas (which were the ones with sandwiches) but the waiter who took our order said that «the system» said it was only cream teas (the ones with scones). Being in IT, it’s becoming increasingly popular to blame the computer, but not when you, sir, were the one who took our order.
The timeline was also a little ridiculous. We ordered, and only 10 minutes later did the teas arrive. 20 minutes after the teas arrived, did we have to chase them for our food, which appeared literally 2 minutes after they went to «check» why it had been forgotten. The sandwiches looked lifeless and the scones a little, well, crunchy. Slicing open the scones, you could see (whilst I’m no Paul Hollywood) that they were well underdone with a highly crusty exterior. I was appalled, spoke to the manager, and they returned the rather souless food to the kitchen. The only thing that has redeemed them from 1* to 2* is the fact that we were deeply apologetic, gave us the teas with compliments and we left relatively unscathed. Judging by the set of reviews here, it really seems like they’ve let themselves go here. I hope they start to really take notice.

Lovely setting and good food. Our server really went above and beyond the call of duty. I had some sort of incredible cake for dessert.

This place used to offer a very good vegetarian menu that was among the best in London. Unfortunately, they don’t do so anymore. They do have some vegetarian options in the prix-​fixe menu, but they are more limited. Service can be slow, but the food is usually good. Probably the best feature of this place is the setting.

As a complete surprise, my man treated me to a lovely afternoon tea. So, this will be a bit biased. I think the lovely, open venue is five star.
For about 19 quid each, I didn’t find the afternoon tea good value at all. The selection of desserts such as the beautifully baked scone and clotted cream were delicious, but the sandwiches, sloppily put together with crust still remaining did not impress me.
As another Unilocaler said, the service is non-​existent. We were served from a broken tea caddy and one of our ramekins (bowl) was broken and chipped! This would be a definite hazard and major oversight. We weren’t offered water and weren’t given complete information about what was available.
I would gladly pay more for a better quality high tea in such a beautiful space that made me feel like a woman of distinction in the ethereal, bright space. For the best value, I wouldn’t suggest the afternoon tea option but instead just ordering a pot of tea and a scone or slice of take for under a tenner earlier in the afternoon, just to make use of your time there.
I’m in need of afternoon tea recommendations now, after being so disappointed. Claridges, here I come!

Not even considering the fact that the restaurant and café are attached to a free museum should you bother going here. The food is over priced and mediocre at best and the service is abysmal. The prices on the menu are wrong and after you order the waiter might come back and tell you that everything you ordered was double what it said on the menu… if you are lucky.
The portions are very small, even my very slim vegetarian girlfriend was not served enough (and that’s hard to do). Expect to pay a minimum of £45 to not even get close to satisfied.
You can almost get used to the «optional» service/​tip that is included basically in every restaurant in London (regardless of the size of your party) but at a place like this when they tack on an additional 12.5% just because you had the misfortune of sitting down in their establishment it really stings.
Coming from California and eating out a lot, I’m used to tipping, even over tipping because people in the service industry there bust their ass to earn a good tip. Wow do I miss that after this experience.

Had a wonderful lunch here today. Not cheap but very high quality food and excellent service. If I had read the other reviews I might not have come, but we had excellent starters and main courses of fish which were perfectly cooked. Oh, yes, and don’t miss the collection as well.

Fantastic location, converted courtyard at the wonderful Wallace collection, food OK. However, the management has allowed this place to take the inevitable London slide down the pole of tired lazy service and management.
No Wi-​Fi. Its unforgivable that expensive rest stops like this in London do not have fast free Wi-​Fi. More Unilocal reviewers should point out Wi-​Fi failures and successes!

Although officially this is simply the catering aspect of the Wallace, believe me this wonderful café is a destination in its own right. The food is excellent. However, in rating and reviewing this venue I cannot ignore its raison d’être: the wonderful the Wallace Collection and Hertford House its shrine. In this place, all factors combine in perfect synergy make this venue the «must see» attraction that it is!
To put this place into context, I once had lunch here followed by Tea at the RItz, and the Wallace’s tea and sandwiches were indisputably superior. Needless to say, the Ritz can’t compete with the other attractions of the Wallace, and of course at the Ritz you need to increase your budget by a value greater than 2.

hmmm? I was reading some of the other reviews, did I miss something? I found the food to be very mediocre as was the service. Yes, it is beautiful and I love the Wallace Collection and home itself but will skip the restaurant next time… well after reading the other reviews I may give it another chance next time I’m in London.

as a california girl at my roots i love sunlight. as a san franciscan, im used to just accepting natural light as i can get it, even if its not exactly «Sunlight.» here in London we get used to various shades of gray. and rain. and wind. oy the elements.
so to find a nice place, with food and tea and LIGHT, (not to mention being surrounded by amazing art) is freaking amazing. you walk through the museum and then into this classically beautiful atrium. you are given the option of the simple and easy café, or the slightly more put together restaurant.
the service is not a high point. example: the other day i went for lunch with a time constraint of 1 hour and 15 min. that should have been enough time for mains and puddings. nope. no check back from the waiter, either. there were just some stupid little things that wernt good. like the bread was just in this metal basket with no napkin or anything, while the table next to us did. it just looked a bit sad with out. (i know, i know. its a freaking napkin. but my aunt and i just looked at eachother when he plopped the basket down, eyebrows raised.)
i had duck with blood orange jus and chese polenta. omg overcooked, but the sauce was lovely. my aunt had chicken stuffed with mascapone and carb with some kind of amazing sauce and chive mash. hers was amazing, although also a bit overcooked and way over seasoned. im an ex-​chef — thus have a tendency to be a bit gung ho about seasoning (read: i love salt), but i finished her plate for her, and my tongue was burned from the salt.
we waved around the dessert menus for a while after and finally just gave up. paid and left.
this was my 3^rd time. and its never spot on. but its good enough most of the time.

An «Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s» place. Care not about thy food (or price) if you love, love, love the light infused atrium-​courtyard of this fabulous gem of a museum in Marylebone. I would pay for the privilege of sitting leisurely on a Sunday with a champagne cocktail, croissant, and lousy ham & Gruyère omelette. This place is absolutely beautiful in the midmorning light, even on a cloudy London day. Food is secondary when the surrounding is so lovely.
There, I said it. It’s not always about the food. Sometimes, it’s all about the beauty of a museum restaurant with a fantastic covered courtyard. Meet your lover here. Meet your girlfriends here. Or come here alone and basked in the joy of simply being «present.»

Definitely my favorite tearoom I have been to so far, the Wallace Collection Restaurant provides a beautiful atmosphere for a afternoon tea. I have been here three times now and each time have had a delicious and pleasant experience. I usually get the Cornish tea: a pot of English breakfast tea, four finger sandwiches, and a scone with clotted cream and jam. The tea here is some of the best I have had as well, it is really strong and flavorful and the scones and clotted cream are melt in your mouth good. The Wallace Collection Restaurant is in an old mansion and is simply lovely. The Rococo style of the house is transferred into the tearoom, with its use of trees, plants, urns, statues, and exquisite wrought iron benches and chairs. Make sure to take a walk through the museum before or after your visit, it is gorgeous. The Restaurant also serves lunch foods including oysters, quiche and various salads, the perfect light fare to sustain your energy for Bond Street shopping.

a beautiful air conditioned courtyard located within a free museum.
a hidden gem in a treasure trove.
a romantic place for that secret tryst.
having checked out their website and their menu, i was longing for their steak tartare.
but alas it was not to be, the menu at the restaurant to my dismay was different.
in the end, we settled for the set menu.
2 course for 19.50 and 3 for 23.
limited choices and the lack of a meat option might be a turn off for some.
the goat’s cheese salad with beetroot and watercress was nicely put together.
smooth creamy goat’s cheese that was not overly pungent.
crunchy, slightly bitter watercress added a nice bite.
never knew beetroot came in yellow colour!
together with the deep red ones, they added colour and sweetness to the salad.
a touch of olive oil and vinegar completed the dish.
only complain was that the watercress looked slightly yellow.
the pumpkin soup was nicely creamy and truffled.
the coarse goose pâté was delish!
not overly fatty yet spread well over the toasted rustic bread.
the roasted sea bass was a real treat for the eye.
nicely plated and tasted good too.
crispy skin sea bass, crunchy savoy cabbage with savoury bacon, and a dollop of silky creamy mash with lobster jus to accompany.
the vegetarian option was really healthy indeed!
tender stem broccolis, jerusalem artichokes and roast spelt.
tasted better than they looked.
and definitely a high fibre diet!
the artichokes were perfectly cooked and could easily have been passed off as yummy roast potatoes.
roast spelt, which was an important staple in parts of Europe from the Bronze Age to medieval times, is part of the wheat family and tasted like al dente barley.
the lemon tart to finish was nicely tart with a layer of crusty sweet caramelised top.
a complete package and a winner in my books.
the only complain i can think of is the not so comfy seats!

After having walked around and taken in the galleries of the Wallace Collection, you find yourself in its beautiful, extremely airy courtyard, which is where the restaurant is situated. The space is immense, with tons of natural light penetrating through the glass ceiling of this over sized conservatory like area.
The menu is very French, and has a dish which, I find, seems to be quite a rarity on French menus here nowadays, that is Steak Tartare. They do theirs with a periguort truffle vinaigrette, which is laid out in an unfussy manner, but most importantly fresh and well seasoned.
The entrecôte of beef, done medium rare, with frites along with a good dollop of bearnaise sauce was wholesome and wonderfully filling. Their desserts consisted of such sweet tooth inducing dishes as Tarte Tatin (caramelised apple with puff pastry), Tarte au Chocolat amer (bitter chocolate tart), and Crème Brulee a la vanille (vanilla cream with caramelised sugar).
Very French, very calorific-​ally inducing, but all mouthwateringly so.