Overlooking Trafalgar Square, The National Gallery was founded by Parliament in 1824, and houses one of the best collections of paintings in the world.
From small beginnings as a private collection of 38 paintings, it has grown to more than 2,300 art treasures by Cezanne, Degas, Leonardo, Monet, Raphael, Rembrandt, Renoir, Rubens, Titian, Turner, Van Dyck, Van Gogh and Velázquez.
The afternoon tea at Ochre includes scones, finger sandwiches, cakes and macaroons plus a chocolate paintbrush on an artist’s palette (Image: Ochre)
As the gallery grew, it soon became clear that a town house in Pall Mall was too small to house the national collection, and by 1838 the current building, designed by architect William Wilkins, had opened its doors.
Last year, the free gallery was visited by nearly three million people to see paintings, which date from the late 13th century to the early 20th century and include Constable’s The Hay Wain, Monet’s waterlilies, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, and Leonardo da Vinci’s The Virgin of the Rocks.
Earlier this month, there were concerts, activities, and a spectacular light show illuminating the facade of the building with some of its famous works to kick off a year of festivities.
A dozen of the gallery’s most famous paintings have been temporarily loaned to museums and art galleries across the UK (Image: PA)
The gallery has also loaned 12 of their famous paintings to museums around the UK so that art lovers living outside London get a chance to see the likes of Velazquez’ The Rokeby Venus, or Turner’s The Fighting Temeraire.
Fear not, there are still hundreds of masterpieces to see in London, and after a tour of the galleries you are likely to feel hungry and thirsty.
Luckily Ochre, the modern British restaurant housed in one of the gallery’s wings serves an all day menu, that now includes a special Bicentenary Afternoon Tea.
Ochre is an all day restaurant in The National Gallery’s wing which is serving a special bicentenary afternoon tea (Image: Ochre)
It was launched on the gallery’s birthday, May 10, and has been curated by Head Pastry chef Rebecca Morrison with an appropriately artistic eye.
Not only are there featherlight scones – plain and fruit – with thick clotted cream and a duo of home made jams, but you can tuck into a quartet of crusts-off finger sandwiches; egg mayonnaise, a ham and tomato, a smoked salmon and dill creme fraiche, and as Oscar Wilde’s character Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest would agree, exceptionally moreish cucumber and Cornish butter sandwiches.
Morrison also delivers a duo of cakes, one a delicate choux filled with luscious lemon cream and topped with a chocolate square featuring the outline of the gallery and NG200.
There’s also a miniature birthday cake, complete with edible white chocolate candle, which has a vanilla chocolate casing concealing the lightest sponge sandwiched with a lovely tart passionfruit jam.
But her finest stroke is an artists’ palette with colourful blue and pink macaroons and two rich chocolate edible paintbrushes, filled with mousse and daubed with gorgeous raspberry coulis.
The extensive menu of loose-leaf teas ranges from India and China to Japan and come with tasting notes. We enjoyed an Early Grey with the lightest hint of citrussy bergamot, and a 2nd flush Darjeeling.
With its high ceilings, comfy gold velvet banquettes and white napery, the setting is elegant. Attentive staff come around to top up your pot of tea, and if you feel like raising a toast to the gallery, you can order a glass of either English sparkling or Laurent Perrier Champagne – or choose the specially created cocktail ‘Bicentenary Blush ‘ cocktail with Woodford Reserve Whiskey, Disaronno, lemon juice, sugar and bitters.
Cheers, and here’s to another 200 years.
Ochre’s Bicentenary Afternoon Tea is priced £55.00 per person or £65.00 with a cocktail or glass of Champagne and is available at The National Gallery until 14 September 2024.
