Tate Britain Cafe

The Tate Britain’s café for members is a really beautiful spot on the top floor of the museum. I had a glass of wine there with a friend and enjoyed the ambiance. Surrounded by beautiful marble, you feel like you’re in another world and not an art museum. The wine selection was very strong but the servings were meager, which would be my one critique. However, as a Tate member, I will be returning soon!

So the current Tate Britain Café is under refurbishment, and so they have moved it outside for the time being. And the result is… eh.
It’s hard to miss, walk right of the main stance doors and come across a giant tent. Inside, you have a small counter for a bar, a small counter for coffee and a small counter for some treats. There are seats inside the tent (which kind of makes you feel like you’re eating inside a greenhouse or a fish tank) and seats outside.
I got a cappuccino and it was nice, although I was sitting at a table and they brought it to me in a paper cup, which was a little strange.
On a beautiful day, this place might be nice. But as winter is coming for London, it’s going to be a lot less nice very quickly.

I don’t know if the basement café referred to by the last reviewer is still there, but there is now a new café inside the entrance hall to the Tate Britain.
It isn’t anything particularly special but it is nice enough and I really wanted to mention it for the prices. Often these art galleries and heritage venues price their refreshments like they think we’re made of money. For a nice change, the prices here were pretty reasonable, especially for a place a stone’s thrown from Westminster.
It was the usual selection of teas, cookies, and cakes (and possibly more sensible savoury stuff but, as usual, I wasn’t looking). The service was good and the staff came across as genuinely friendly, which is no mean feat at 6pm on a Friday evening.
If you have any afternoon, I’d definitely recommend reacquainting yourself with Tate Modern’s more reflective older sister and visiting the galleries and then discussing them over tea.

Seriously, don’t eat here. The egg salad sandwich will poison you, if you don’t suffocate in the basement first. For starving blood sugar emergencies only.

After a trek along the Embankment to Millbank a good reward is a bite to eat at Tate Britain’s café. Either before perusing the art or to relax after there is a wide range of good value food and excellent coffee on offer. It’s cheaper than Tate Modern too! It’s not too crowded, even on a Saturday like today. Although a member I prefer the public café to the members’ room as it is more spacious.
If they have the leek & potato soup do not pass the chance to taste this delight.

In the basement, this is a busy, clattery place — not the venue for a quiet tete a tete. They do a good range of boxed fresh salads (good for a picnic outside), and a good range of cakes, including gluten free, like moist banana and almond. Coffee is excellent (Illy), and they offer a good range of teas (Assam, Darjeeling, Breakfast, Earl Grey etc).

Tate Britain’s café is worth the journey, even if you’re not viewing the exhibits (but oyu’d be a fool not to!). I had an excellent lunch here a few weeks ago, and would thoroughly recommend it. Nice and cool too, being in the basement. Oh and good coffee too!

After a long and tiring browse at the fascinating and beautiful Pre-​Raphaelite collection in the Tate Britain (it’s a hard life), you may find yourself a bit peckish. Or, if you are like me and got out of bed too late for breakfast, absolutely starving. Well don’t worry, downstairs is a café which sells some really, really, good grub. It isn’t the prettiest or cosiest of café’s but it is certainly one of tastiest.
The layout is kind of like a canteen and looks a bit like it is going to be really bad food, but it is definitely not. I think the queuing and trays thing is just to get the vast amount of hungry visitors served quickly. And as the gallery itself is free, they need to make as much money elsewhere as possible. I chose the Soup of the Day with bread (mixed veg), a chicken and leak pie with salad, and a juice. The soup was absolutely gorgeous and not too hot. It was a mix of carrot and parsnip and other beauty’s and was a sweet and much needed pick me up. The pie, although very small, was jam packed with chunks of good quality chicken breast, and came with a really fresh side salad. It was just what I needed and filled me up well. This, along with my companions salmon and wild rice salad with juice came to just £20 all together.
If you are planning on a special visit the restaurant would be a much better choice as the café is more of a canteen and it feels slightly rushed.

In between spending your day meandering through the museum, this is a good place to grab a bite and something to drink. However, being situated underground level means it can get a bit stuffy, and the décor is rather bland. Not a place you’d really want to hang around for long.
However, they do do a lovely tea set with scones, clotted cream and jam — always something I can’t resist, as well as a range of sandwiches and hot food.