World's oldest museum cafe is one of the most beautiful in the UK

Scottish Sun

26-04-2025

It was one of the first ever museums to have a cafe
COFFEE BREAK World's oldest museum cafe is one of the most beautiful in the UK
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THE WORLD'S oldest museum cafe can be found in the UK - and it's barely changed in 150 years.
Found inside the Victoria and Albert Museum, the ornate room dates back to 1868.
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The cafe opened to the public in 1868
Credit: ©Victoria & Albert Museum, London
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There are three themed sections to the cafe
Credit: ©Victoria & Albert Museum, London
Originally designed by James Gamble, William Morris and Edward Poynter, the V&A's cafe features opulent decorations showcasing the style of the Victorian era.
The cafe has been serving customers for over 150 years and was the first of its kind.
Museums originally never used to have cafes or anywhere for visitors to rest and enjoy refreshments, until Henry Cole came up with the idea of introducing an in-house refreshment room.
Cole had learnt about the needs of visitors when he managed The Great Exhibition in 1851.
One of the things that was high priority for visitors, was being fed and watered.
Many other museums took until the 20th century to introduce a refreshment room.
Large lights hang from the ceiling, stained glass windows litter the walls, grand arches stretch across the structure and colourful ceramic tiles line the floors.
The cafe essentially splits into three sections, each designed by a different artist.
The Gamble Room was designed by James Gamble, the Poynter Room by Edward J. Poynter, and The Morris Room by William Morris.
Over the past 15 decades, not much inside the cafe has changed.
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Artwork is spread across the walls, and there are a number of fascinating artefacts to gaze at.
The Gamble Room, which was originally known as the Centre Refreshment Room, was the largest and intended to be the first room visitors saw.
The room features a Renaissance Revival style, with colourful tiles and enamelled ceiling plates and was even compared to the glitz of Paris at the time.
The Poynter Room, was initially the Grill Room, and features blue-toned tiles with Dutch influences.
Eastern-inspired motifs including peacocks and waves, depictions of the months, seasons and zodiacs can also be seen across the room.
The tiles were painted by female art students, which was an unusual commission for women at the time.
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William Morris even designed a section of the cafe
Credit: ©Victoria & Albert Museum, London
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The cafe is open everyday, 10am to 5pm
Credit: Alamy
The third room, the Morris Room, was originally the Green Dining Room and designed by Morris before he was famous.
The room features a Gothic Revival and Elizabethan style with olive branch decorations, hares and hounds, and stained glass windows.
The three rooms all opened to the public in 1868 and were designed to showcase a range of different contemporary styles.
In addition, originally there were different menus for different social classes.
The Victoria and Albert Museum's (V&A) cafe, located in London, is open from 10am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and serves a variety of different coffees, pastries, sandwiches, salads, cakes, freshly baked scones and speciality teas.
London is also home to a weird museum located underneath an office, and it is free to enter.
Plus, a major new museum is due to open in the city in 2027.