Rules (restaurant)

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Rules
Interactive map of Rules
Restaurant information
Established1798
Owners
Previous owner
John Mayhew
Food typeBritish cuisine
Location34-35 Maiden Lane, London, United Kingdom
Websiterules.co.uk

51°30′39″N 0°07′24″W / 51.5108°N 0.1232°W / 51.5108; -0.1232 Rules is a restaurant on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, London, England. It was founded in 1798 by Thomas Rule and describes itself as London's oldest restaurant.[1] In 2026, the building became a National Trust property.

History

View of the interior

Rules was opened by Thomas Rule in 1798, primarily as an oyster bar but served, and continues to serve, traditional British cuisine. Rules specialises in game, much of which is supplied by the Lartington Hall estate in Teesdale, owned by former Rules owner John Mayhew.[2][3]

The restaurant stayed in the Rule family until World War I, when Charles Rule swapped businesses with Thomas Bell. Bell's daughter subsequently sold the restaurant to John Mayhew in 1984.[4] In 2022, the business was sold by Mayhew to Ricky McMenemy, who had worked at the restaurant for over 35 years, with Mayhew retaining the freehold.[5] Rules has been frequented by Henry Irving and Laurence Olivier, amongst others.[4]

The restaurant has featured in novels by Graham Greene, Dick Francis, Dorothy L. Sayers and Evelyn Waugh. John Betjeman complained to the Greater London Council in 1971 when the restaurant was under threat from demolition.[6]

The then-head chef of Rules, Rory Kennedy, was featured in the Japanese cooking series Iron Chef, where he challenged Hiroyuki Sakai. They finished in a draw for the theme of European rabbit. A tiebreaker was held with the theme of pigeon, which Sakai won. Later in the year, Kennedy died after falling from a flight of stairs.[7]

In 2026, the owner, John Mayhew, donated the freehold of the building to the National Trust as an inalienable gift, meaning it could not be sold on.[8] The restaurant business had previously been bought by its manager, Ricky McMenemy, who became a tenant of the trust.[9]

References

  1. "Rules restaurant website". Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  2. "London's Oldest Restaurant". Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  3. Day Lewis, Tamasin (19 October 2000). "Shooting for your supper is always fair game here". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  4. "History of Rules". Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  5. "History of Rules Restaurant, London's Oldest Restaurant". Rules Restaurant. Retrieved 7 December 2025.
  6. Rayner, Jay (14 October 2001). "Rules, Covent Garden". The Observer. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  7. Rules head chef Kennedy dies in tragic stairway fall. thecaterer.com. Retrieved 17/7-2018
  8. Rayner, Jay (14 October 2026). "Home of London's oldest restaurant, Rules, given to National Trust". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 October 2026.
  9. "Home of London's oldest restaurant Rules given to National Trust". BBC News. 14 October 2026. Retrieved 14 October 2026.