Tate Britain wine cellar to reopen after £45m refurb

By Emily Kearns

Published: 05 August, 2013

Tate Britain's Whistler Restaurant, renowned for its extensive wine cellar, is due to reopen this autumn after a £45 million refurbishment.

The Whistler Restaurant opened in 1972 and quickly garnered a reputation for its wine offering, predominantly featuring European classics, as well as boasting one of the largest collection of half-bottles in London.

The restaurant was widely known for purchasing fine wines en primeur and selling them to diners at little over cost price, and is considered to be one of the few restaurants that buys wine in advance and cellars it.

Hamish Anderson, wine buyer for the Tate, said: "I am not a fan of even the best preservation systems, wine inevitably changes and then spoils once opened.

"We offer a small range by the glass, but it is the 60-plus half bottles that present the customer with choice, encouraging experimentation along with food-and-wine-matching potential."

The Whistler Restaurant's official launch party will take place on November 18 and from then on the first Friday of every month will see it play host to various wine, food and art-inspired events.

Printer friendly version