Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Tuesday Tasties No.45 - The Rex Whistler Al Fresco Picnic - A Review

Something that seems to be quintessentially British is to dine al fresco and have a picnic with Pimms. Naturally any picnic plans seem to be hampered by the rain, but on this occasion, I got lucky! 

Ad and I have been trying to get out more and see more of London so this weekend we decided to venture to the Tate Britain to try out the picnic lawn at the Rex Whistler Restaurant which comes complete with picnic blankets and deck chairs. How very British of us!
Naturally the most important question upon our arrival was what to drink? As we were getting into the spirit of things, we opted for a jug of the Tate Pimms, rather than the traditional stuff. The difference being the Tate Pimms is much more refreshing and less sweet than what I was used to, the Tate stuff is served with rosemary, mint and cucumber as opposed to all the fruit you'd usually expect.
As I've already said, Ad and I came to the Tate Britain to sample the Rex Whistler Picnic which we'd booked a few weeks ago to ensure we weren't left waiting for a picnic spot. The terrace felt as though it had been set up just for us, it was really lovely with a great attention to detail, there was even a dedicate space for our drinks.
It was great to have both the picnic blanket and the deck chair to choose from, I'll be honest, after a while things can get a little numb on the old bum department when sat on the grass. Moving swiftly onto the picnic hamper, yes, I said picnic hamper!
It's obviously not a picnic without a hamper and this one was wonderful at only £28.50 for the two of us (excluding the Pimms of course).
I'll give you a moment to take in all of the gorgeous treats which you see before you and then I'll show you some of the highlights.
So what did we get in our hamper? A selection of cheeses including cheddar, this lovely creamy white cheese you can see above (it tasted similar to a mild goats cheese) and something blue which remained in the hamper as both Ad and I cannot stand blue cheese. Then there was some smoked duck, some rather delicious ham and a smoked salmon pate which was just incredible. Apparently the pate had been made from scratch on site, I seriously need the recipe for this as it was yummy and probably my favourite part of the picnic!
We also had a selection of bread rolls, biscuits, and an ale chutney to accompany all of the savoury elements.
Oh, and these rather enormous olives. I had to take these home with me as Ad isn't a fan and I couldn't bear to waste them.

Our hamper also included some strawberries, two scones, some clotted cream and raspberry preserve. Unfortunately I was rather taken in by the delightful company and the Pimms and forgot to take a photo so you'll need to take my word that they were wonderful. There's just something about clotted cream and jam on a scone that makes me all nostalgic and somewhat forgetful.
All in all, I had a great time at the Rex Whistler, the staff were attentive and friendly, the food was fantastic and the great weather was a bonus. Once we paid the bill we were left to own our own devices and decided to dawdle around the Tate Britain and take in some of the new exhibits. This was a lovely way to spend an afternoon in London and meant we were able to check off some new things on our list of bits and pieces to do. If you fancy a visit, I'd recommend booking in advance before September to secure your spot.

Have you ever been to the Rex Whistler? What do you think of the Tate Britain?



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