A day out at a historic property and its gardens has been a mainstay of British life for many decades. Every year, families and tour parties descend on these attractions by the million, gaining a fascinating insight into the lives of their former (or sometimes still current) occupants, their tastes, their gardens, their furniture and their art collections.
It wasn’t always like this. Historic properties and stately homes were for centuries secluded and private places. But the 20th century saw a rapid decline in the power and wealth of the British aristocracy, which resulted in many of their ancestral properties being sold to bodies such as the National Trust or given over to charitable trusts and opened up to the public. In the 1930s Noël Coward saw the writing on the wall when he wrote in “The Stately Homes of England”: “The stately homes of England we proudly represent/We only keep them up for Americans to rent.”
Revenue from admission fees is vital for the upkeep of these historically important properties. Chartwell in Kent was once the home of Sir Winston Churchill and his family; now it is managed by the National Trust as a visitor attraction, and in 2017 it had more than 240,000 visitors. The numbers of visitors to these attractions are growing steadily: in 2017 visitor attractions in England reported an increase in visitor numbers of 2 per cent and a rise in revenue of 7 per cent.
Heritage and a cream tea
But admission fees are only part of the story. Catering is also a key revenue stream. Visitors are attracted by the prospect of coffee, lunch, snacks, afternoon tea, a cream tea or even a three-course meal. English Heritage, which manages properties such as Dover Castle, reported that in 2016-17 its retail and catering income was £23.3 million, a rise of 11 per cent on the previous year.
And so many former stables, cellars, outbuildings and kitchens at historic properties have been converted into cafés, tea rooms and restaurants. If you are managing one of these properties, or its catering facilities, you will appreciate the importance of catering as a source of income. And you will doubtless be aware of the need to cater to different needs and different markets, either by offering more than one catering outlet (from grab and go to à la carte), or by changing your offering throughout the day. But what’s universally true is that visitors will be looking for calm and respite, perhaps a retreat from information overload, a place to rest their legs. The ambience and furniture in your catering facilities should reflect this.
Purchasing tips
Buyers purchasing furniture for National Trust and other historic properties should bear several factors in mind. Will it be in place permanently, or would stackable furniture be a better solution, freeing up the space for other functions? If it will be in place permanently, something substantial and solid would be best. Many historic properties opt for a more “rustic” look when choosing café and restaurant furniture. Trent Furniture’s Farmhouse tables and chairs would be a suitable fit in this context. Is it comfortable? Remember those weary legs. For outdoor furniture, again, it might be useful to go for a stackable option so that it can be stored away during the winter. Trent Furniture’s Monaco wicker chair is ideal for outdoor use and can be stacked away when not in use. Like all of Trent Furniture’s outdoor furniture, it is hard-wearing and weatherproof. And remember that many visitors to these properties are elderly and have limited mobility; for them, a visit to the café might be the main attraction, so it’s important that customers are comfortable, and that there is enough space between tables for them to gain access.
At Knole, a National Trust property in Kent which is one of the largest houses of its kind, visitors seeking a break from the deer herds, gardens and the house itself can find respite in the Brewhouse Café, which, as its name suggests, was formerly a brewery. Now it is a white-walled space furnished with simple light-coloured wooden tables, chairs and benches, modern in style but still in keeping with the surroundings. Knole also has a rooftop terrace café for use in warmer weather, with picnic benches and views of the house and surrounding countryside.
At the other end of the spectrum is Stoneywell, a small, immaculately preserved Arts & Crafts National Trust cottage in Leicestershire that is open to visitors (booking in advance is essential). Here, the café is a compact affair located in in the former laundry, furnished with simple wooden stools, tables and pedestal tables which, though not in the Arts & Crafts style, are nevertheless in keeping with the charming simplicity of the rest of the house and its contents.
In keeping with the times
But how important is it for furniture in the catering outlets to be in keeping with the period and theme of the building itself? One of the country’s most popular attractions is Hampton Court Palace, former home to Henry VIII and housing a collection of fabulous artworks, artefacts and tapestries (it comes in at number 34 in a list of most popular visitor attractions). At this property, managed by Historic Royal Palaces, there are three catering outlets, one of which, the Privy Kitchen Café, offers (among many other things) Tudor-style pies. Customers sit on simple refectory-style benches and tables, very much in keeping with the “period” of the Palace. At the Palace’s Fountain Court Café, which offers table service, the furniture is more contemporary and more comfortable, given that customers will want to linger for longer.
Some visitor attractions have followed a different route. Eltham Palace in south-east London is a former home of Henry VIII, whose Great Hall has a fabulous oak hammerbeam roof – all very Tudor. But other parts of the complex date back to the 1930s and are stacked with wonderful examples of Art Deco furniture and décor. When the palace was refurbished recently, English Heritage created a large new café in a former glasshouse, which was furnished with cool, elegant chairs and tables in metal or metal and wood.
Grounds for optimism
Many visitors are interested not so much in houses and estates, but the gardens. Alnwick Garden in Northumberland is a popular attraction for its gardens, which include a “poison garden”, with specimens of plants such as hemlock and belladonna. At Alnwick, the catering facilities are housed in a treehouse structure. At ground level there is the Potting Shed café, furnished inside with intriguing stools created from carved stumps and blocks of wood, and outside with more conventional rustic-looking wooden tables, chairs and benches. Upstairs, accessible by walkways, is the Treehouse Restaurant, an eccentric-looking environment. The furniture is a curious affair: simple, solid, rustic-style wooden tables are surrounded by roughly hewn wooden chairs which look almost like Ents, the tree-creatures from The Lord of the Rings.
Another, increasingly popular category of visitor attraction is the sculpture park. These combine the attractions of a landscaped garden with the pleasures of artworks. Yorkshire Sculpture Park is perhaps the UK’s most popular; located in the grounds of the historic 18th-century property Bretton House, it has world-renowned permanent displays, including Barbara Hepworth’s restored collection Family of Man. Catering facilities include a restaurant, a kiosk and a café; the café is a cool, contemporary building, furnished inside with simple wooden tables and Arne Jacobsen-style bent plywood chairs, and outside with metal bistro-style chairs and tables.
At Yorkshire Sculpture Park, most works are shown outside but also in specially built galleries, to encourage year-round visiting. This highlights an issue that affects many historic visitor attractions: the seasonal ebb-and-flow of visitor numbers. During the winter months, visitors can be attracted by the prospect of a warm, cosy, comfortable café or restaurant, while in the warmer months catering can expand on to terraces and rooftops. Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire, a National Trust property, hosts a spectacular display of Christmas lights throughout its grounds (tickets sell out months in advance); food and drink is available from pop-up outlets and in the courtyard, with chairs and tables available.
To attract and re-attract visitors to your National Trust or historic property, café and restaurant furniture that is solid, durable, sympathetic and comfortable should be a key part of your offering.