Museum restaurants around the globe offer food and wine on par with the masterpieces hanging on the walls. Here are 10 establishments with memorable art and masterfully crafted wine lists.
Klint Café, Design Museum, Copenhagen
Rex Whistler Restaurant, Tate Modern, London
At Rex Whistler Restaurant there’s more than 40 half-bottles offered from around the world. The full bottle list features wines from Australia, Germany, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain and the U.S.
Untitled, The Whitney; The Modern, Museum of Modern Art, New York City
Untitled’s wine director Michaël Engelmann, MS, joined the team in 2017. His French roots are evident in the wine list. It sports 10 Champagnes, around 50 whites and over 70 reds from Burgundy, Bordeaux, and the Loire Valley, as well as wines from Austria, Italy and New World countries. Uptown, at the Museum of Modern Art, Engelmann also serves as the wine director for The Modern. Bottles are available from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the U.S., as well as a wide selection of by the glass options.
Taste, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle
Josie Urbick has developed a menu at Taste that focuses on sustainable products and supports local farmers. Her drink offerings include a rotating selection of locally grown and produced wines, as well as craft beer and cider.
Terzo Piano, The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago
Delicious dishes prepared by Tony Mantuano of Spiaggia go perfectly with the spot-on wine pairings by Terzo Piano’s wine director, Cathy Mantuano. She has put together a list of sparkling wines that include Cava, Prosecco and Champagne as well as whites and reds from countries like Italy, France and the U.S.
Les Ombres, Musée du Quai Branly, Paris
You can’t beat the view of the Eiffel Tower at Les Ombres. Equally impressive is the cuisine of Frédéric Claudel, which is paired with a carefully chosen selection of regional French reds, whites and Champagnes.
Museum Café, Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice
The Café’s terrace overlooks a gorgeous sculpture garden. Managed by the owners of famed restaurant Ai Gondolieri, the kitchen specializes in Venetian cuisine and features local wines from Italy and abroad.
Nerua, Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao
Ideally situated on the Nervión River, Nerua is a great place to enjoy lunch on a sunny afternoon. Josean Alija, the chef, earned one Michelin star for his inspired cuisine, and sommelier Ismael Alvarez offers perfect wine pairings from a predominantly Spanish list.
Otium, The Broad, Los Angeles
The word “otium” is loosely translated from Latin to mean a “place where time can be spent on leisurely social activities.” Here, you can certainly spend a lot of time contemplating the list of more than 500 wines. Standouts include rare vintage Champagnes and stunning whites and reds from Burgundy.
