Why do people go to museums? Perhaps it is a permanent display of works seen in collections or special exhibitions. My best friend's boyfriend said his book group went to the art gallery after watching the movie Girl with pearl earrings. Again, maybe just because the lunch menu sounds great.
“In the past, museums were more academic. They were places to see things,” Adrienne Horn, president of San Francisco-based museum management consultant, told Observer. “More and more, they are becoming gathering centers where there is a lot to do.” The purpose of today's evolving art galleries, more accurately, embed institutions into the structure of everyday life, “create value in the community,” and generate more revenue through this income.
Food is a big part of the strategy, and the main Metropolitan Museum of Art is bringing award-winning chefs to the boat to draw attention to their cafes and upscale in-house restaurants. Museum dining spots are increasingly written in Michelin and Zagat guides, commented in magazines BonAppétit,,,,, Food and wine and Travel and Leisureand facilitated by the institution itself. The Museum of Modern Art's restaurant The Modern—one of six options on-site for a snack, drink or full meal—is excluded by Michelin as capturing “the iconic feel of the MoMA in which it is housed,” adding that “the staff perform a vertical ballet as they present diners with such appealingly nuanced dishes as a seed cracker with aged cheddar and butternut squash butter; or eggs on eggs, starring none other than cooked eggs with st fish caviar. Will describe art exhibitions in such luxurious terms!
Gary Tinterow, director of the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, said: “Getting Michelin Star Rating is my goal” – he and the museum achieved it with their restaurant, Le Jardinier. “The finished seasoning, seasonal vegetables and thoughtful cocktails tell a story that is consistent with the name and design of the restaurant,” Michelin said.
He said Titro often eats in museum restaurants, but making sure a good meal is not the point. “This restaurant brings people to museums that wouldn’t have come—maybe even not aware we exist.”
See also: Louvre and other French institutions prepare to increase ticket prices for non-EU visitors
Many of these people do just eat food without visiting the museum, which is possible, as Le Jardinier has a separate street entrance that allows those with appetite, rather than art bypassing the $24 adult admission fee. However, this restaurant may be a contestant in the museum for some to become visitors, members, spenders and donors. This is financially important. The museum’s catering services (including Le Jardinier, more casual cafes (cafés) and catering services for weddings and events) are $6 million a year, or nearly 7% of the budget of $90 million.
Perhaps the most obvious signs are that museum cafes and restaurants are competing with each other, and the local dining scene is where menus are now taking place on the institution’s website. Visitors not only browse the exhibition and ticket prices, but also browse the harvest of the day. This further proves that the museum cafe does not only support the visitor’s experience, which is often the reason for visiting.
Is it just following the leaders, or is it a museum that learns something about today’s art public? Most likely both. Food here has several purposes. Dining options make visitors longer in the museum. They provide a social space that turns the museum into convenience. A café or restaurant provides people with a reason to become a member because it usually enjoys 10% off at restaurants and museum stores. Quality food products can also attract people to host events in museums.
At the Oakland Museum, California, food is a way for institutions to compete with other attractions. The old basement cafeteria no longer cut it, so the museum opened the Blue Oak Café. “People expect more about what they eat now than they used to be,” museum director Lori Fogarty told Observer. “When I met with my colleagues, we all said we were all thinking about this restaurant was incredible.”
At the Cleveland Museum of Art, the competition includes the nearby Museum of Natural History (its restaurants, explores, touts “quality signature cuisine that displays local, seasonal ingredients”), Botanical Gardens, with Garden Cafe and Case Western Reserve University. “We compete with them and other restaurants in the area,” said Todd Mesek, chief marketing officer of the Museum of Art, which offers a proven restaurant and a proven cafe. “None of these other institutions has restaurants and cafes,” he added, noting that Cleveland is becoming a food town. “We want visitors to stay, rather than saying ‘Oh, this is lunch time, where should I eat?’” His goal is to win the stomach battle.
Food also shapes the museum's public identity. Some agencies pair menus with exhibitions – food for Impressionist performances, Japanese Yayoi Kusama. Most restaurants cannot match this theme flexibility. In 2018, the Brooklyn Museum hosted an exhibition called “David Bowie Is” which includes costumes, lyrics, album art, and videos. Norm, the restaurant hosts four nights of Bowie-themed food and drinks. One night menu:
Diamond terrier and chips
Homemade tartar sauce, cabbage
Pay tribute to chef Saul Bolton's favorite Bowie album Diamond Dogs. Of course, it also references the British origins of Bowie and the decades in England that fish 'n' fries are usually caught from the East Coast of the United States and exported to the UK, so yes, this dish is made with pikes, which is growing here, and those dishes in the crowds that are designed to sustainably catch fish. This practice has long been performed by great performances, New York City’s premiere catering and retail hospitality issues, as well as exclusive catering providers for the Brooklyn Museum’s cafes and museum events.
Croque Monsieur
Gruyere, Ham, Béchamel sauce, green
Bowie's favorite Bowie is often documented, especially in the phenomenon he made for him in New York City restaurants where he is a regular restaurant. Its distinction and normative interpretation is that the sauce is actually a rare Welsh sauce, mixed with beer and Worcestershire sauce
Curry pie
Potatoes, peas, leta sauce
Another of Bowie's favorite salty hand pie. This is an Indian accent to pay tribute to the large Indian population of London, where Bowie was born.
Shepherd's pie
Ground beef, onion, Yukon gold mud
Another of Bowie’s restaurants and British comfort food staples. It's a fairly classic version, although Bowie enjoys creative changes in the traditional shepherd's pie.
Warm Bavarian pretzels
Spicy Queso, mustard
Museums are raising their food as other institutions are doing the same, and everyone is chasing the same visitor, creating a culinary weapon competition. “We are certainly competing with regional restaurants,” Michael Bodell, chief operating officer of the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, told Observer. General Manager Nico Harward said its restaurant is MeyerManx Café, seeing 20 to 30% of customers come just for food.
Since 2024, “we have doubled in cafes,” said Brad Pritchett, chief experience officer of the Dallas Museum of Art. “We renovated the space and improved the menu, chef, experience.” Before that, only 5% of visitors came to eat. Now it's 17%.
“I have traveled around the world and visited museums and their restaurants,” Tinterow said. “I hope the Houston Museum of Fine Arts offers the best dining experiences I've ever experienced, such as at Rijksmuseum and Modern.” Who needs art?
