Location: Rules Restaurant. Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, WC2E 7LB
Set up
‘He’s on his own.’ M tells Moneypenny and Q coldly in the foyer of Rules Restaurant before unfurling his umbrella and stepping into the night rain. The restaurant sign for Rules can be seen on the glass in the background.
For anyone used to paying £8.99 for fish and chips down Harry Ramsden’s, you might might baulk at having to shell out a whopping £32.99 for cod sans chips. I remember when I took my then girlfriend at the time to Rules and she ordered the dorset crab salad for a starter at £21.99. We parted ways soon after, I could neither afford nor condone that kind of reckless expenditure. ‘You startered, so I’ll finish,’ I remember thinking to myself and being quite pleased with that.
I’ve been to the restaurant many times, taking Bond fans and out-of-towners there. I’ve managed to sit at M’s table only once as it’s next to impossible to book. (In my experience). You can kindly ask and it’s often rebuffed with, ‘hey we’ll see what we can do, but you know we get asked that all the time and lets face it, you’re hardly Rod Stewart.’
It’s also been my experience that the minute you sit down you’re reminded of how much time you have to eat your duck confit, drink your wine and bugger off as they are constantly needing to turn the tables round.
Rules London’s Oldest Restaurant.
“In the year Napoleon Opened his campaign in Egypt, 1798, Thomas Rule promised his despairing family that he would say goodbye to his wayward past, settle down and open an oyster bar in Covent Garden.”
According to James Bond Locations:
Filming at Rules took place on and around 22 May this year. One of the waiters told us that filming took three days during which time the restaurant was closed and the staff were put on leave with pay. Only a few of the staff were needed during filming.
Closest Bond Location: Charing Cross Station, Skyfall.
Closest Pint: The cocktail lounge upstairs.
