It has long been an accepted belief that a museum is a temple of art. These days, however, priorities of museums have shifted from storing exhibits and expanding their collections to attracting the attention of various audiences.
Increasingly more often, museums seek to become cultural institutions of interest. In their turn, additional museum services, such as cafes and restaurants play an important role in positioning the museum as an accessible place for family recreation, meetings of friends and business negotiations.
It is an obvious fact that cafes and restaurants in museums help these institutions gain additional profits. However, do these structural subdivisions of the museum serve not only the commercial but also the representative function? Are cafes and restaurants in museums only places for museum visitors to have a quick snack, or can they serve as independent recreation spaces? Should cafes and restaurants in museums be incorporated into museum expositions? Do museum restaurants and cafes also possess some specific features?