From a frothy, golden ale sipped on a sun-dappled terrace on a summer’s evening to a pint of stout in a cosy corner with a pie and an eye on the match, there are so many occasions when only a pub will do. Despite the rate of closures affecting the capital more than other areas of the UK, there’s an impressive range of brilliant boozers on offer across the city, appealing to everyone from quiz enthusiasts and craft beer devotees to fine diners and even modern art lovers.
“London pubs welcome everyone” says Oisin Rogers, landlord of The Devonshire in Soho. “They’re a melting pot of powerhouses and vagabonds, the youth and those who are past it, locals and wanderers, hedonists and puritans.” I think we can all drink to that.
Best London pubs to visit
The all-rounders
The Audley, Mayfair
As they sip their pints of London Pride – or glasses of Whispering Angel – visitors to this beautifully renovated corner boozer may be unaware that they’re standing beneath a ceiling designed by visual artist Phyllida Barlow. Or they may be there just to ogle it. From the founders of modern art gallery Hauser & Wirth, this Mayfair pub attracts everyone from tattooed builders to groups of lunching ladies. All are welcome, whether eking out a half while watching the tennis or ordering the famous hot beef sandwich to be dipped in gravy.
Contact: theaudleypublichouse.com; @audleypublichouse
Area: Mayfair
Nearest Tube: Bond Street
Price: ££
Reservations: Not required
The Barley Mow, Marylebone
This independently owned pub, said to be the oldest in Marylebone, is a real find. Legendary Tuesday quiz nights feature a roll call of famous question posers – Glenn Close is among the recent recruits – while at the relaxed Sunday sessions, punters enjoy pints of stout and Maldon oysters from the trolley to a soundtrack of live folk music. There’s even a thriving darts league. Many of the staff are jobbing actors who bring a heavy dose of creativity to popular open mic events and singalongs.
Contact: thebarleymowmarylebone.com; @thebarleymow_marylebone
Area: Marylebone
Nearest Tube: Baker Street
Price: ££
Reservations: Not needed
The Kings Arms, Waterloo
From the outside, this Irish-owned backstreet pub fits seamlessly with the time-capsule feel of the Georgian workers’ cottages that surround it. The history lesson continues as you step into the wood-panelled saloon bar – its walls adorned with sepia prints and illustrations – for a pint of well-kept ale from one of the eight cask lines. But the icing on the cake is the courtyard building out back where Kanchana’s Kitchen serves up authentic Thai dishes every day and where quiz teams duke it out on Sunday evenings.
Contact: thekingsarmslondon.co.uk; @thekingsarmsldn
Area: Waterloo
Nearest Tube: Waterloo
Price: ££
Reservations: Not needed
Best gastropubs
The Bull & Last, Highgate
This popular coaching inn serves the kind of seasonal pub grub that is often emulated but rarely bettered: perhaps grilled, butterflied sardines with gremolata or rump of Suffolk hogget and aubergine. There’s a great-value, two-course set lunch for £20 (Monday to Friday) and well-kept beers include the Bull’s own pale ale, a collaboration with Hackney’s Five Points brewery. Work up an appetite by climbing nearby Parliament Hill with its peerless views across the city. The seven bedrooms above are a bonus if you're travelling from afar.
Contact: thebullandlast.co.uk
Area: Highgate
Nearest Tube: Gospel Oak
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended
The Devonshire, Soho
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past year, you’ll be aware of the near-universal praise heaped on this buzzing Soho pub and dining room since it opened. While much of the social media hype has focused on London’s best Guinness™, it’s the combination of excellent sourcing, no-nonsense cooking and peerless front-of-house that keeps people coming back. A good-value set lunch (£29 for three courses) is another draw. Of course, such flattery has made it hard to get a table so book well ahead.
Contact: devonshiresoho.co.uk; @devonshiresoho
Area: Soho
Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus
Price: £££
Reservations: Required
The Eagle, Clerkenwell
London’s original gastropub has spawned many copycats and with good reason. The straightforward formula of taking market-fresh ingredients and using them to create a British-Mediterranean menu that changes twice daily is still attractive more than 30 years since it opened. Order at the bar for dishes of grilled mutton chops with celeriac remoulade or hake with lentils and salsa verde alongside a pint of the house IPA. Presentation is rustic at best though it’s all part of the appeal.
Contact: theeaglefarringdon.co.uk; @eaglefarringdon
Area: Clerkenwell
Nearest Tube: Farringdon
Price: ££
Reservations: Bookings only taken for groups of 5-10
The Pig’s Ear, Chelsea
Now in the hands of the Gladwin brothers whose family own Nutbourne vineyard and farm in Sussex, this attractive corner pub is firmly back on the culinary map. Seasonal dishes major on meat from the estate, perhaps a Tamworth pork chop or Gregory’s lamb rump. The lunchtime farm-to-fork menu (£28 for three courses) or the Monday pie and pint deal (£20) keep prices reasonable for the area. While the focus is on dining, drinkers can enjoy Harvey’s Best on cask at the zinc bar – and of course there are wines from Nutbourne.
Contact: pigsearpub.com; @thepigsear
Area: Chelsea
Nearest Tube: South Kensington
Price: £££
Reservations: Recommended
Old-school pubs
The Lamb & Flag, Covent Garden
Covent Garden isn’t short on drinking holes but this old-fashioned pub on a cobbled lane, just yards from the hubbub, stands out for its broad appeal. Die-hard CAMRA fans huddle over pints of Fuller’s beers or rotating guest ales, while friends gather in front of the open windows and tourists wait for a spot in the atmospheric back bar. There’s an upstairs dining room but the real joy of this place – once frequented by Charles Dickens – is to be found downstairs among the throng.
Contact: lambandflagcoventgarden.co.uk; @the_Lamb_and_Flag
Area: Covent Garden
Nearest Tube: Leicester Square or Covent Garden
Price: ££
Reservations: Not needed
The Mayflower, Rotherhithe
Cross the threshold of this riverside inn with its mullioned windows, well-worn settles and walls covered with sea-faring pictures and ephemera and it’s not hard to imagine how it might have looked when the Pilgrims set sail from here in 1620. This is a boozer for all seasons: cosy and candlelit in cooler months; in summer, take in the Thames views as you sip a local ale on the decked jetty – perhaps a pint of Bermondsey Best paired with a textbook Scotch egg.
Contact: mayflowerpub.co.uk; @mayflowerpub
Area: Rotherhithe
Nearest Tube: Rotherhithe
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended for ground floor pub and upstairs restaurant. Outdoor jetty walk-ins only.
The Grenadier, Belgravia
The ceiling of this secluded pub on a cobbled mews close to Hyde Park is papered with bank notes, left by visitors to settle the debt of a former officer who met his death after being caught cheating at cards – and whose ghost is rumoured to haunt the building. Whether or not you buy into this story, there’s no doubt this is a lovely place to while away an hour or so with a pint of the house ale and a sausage roll.
Contact: grenadierbelgravia.com
Area: Belgravia
Nearest Tube: Hyde Park Corner
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended for dining
The Black Friar, Blackfriars
Step into this wedge-shaped building on the site of a Dominican friary and you’ll be greeted by some of the finest Art Nouveau interiors in London. The lavish decorations combine copper bas-reliefs of toiling monks and a magnificent recessed fireplace complete with corner seats. Narrow archways lead to a marble-lined dining area with a barrel-vaulted mosaic ceiling through which you can hear the trains trundling overhead. It’s a handy spot between the Tate Modern and St Paul’s so stop by for a pint of Nicholsons Pale Ale from the St Austell Brewery.
Contact: nicholsonspubs.co.uk
Area: Blackfriars
Nearest Tube: Blackfriars
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended for dining
Best for craft beer
The Jackalope, Marylebone
Standing outside this sensitively restored pub on a quiet residential mews, it’s hard to imagine you’re 10 minutes from Oxford Circus. They take their beer seriously here – the same owners are behind the much-lauded Euston Tap – so you’ll find four cask lines and impressive 14 kegs at the wooden bar. Order a pint of pale ale from Sussex brewery, Three Acres then scooch into one of the horseshoe banquettes with a bowl of lip-numbing Chongqing noodles from the basement restaurant run by critics’ favourite, Liu Xiaomian. Closed on Sundays.
Contact: jackalopelondon.com; @jackalopelondon
Area: Marylebone
Nearest Tube: Regent’s Park
Price: ££
Reservations: Not needed
The Rake, Borough
This tiny boozer on the edge of Borough Market is generally considered to be London’s original craft beer pub. Opened in 2006 by the owners of Utobeer, who run a shop in the market, it frequently pays host to UK and international brewers, many showing their beers in the capital for the first time. Book a spot on the all-weather terrace and choose from four cask lines and 16 kegs, with mini third-pint pours making it easy to experiment. Retro crisps and pork scratchings provide sustenance.
Contact: utobeer.co.uk/the-rake; @rake_bar/
Area: Borough
Nearest Tube: London Bridge
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended
The Wenlock, Hoxton
The story of this historic ale house’s rescue from the developers’ wrecking ball would be enough in itself to encourage a visit but add in an ever-changing roster of 10 cask lines and 10 kegs, knowledgeable staff and regular live bands and you have the makings of a true gem. There’s plenty to keep non-beer drinkers sweet too, from real ciders to wine and cocktails. Soak up the booze with baked camembert or a jalapeño toastie.
Contact: wenlockarms.com; @wenlockarms
Area: Hoxton
Nearest Tube: Old Street
Price: ££
Reservations: Not required
Ye Olde Mitre, Holborn
These days, anyone with a smartphone can navigate their way to this tucked-away pub, accessed via a tiny alley in the city’s legal district. Savvy tourists rub shoulders with lawyers and office workers in the two cosy drinking rooms divided by a central bar. On the taps is a regularly changing selection of British ales and real ciders, underpinned by Fuller’s London Pride. In summer, drinkers spill out into the narrow yard with its barrel tables just steps from the cherry tree that Queen Elizabeth I once danced around with her favoured Lord Chancellor. Closed Sundays.
Contact: yeoldemitreholborn.co.uk; @yeoldemitreholborn
Area: Holborn
Nearest Tube: Chancery Lane
Price: ££
Reservations: Recommended for dining (kitchen closed on Saturdays)
About our expert
Amber has lived in London for more than 25 years, where she works as a journalist specialising in food, drink and travel. She reviews restaurants for magazines, newspapers and websites and is a former editor of The Good Food Guide. When she’s not checking out the latest dining spots, she can be found sipping a pint of amber ale (naturally), ideally in a cosy boozer or pub garden.
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source https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/travel/best-london-pubs
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