London Pubs

[Plastic Man]

I have to go to the UK end month for a weeks training for work. This will mean two weekends in London. When told my thoughts immediately turned to palate training as well, so keen to map out a plan of attack before I arrive. Anyone got any tips on where to head.

The White Horse is one that comes up a lot in the mags and the podcasts so that's on the list, (I'm assuming its the one at Fulham). Also after a bit of googling the area around London Bridge sounds good with the Market Porter sounding pretty interesting.

Im staying up near Kings Cross next to Euston tube station so easy to get around.

Any suggestions as to pubs or beers I should have on the target list would be greatly appreciated. The first has to be Timothy Taylor Landlord out of the cask. Been dreaming of that for years !!!

 

[warrenlw63]

Plastic

One of my faves for Young's in tip top condition is the Lamb in Conduit St. Beautiful boozer.

here

Enjoy you lucky sod. B)

Warren -

 

[Steve]

Jump on a train and go 'up north' and ave a real pint 'o ale! Pubs down south dont know how to pour a beer with a head on it. :chug:
Cheers
Steve

 

[warrenlw63]

:lol: You obviously ain't been back for a while Steve... I reckon it's harder to find one's that "don't" use sparklers in London nowdays. At least that was the case when I was last there.

Warren -

 

[Steve]

:lol: You obviously ain't been back for a while Steve...

true - im talking about 20 years here

 

[kook]

The UK members on ratebeer.com have put a fair bit of work (read, drinking research) into the pub crawls on the site. They've tried to achieve a balance of different beers, as well as some pubs of historical significance. I'd recommend the Southwark crawl, Covent Garden Crawl, as well as heading to the White Horse on Parsons Green. Another place worth checking out is The Wenlock Arms near Old Street tube station. It's a bit out of the tourist trail but is a grungy local boozer with some great cask beers in tip-top condition. If you're in Greenwich at all, seek out the Greenwich Union pub, it's about a 7-10 min walk from the main Greenwich area, but is an interesting microbrewery style change to the normal UK beers.

http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowTour.asp?TourID=78
My favourites from Southwark: Market Porter (beer), Utobeer stall (beer), Royal Oak (beer), George Inn (history), The Anchor (history).

http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowTour.asp?TourID=68
My favourites from Covent Garden: Lowlander (beer), Belgo (beer), The Cove (beer, view on roof), Nags Head (beer), Princess Louise (history).


edit - Two more if you're in the city for business (closed weekends):
The Counting House - Beautiful old Fullers pub that keeps most of the range (including Porter when it's available) in tip top condition.
Crosse Keys - Ok it's a JDW chain pub, but they actually normally have a few interesting pints on in ok condition. Interesting architecture too. I used to drop in here for a swifty on the way home from work.

Also, if you can, book a tour of Fullers Chiswick brewery! Great tour run by volunteers (so they're enthusiastic) of a brewery that may not exist in a few years time. The real estate out there is worth a hell of a lot of money, and I have a feeling they'll head the same way as Youngs sooner or later.


edit again - If you're looking specifically for Landlord, the Punchbowl in Mayfair always has it on tap. Madonna's husband (Guy Ritchie) purchased it for her as it was her favourite pub serving her favourite beer!

Another place I've forgotten to mention is The Blackfriar (just near Blackfriars tube station). Really cool old pub with interesting murals inside. They often have Landlord on cask too. Worth noting that they're closed on weekends.

 

[Plastic Man]

Bloody hell you guys are quick. I think you just filled up my two weekends !!!

Cheers !! Much appreciated.

 

[Hutch]

Unlucky *******.
Definitely have to concur on the Timothy Taylor. Their website lists a myriad of pubs around London that serve it, so you shouldn't have any trouble tracking it down.
Plenty of other worthy beers to try as well - Badger First Gold (Hall and Woodhouse) also sounds like a top drop (double Gold medal winner in 2005).

...poor sod!

 

[danbeer]

A website I used to find handy during my time in England was Beer in the Evening

odd name, but damned handy for finding pubs with specific criteria... (eg: food, real ale, etc) and has user reviews reviews etc...

Also has a pub-crawl generator on it.

 

[geoffi]

During my time living in London (many, many years ago) I was very young with a woefully uneducated palate.

And yet I managed to zero in on a few gems. I got quite a taste for Ruddles County.

What a treat it would be to spend a few weeks over there again. Mind you, a pint was expensive 20 years ago. Dread to think what it costs now.

 

[kook]

What a treat it would be to spend a few weeks over there again. Mind you, a pint was expensive 20 years ago. Dread to think what it costs now.

Cheaper than a pint in aus. A pint of real ale is usually about 2.50-3 quid in the city. Can be as little as 2 quid outside london.

A website I used to find handy during my time in England was Beer in the Evening

odd name, but damned handy for finding pubs with specific criteria... (eg: food, real ale, etc) and has user reviews reviews etc...

Also has a pub-crawl generator on it.

BITE is great for its pub crawl generator, but I personally found many of the reviews useless while i was there. There doesn't seem to be that many real beer enthusiasts putting reviews in, more just people reviewing their local boozer (with obvious bias).

 

[KoNG]

i used to manage this place :lol: http://www.beerintheevening.com/pubs/s/13/...k/London_Fields

from the comments page it seems to have had a facelift, much to its demise.
that said this isnt a place you would seek out if you only had 2 weekends! its not the best part of town.. and its definately a summer pub for the londoner's.. they flock in masses! (comments seem to echo that in terms of rating it highly for summer enjoyment). we used to have 2 staff on in summer who's sole job was to collect glasses from outside in the park. there is 4 handpumps with one being dedicated to seasonals.. london pride was the main seller.. so casks were on high rotation and fresh.

if you head over there, be sure to not get stabbed... (oh and yeh, wear your favourite arsenal kit.!)

 

[warrenlw63]

(oh and yeh, wear your favourite arsenal kit.!)

Is there any other ?

Warren -

 

[Wrenny]

Can't really recall the beer there, but the Cavern Club up in liverpool (where the Beatles started playing) was a hilight of my trip to the UK.

 

[randyrob]

pretty much soent most of my time in the uk in wetherspoon pubs i guess the people i was hanging around with thought they were the go, cheap beer and ok food boy oh boy i wish i knew about this site back then! the hand pumped ales were still amazing

 

[cdbrown]

The White Horse on Parsons Green (Fulham) is a great pub with nice outdoor area and is about 1min walk from the tube station (Parsons Green). They usually have about 5 or 6 boutique beers on tap. The food is good and the outdoor area has just been redone on the odd chance that the sun might shine - oh where is the sun I ask each day

Just across the park is called the Duke on the Green which is also nice place for a drink - that's if your out this way.

Try to stay away from the chain pubs like O'Neills and Weatherspoons. There are pubs all over the place so just go out and enjoy as many as you can.

You'll have to PM some details and I might be able to meet up for a cheeky pint or 4.

Cheers
-cdbrown

 

[bugwan]

An extra vote for Lamb's in Lamb's Conduit Street - an old haven...ah memories.
Belgo in Covent Garden probably has one of London's biggest beer lists (at least it seemed that way through the haze of time) They also seem to have installed most of the world's copper in the bar...! Plenty of nooks and crannies to get lost in there.
I was a fan of the Ship and Shovell in Craven Passage, Strand (near Embankment and Charing Cross Stations). It's split into two bars - both serving HofBrau on tap. Nice and fresh, straight from the Motherland.
If you're in Knightsbridge, the Paxton's Head has a small selection of Ales, but they also serve fantastic Thai upstairs. Take your pints up with you...perfect on a cool night.

Good luck you *******!

 

[kevo]

I'm a nerdy historical pub lover so my tips are.....

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet street. Awesome atmosphere, especially down in the cellar, predates the Great Fire.

The Angel, on the river at Bermondsey, apparently where james Cook made his preps for Journey to Australia.

The Churchill Arms, Kensington Church Street, between Kensington High Street and Notting Hill gate.

The George, an old coach house in a back alley from Borough High Street.

A mate put me onto the Sultan, down Southfields way, I can chase up the address if you're keen. A Hopback pub, great ales.

Have a great trip.

Also, try any pub near a soccer game, especially in east London, about an hour before kickoff, or an hour after a loss - another awesome UK pub experience.

......no one likes us, we don't care......

Kev

 

[kook]

I'm a nerdy historical pub lover so my tips are.....

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet street. Awesome atmosphere, especially down in the cellar, predates the Great Fire.

The Churchill Arms, Kensington Church Street, between Kensington High Street and Notting Hill gate.

Both good tips I forgot! One more too - Jerusalem Tavern in Clerkenwell. Good St Peters beers.

Another tip - If you want bottled UK ale (including a few rare ones!) - check out "Real Ale" in Twickenham (www.realale.com). If you see a fellow called Duff working there, call him Shane and say kook says hi.

 

[Plastic Man]

Too many beers - too little time. Thanks all for input. !!! I need to sit down with a map now and plan the assult.

Kong - I spent a bit of time a few suburbs away from london Fields 10 years ago. A mate was renting a flat near Holloway Prison and I crashed on his foor for a few weeks while I sold my Kombi on Market Road. Seems a bloody long time ago now though. I miss my old Kombi