The Abbey (St James Park - London)

The Abbey

So called because of its close promixity to Westminster abbey, this large gastro pub is in the basement of the offices above. Although new in December of 2006, it replaces another bar that stood in its place and it is a welcome surprise from what appears from the outside to be just another basement pub. A rather more grand pub that other such basement venues in the nearby soho this one really sets the standard with a large staircase down to a pit which serves as the base of the pub with a scattering of tables and an adjacent staircase leads up to another level with more tables and another smaller bar. On the bottom floor are the toilets, a well stocked bar and a fast service at around £3 a pint. Very nice decor and friendly crowd. I am sure that once people find out about this place they will begin to flock but at the moment the crowd size is managed very nicely, and weekends are normally very quiet around Victoria street if you are after a pint on a saturday.

Overall would be nicer if the food available was more up to standard but other than that it is easily the nicest bar on Victoria street - 7/10.

[last visit: Dec 2006]