Uk Barblog

The Fen (Fenchurch Street Station - London)

The Fen

A small pub with bad service in Fenchurch street station. Its pride extends to a few fruit machines and a parade of travellors as clients. There are a coupel of cheap soft furnishings and although its not too bad a pub for a tube station it is as expensive as the rest of the area at £2.50 for a shot of vodka. The views of the square are nice but there is restricted window-space to enjoy it and frankly the pub appears to serve as a better home of the odd pigeon that can be seen sqabbling and dancing around in the middle of the carpetted floor.

Overall, it hits the slightly higher mark in the lower end of the scale but not by much - 4/10

Aldgate Exchange (Aldgate - London)

Aldgate Exchange

The Aldgate Exchange is quiet, dark and gloomy. The bar girl was quite friendly to us but the venue itself felt like it hadnt seen anyone under the age of 30 in its whole life. The place looks bigger from the outside than it is but could comofrtabley still fit about fifty people. Surprisely this venue is quite difficult to get to from the nearby station due to the complex array of subways and busy roads. Drinks were also quite pricey at £7.20 for a double vodka.

Overall a pub that could not possibley stand the test of time with an attitude like this, it needs to buck its ideas up and stop ripping off in terms of drinks and experience, the outside looks so inviting and yet within its just a dire dungeon of an old-man pub - 3/10

Hamilton Hall (Liverpool Street - London)

Hamilton Hall

And quite a hall it is. Who would have thought that this magestic and well decorated room was in the artillary of the Wetherspoons group. Outside, next to the exit to the busiest station in London is room for bustling corwds to share a drink, while within, beyon dthe heavy set doors is a large hall with a crown of a bar, round and set into a strange corner on the right. Surrounding is seating and people bustle here at all hours in what must also one of the busiest of these style establishments. The bar servcie is fairly fast despite popularity but the drinks definitely do appear to be higher than in other Wetherspoons.

Overall something of a spectacle. Rarely have I cranked my eyes upward while drinking a pint to view the wonerfully well decorated ceilings and ornate interior, its a good size with conveniance but seating is an issue and sometimes the front door just gets too crowded to come in. 6/10

Part of the Official MONOPOLY PUB CRAWL

The Liberty Bounds (Tower Hill - London)

The Liberty Bounds (wetherspoons)

A Multi-entrance pub (yet all the doors are pretty much on the same side) with extravegant finishings on the skin of the pub but it has been dressed up, like most wetherspoons it is a twisty turny honeycomb of a layout with the bar set deep to the back of the pub under the eating galley where you could be lucky enough to have at least half of your pint spilt on you by the brash,forgetful bar woman. Still, its cheap but thats not really an excuse to sit me at a table where the only view i seemed to get was of the sky because the location of the windows is so miserable.

Overall this seems like the ideal place to slap a wetherspoons - right in the thick of the tourist action but it remains a terrible monument to its brand - forget the price - this place was badly put together and just seems to attract first-time wetherspooners who yelp for joy when they find that a pint cost just over £2. 3/10

White Hart (Liverpool Street - London)

White Hart

The service was quick and done with a smile. The bar staff were friendly and chatted to clientele making it a very friendly atmosphere. The pints were reasonably priced at less than £3. The main bar was clean with a nice looking restaurant downstairs. Unfortunately that was closed so didn’t get a chance to look around. It played decent music that wasn’t interfering with conversations. The clientele were friendly and fairly sober. The main downside to this lovely pub were the toilets. The ladies’ were disgusting, rubbish all over the floor, tiny and smelled overwhelmingly of damp. Disappointing to say the least.

Overall a 4/10 rating.

-Authored by Sam J

The Three Lords (Aldgate - London)

The Three Lords

A Loud corner pub of old wood polished floorbaords and furnishings, old and young men of suited quality - noisey with the tone of their booming voices in congratulations of the days trading, the bragging of sales and budgets and the only woemn to be seen are frail shadows or boystous bar-women who can take the slight after-work rush from the city-boys. The bar is central to the pub although it does remian relatively small and serves up a good bashing of brews and spirits- stands priced as the rest of the area at £3.10 a pint. There arent many chairs but the music remains lively and within the hour of rush hour the place falls quite quiet except those on a serious drinking mission. The toilets however are horrid, the place is so small that the odd mirror makes the place look bigger and as lively as it appears to be; the place is unfriendly to those without the suit or phallus.

Overall a male-dominated small wooden drinkign well with strong location and choice but uncomfortable and unsuitable for the night out sought in these parts - 3/10

Ochre Bar (Blackfriars - London)

Ochre Bar

Precisely halfway between St Pauls and Blackfriars, Ochre is a cosmopolitan bar set into the quiet backstreets of the city, truely few know it is even there which makes this place one to to head to if you are fond of a little more space. Into the evning there is available seating in this lounge-like middle aged drinkery, the place is loud but the pop ballards in the background remain quiet. A Double vodka with mixer and a cider will set you back £8.30 which once again seems a little on the pricey side for service at such a big and well stocked bar. The place is well associated with Champagne and once the music dies down going to the toilets downstairs the air is filled with the sound of coke snorters.

Despite the noises the place remains quiet enough to get away from the much greater visual noises of punters in the street and as such it has a contained popularity which can only be met with a quality of fondness - 6/10

O 'Neills (Cannon Street - London)

O' Neills

Like a handful of marbles crammed into a thimble punters appear to have filled this pub in Cannon Street and spill out of the doorway into the surrounding streets outside producing a maze of persons where finding the bar is a completel fluke. Inside the bar is a centrepiece for a two sided venue with both sides utterly rammed with after-work casual aquaintances and colleagues. Drinksare about £3 a pint and the barmen are too hasty serving and half your pint can easily end up on the floor before you get a sip to your lips.

Basically its a standard but small overcrowded and rushed bar whcih serves to do nothing except ensure that if you are standing outside the pub 100 metres down the road you can still claim to be standing outside the O Neills due to the crowds. Not appealing by any measure - 3/10

The Crosse Keys (Bank - London)

The Crosse Keys (wetherspoons)

Infamous among the wetherspoons of the world, this is perhaps the most luxurious among them and its glamour is no secret. It is the prime pub spot for the cheap drinking city-goer, from the outside- hidden in the walls of the surrounding banks this has the literal look and feel of a financial institution. Once inside the place is a sea of tables and benches which, all looking comfortabley adapted to the environment lead a tide of the walkway up the cirucs-like bar, pictured above. The grandness of the place continues to give off vibes of luxury even as you scount to find a table- there are always plenty available and with seating upstairs and down, front and backrooms, there is lots of choice.

Overall this venue is unbeatable and the fact a wetherspoons owns the building says more about the brand than the pub. Its serious about conservative beer, value for money and splendor. All of which are well illustrated in this, the most impressive of all wetherspoons that I have ever seen, a defining 8/10 among pubs.

The Magpie (Liverpool Street - London)

The Magpie

With excellent promixity to the giant of train stations liverpool street, the Magpie sits out on a lonly branch of the high street, difficult to spot from the bustle and once inside it feels somewhat small and somewhat disappointing. The lower floor is simply bar, stools, bar persons. Along the left of the bar appears to be signs to the toilets where in fact is a set of stiars leading up to a second bar on the floor above. Up here one can sit and dine and relative quiet while the world outside goes mental for businessmen and women franctically looking for sandwiches and soup not knowing that dining is possible in this, the most hidden of places. Okay so there is table service (good) but the food service itself is slow (bad). they have cloudy cider on tap (good) but the atmopshere feels outdatewd rather than traditional and I feel liek I am sitting in the Granny-flat of an old woman who still decorates her home like she was living before the invention of electricity, its old and not in a nice authentic pub kind of way.

Overall the service bought this pub down but it is a good 'un for lunch out of the way or real cider, even Grandma's turn-of-the-century decor couldnt give this bog-standard tradtional-pub-in-a-box lower than a 5/10.

New Moon (Bank - London)

New Moon

From street level it is possible to access both ground and lower-ground floors. First we venture downstairs which seems a bit small but is quiet and cosy and very clean with unique rounded effect ceiling as arches. There are a few small tables either side of the bar and some comfortable seating . At the bar i found £1.50 for a half cider. It seems that it is possible to eat downstairs, something which can be hard to do in overcrowded city pubs of a lunchtime so I am surprised to find the opposite of the New Moon. Then heading up the back staircase the upstairs is found to be crowded but with a proper pub effect feel with punters obviously coming in for a loud beer at lunch with colleagues in the city. Large bar with an excellent selection of drinks. This level has a high ceiling so it feels large but there are few places to sit.

A great mix of the two worlds for all manner of people, not as expensive as you would assume it to be for its location and friendly staff as well. Could do with having more space to sit but full effect of character and pub style gives this a very high 6/10.

The Green Man (Bank - London)

The Green Man (wetherspoons)

Using the guide of other memorable websites I came here hunting down a pub by the name of the Green Man. Above ground however it is invisible and only accessible from a complex called "1 Poultry". Obscure but once downstairs you quickly realise its your bog-standard airport Wetherspoons. Quite small bar for a pub which throws its mass around the corner into the distance and although standing at the bar it may look like a crude mirror trick the family section of this pub extends into the beyond. Bar service- VERY SLOW. Expect to be the last to be served basically. The prices are a little hiked at £2.69 a pint of Strongbow and althoguh there are a lot fo places to sit it quickly gets busy at lunchtime (though not overcrowded) but the clientell are penny-counting misers with little on their mind except the clock and the price of their dregs.

Overall a neon leaflet outside - a creche for the cheap within - worth a quickie at lunch of course but your workmates would likely be discussed unless your boss has just cut the expensive account in half - 3/10

Kings Arms (Liverpool Street - London)

Kings Arms

With liverpool street station nearby , this ember inn style bar  is a step down into the pub off the street outside and enters into a cosy carpetted, (but quite big) bar for the area. The feastures include a Games machine, a very nice quiet beer garden out the back - opening into the large back streets behind the city. The venue itself is base don two floors and down a big staircase the scene lands on 3 sleek pool tables more games machines and a second bar . not too packed which is surprising and we quickly find a ledge at which to perch. the place seems perfectly busy and never seems to overcrowd despite the night wearing on. Its very clean dispite th etoilets which perhaps aren't in the same condition but seems excellent for an aftyer-work drink or a game of pool with friends any day of the week.

Overall an excellent choice to spend some of your evening, very nicely done indeed at 7/10

Keat's Bar (Moorgate - London)

Keat's Bar

The sibling bar to the Globe pub in Moorgate this bar literally sits next door and with a partially shared interior they could be assumed to be the same place were they not observed to have different entrances outside and that Keats Bar is a completely different atmosphere. Its basically a long bar with basic seating at the front door and spread as a few tables and chairs in crowds towards the back. The bar is very well stocked but service is a lot slower in this bar than the one next door. The place also feels "woody" and somewhat older or more traditional that the Globe, perhaps left in an older condition than the pub next door wehich appears to have been done up to look authentic. Keats has a younger crowd than the globe but with this comes an overcrowding which makes you look around for a seat, not find one, and carry your pint next door.

Overall without the Globe, Keats bar would be the crammed pub you always avaoided but it has a traditional feel and is clearly a mark of heritage to the poet John keats than to really improve on the splendor that is the Globe next door- overall 4/10

The Globe (Moorgate - London)

The Globe

On a corner in Moorgate this modern and quite large pub sits with good proximity to the station. The bar fronts onto Bishopsgate and another slips to the room upstairs as well. You can expect to pay £3.30 a pint. I think it's part of the greene king chain, Full of suits from the city and brightly lit but not blinding while candle-lit in the corners. Fast service. Popular. Pool room upstairs. Randomly sausage menu specialists- choose your sausage with mash dish from the menu on the wall. Loud but thats cops its very central and needs more seating and to be a little quieter. It has a neighbouring bar called "Keats Bar" which I have chosen to review separately after lengthy discussion with certain persons who felt a bar with a seperate entrance deserves another review.

Overall I found this particular pub to be of the modern-traditionalist variety and just large enough to enjoy a pint in after work or just in passing. Not by any means romantic or chilled out, perhgaps if it were quieter it would create just such an atmosphere but it is fine as it is. 6/10

Pitcher and Piano (Liverpool Street - London)

Pitcher and Piano

Just look at the picture- it seems like this pub bar is small, perhaps a long bar that starts on a lowered platofmr and rises up slowly to a dancefloor with couches on the right hand side. You would of course be correct this is all true but what you may not realise is that the room meets with a bar before opening out somewhat into a seated area on the left and a dancefloor becoming a galley at the far end which overlooks the lower level. To the left a spiraling staircase leads into the downstairs with its variety of alcoves, a second bar and dark spaces in which to get lost or at thge very least find a seat in this busy but not overcrowded club. The bar staff serve rather quickly throughout the place despite its size but the place remains untidy and littered. Seventy five percent of the people there are suited east london jippos that just got off the overground trains into liverpool street to get there sleazy groove on at the nearest venue.

Overall although this place is spoilt by letting in the expensively dressed morons of this world it is big and much bigger than I expected for the location. It would be a good place to bring a group of mates closing at gone 2am on a Friday night. Score is 7/10.

O Neill's (Moorgate - London)

O Neill's

A very small, busy (but not utterly rammed) branch of this traditional irish bar chain. This particular venue is open until 2am in the centre of the financial district (london wall). The bar has a rather poor selection and with only two staff they is a lot of attitude and little affection to the punters. The is a games machine and the place is piping out some current pop tunes but standing by a column in the middle of the room there is little here to be desired- the best looking seat in the house is by the window looking out into a better evening standing outside. Not overly impressed but at £3.30 a pint in this area your not going to be in the most expensive pub on the street.

Overall cramped and probably only good for a quickie on a bar crawl- I wont come back - 3/10.

The Stone Horse (Liverpool Street - London)

The Stone Horse

Almost an alcove off the street- brightly lit with plants and up lighting this curious entrance tells the layman nothing of what goes on inside. Down some stairs and through a soundproof door you enter a bright room with a bar to the left and a long walkway to a bend facing a poster of scarface before turning into a screening room for sports games with comfortable seating along the sides; a large, non-busy bar which really caters for the 20-somnething crowd of Bishopsgate. There is also a pool table and games machine available with a wooden floor and light décor although without a theme it’s difficult to see how this venue is not more crowded. Cider is £2.80 a pint and its £11 a bottle of wine which are excellent prices for the area.

Overall this place is a pretty fantastic place to come for drinks, after work and into the evening as they do not advertise the presence of alcohol within and many have said it looks more like a restaurant entrance from outside. Definitely a 7/10.

The Woodin's Shades (Liverpool Street - London)

The Woodin's Shades

The Woodin’s Shades is a small random pub thrown into a mix of bars and sleek city pubs as an all rounded old man pub. Upon entry you are virtually already at the bar where one can observe a fair selection of drinks, a number of the taps seem to be out of order and despite it being 10pm on a Friday night we are able to take on of the very few tall tables with stools to sit in front of the door with a plasma screens situated above displaying the boxing. The place was about average for prices- £4.50 for a pint of Carling and a small coke. Looking around I can see that the place is quite well lit with large ceiling-to-midriff windows lining one wall. The place seemed rather loud with the clientele being described by the rest of my gang as “assholes”.

It has good access being almost next to Liverpool street station but in truth there wasn’t much to see. I am told the upstairs its a haven of luxury pub-dom, but seeing the downstairs I was not convinced to make the effort - 3/10

Balls Brothers (Liverpool Street - London)

Balls Brothers

A trational pub sign above a doorway and downward steps into a basement wine bar - the name "Balls Brothers" tells you nothing about what's inside. Instead of some comedy-toilet-humour-gay venue we find a very tradtional wine bar, with well stocked bar, expensive drinks and a maze of interconnecting rooms and low-celing hallways of empty tables and chairs. The walls are painted with a rich red and everywhere you look are paintings and artistry. The scattered crowd are made of old women and couples and although the drinks cost from £4 for a small glass of house red there is an excellent selection of wines although no cider. The place also closes very early (about 9pm on a friday night).

Overall the feeling is that of an upper-middle class art gallery for wine drinkers but it is a very suitable wine bar and a flavour of what old london must have been like, overall a perfectly respectable 5/10.

[Balls Brothers Website]
[last visit: Jan 2007]

93 Feet East (Brick Lane - London)

93 Feet East

I had put off coming to this club too long and decided last week to branch out and head for it in time for the festive season and I am rather glad I did, its a wholly unique venue jammed behind the best parts of the city along brick lane. Entering through the old cobbled street outside (and with possible free entry courtesy of Buttoned Down Disco) the venue begins in a heated courtyard with steps up to a fairly large room which serves as the main bar with the floorspace essentailly allocated for dancing (although totally overcrowded), a shop in the top corner and couches and recliners and even beds along the walls of most of the sides. At the back of this room the passageway leads into a larger hall with a stage and a mass of people listening to the most perculiar music with another huge bar running down one side. The drinks were fairly well priced at £3 a bottle and £11 a bottle of wine (nothing on tap) and cocktails start at £4.50. We wary however, you are looking at a large crowd of students, underage folk and plastic cups!! The First room leads back outside onto the courtyard where the outdoor BBQ is selling off kebabs and burgers- a great feature of any good club.

Overall I was quite impressed with the orginial layout of the place, the corwd was friendly and the drinks prices were above average- there needed to be less overcrowding but I would say it would be a venue i would enjoy returning to even if it was pretty difficult to find- 7/10.

Pause Bar (Aldgate - London)

Pause Bar

This is a really swanky bar aside from the lack of space. There are plenty of seats but nearly all of them were reserved when I went for a quiet drink after work on a weeknight. The cocktails were small but really well made and the menu promised a wide selection. The service was really good where they brought your drinks to you. This saved jostling at the bar as it got very busy towards 6pm. The happy hour had decent offers – two for one on cocktails (but at £9 each that still didn’t provide enough of a discount for the size of the drink). Overall I think this is a nice venue that played decent music and created the right atmosphere. The clientele left a little to be desired as they were quite noisy and rude and the place got busier. The main downfall was the lack of space to meet the demand.

Rating: 6/10

Authored by Sam J

Terminus (Liverpool st- London)

Terminus

This bar/restaurant is part of the Great Eastern Hotel and is a lovely venue. This is very popular at lunchtime and they have made the best use of space with tables big enough to eat off of but compact enough to fit more in the available space. The venue is long with a bar running along one side. The waitresses are friendly and attentive and service is quick and professional. They served a wide ranging variety of beer, spirits and wine as well as some exotic looking cocktails. This place suits business lunches and drinks but is still rowdy enough to be enticing for a social occasion.

Rating: 7/10

Authored by Sam J

The Pumphouse (Aldgate - London)

The Pumphouse

This bar is located in a basement and as a result has an underground feel to it right down to the steel stairs that greet you from the entrance. The drinks are reasonably priced and the food is surprisingly decent. I’ve only occasioned this bar on work functions which it suits really well. My work colleagues do go on a Friday night but I can’t see it suddenly taking on a party atmosphere. This venue is really good to go for a business drink but not highly rated for a social venue.

Rating: 6/10

Authored by Sam J

Hennessy (Aldgate - London)

Hennessy

This small pub set in a side road near the station is good for an after work drink with colleagues and gentlemen but its not really the place for women. From observation the only one in there was the barwoman. There is very little seating but the bar is well stocked and costs about £2.50 a pint/£1.75 for a small glass of house white. The toilets are clean though very small and there are gambling and games machines.

Overall a 5/10.

East India Arms (Aldgate - London)

East India Arms

Again another small pub in Aldgate but very popular, so popular in fact that its punters pour into the street with their pints. The pub inside is not all too crowded either and is great for a drink after work with corner seating readily available for those weary legs. The drinks are a good price for the area at about £2 a pint/ £1.50 a glass of wine. The toilets arent amazing but I was very surprised at how wonderful the atmosphere was, also a shame about the variety of drinks and snacks baehind the bar.

Overall a moderate 6/10 would have been so much better if it were a little bigger.

Charlies (Fenchurch Street - London)

Charlies

This was a substandard nightclub located in the basement. I do believe that it was a Latin themed bar but wasn’t sure. We had our office party there it was closed to the general public. I found it cramped, stuffy and unpleasant with an excess of males who were all over you like a rash. It had a lot of expensive drinks and the music was way too cheesy. I would not recommend visiting this club to anyone.

I give this bar an 3/10

Authored by Sam J

Corney & Barrow (Aldgate - London)

Corney & Barrow

This is a nice bar to conduct business in. It’s in a metal basement where there is no mobile phone reception. They have a very respectable wine list and excellent table service. A lot of the tables are high chaired style which makes it difficult when you are only 5’5” because it’s a long way up to get comfortable. The toilets facilitated all needs and the overall décor is to be expected of a London ‘male’ bar.

I give this bar an 7/10

Authored by Sam J

The Habit (Liverpool st - London)

The Habit

This is definitely an old man’s pub. Aside from my boss and myself there was one other woman in the pub, not including the bar staff. It has attempted to retain the old world charm of British pubs by having ale barrels and pewter mugs to drink from. This was not done very well as the pub was below street level and all the dark wood and cramped conditions made it very dark and dungeon like. This is not a very nice place to visit for an afternoon drink. The pub was split into two halves. On one side was the actual pub with the bar, on the other side there was a restaurant serving standard pub food. The tables looked cramped and there weren’t very many of them. As a business venue this perhaps afforded the right surroundings for men to conduct deals. From a woman’s perspective it was seedy and not very attractive. I would not recommend a first or second visit to this venue.

Rating: 4/10

Authored by Sam J

Sanderson Hotel -the Long Bar (Aldgate-London)

Sanderson Hotel -the Long Bar

This is a bar with a difference! The layout is as the name suggests, a long room with the bar dominating the middle. There are a couple of tables at either end to offer some privacy. The theme of the décor were huge black and white eyes printed on the upholstery which had a dramatic effect on the otherwise very neutral colours selected. As it is part of the hotel there were not many customers coming in from outside and the guests were generally quiet. The cocktail menu was unbelievable and spanned five A3 pages! The service was efficient and the waiters were knowledgeable about their wares. 

I give this bar an 8/10

Authored by Sam J

The George (Aldgate - London)

The George

Just out of Liverpool Street station you will find a maze of urban exuberance. Classic architecture bullied by office blocks and a giant gherkin. The George is a small corner pub which feels very posh while at the same time having that traditional ale-house atmosphere. There are large wooden tables and the customers are suited or businessy individuals. The drinks are well priced for the areas with a good selection of cocktails on the menu but all the while i couldnt stop looking up. It is grand ceiling indeed. Not too packed but then it was a week night. I'd certainly stop back again for an ale or two.

Overall a splendid 7/10.