please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Pretentious dump, both sides of the bar. Service rubbish,. Great feelto the pub when you enter, ruined by having to wait for the local henry's to be served their cocktails
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This pub must now be rivalling the Priory Arms as the best pub in South Lambeth. Typical of many of the pubs I visited in this part of London, it has an intentionally worn interior and seems to appeal to the local trendsetters. The bar stocks a good range of ales. There is plenty of seating at the front for drinkers and a dining area at the rear. The dining area looked empty, with most people at the dark front bar to watch the rugby. I preferred the rough and ready interior to the modern feel in the Priory Arms. But I'm not sure the beers were better - Skinners Betty Stogs, Sambrooks Powerhouse Porter, Hogsback Snout & Timothy Taylor Golden Best. Once again, the staff seemed to lack basic customer service skills. Nevertheless, a fairly good pub.
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I had heard some great reports of this place but the result was a huge disappointment.
We visited on the day the Ashes was rained off at the Oval and this obviously meant there was more custom than they anticipated. However -
- the forecast for rain had been clear 5 days beforehand. Plenty of time to get more staff in.
- The few staff they had were brusque and rude. Worst of all was the lady we took to be the owner
- Approx one third of items on the menu were not available
- At 5pm we were asked to move , despite the fact that we had and were spending a good amount of money with them. We were told they needed to set up for dinner. Apparently first booking was for 7pm - two whole hours later
- When we reasonably made out various concerns clear to the staff, they made it very obvious they had no interest in our opinions.
I will never go back and I would urge anyone in pursuit of good food and polite staff, to do the same.
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South Lambeth Road is blessed by the positioning of such a wonderful Beer palace as "The Cantons" in it's midst; betwick Old South Lambeth and Stockwell.
A clean, friendly, large pub, with good music, good staff, fine food, colourful and charming customers and especially well kept, and presented beer.
As a smoker, it's a dream place to sit outside, sup beer and puff on your cigar, whilst watching the world go by; no hassle;happiness. Oft when I'm late in town, I have no problem being served late, with a warm welcome and a friendly smile and comment. I highly recommended it to all. Enjoy!
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I go there most Monday nights after 5-a-side. The pub splits into 2, a full blown restaurant and a normal bar and they are quite seperate. Never been in the restaurant but the pub bit is good. Always have four real ales, normally all in good nick. Prices are standard. must be popular as the bar does good business on a Monday. Staff are fine.
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I am a bit puzzled by the reviews I have seen here. The food at the Canton Arms is some of the best I have ever had in a pub. Granted, you won't be able to pop in and get a burger and chips, but I don't think that is the point. The food is incredibly varied and delicious, the menu changes every day and I have yet to find anything on it that didn't make me want to come back again for more. They serve food that somehow manages to be inventive, hearty and delicious all at once. The wine list is excellent, and they always have at least 6 ales on the go, at reasonable prices.
As for the staff, I have always found them to be friendly and welcoming, not to mention very knowledgable and impassioned about everything they serve there.
The best pub I have been to in this neck of the woods, by far - I saw in one of the other reviews that there was a recommendation for the Fentiman Arms if you want to go for pub grub. You could go there, but you will find much inferior food at the same prices.
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the canton arms in stockwell used to be a pub with a welcoming hug and a friendly smile. run by some cheery Australians it was 'your local' where you could stretch yourself out on a sofa and enjoy your evening. now, however, it's run by an owl who likes to toss off into his own face. long gone are the days when you could pop round for a heartwarming plate of chips and leave with a friendly wave. no, now you'd be lucky to even find a member of the bar staff as they're more likely to be up their own rectum searching for new desserts for 'The Most Pretentious Menu In London'.
i tried to eat there a little while ago. i tried, but instead of what you'd expect from a pleasant little pub that used to be a glimmer of class in a dubious area, instead of a nice gastropub burger and chips with a sticky toffee pudding, my choice was rabbit shins or something written in french.
if i wanted a menu that came from the sphincter of a hunting jacket and get it served by an elitist member of the hipster scumniverse, i'd go to shoreditch. i want a pub. a real one. with a menu that doesn't make me feel like a dick just from reading it.
aside from that, if i go to a pub i don't want the pub staff to talk to me like i'm a piece of fecal regret.
yesterday evening i tried the place again. i thought they might, by now, have realised the folly of their shallowness.
the place was busy and i didn't immediately log the genre of clientele.
"hi, we'd just like a drink please." i asked. being a pub, i considered this an ordinary request. momentarily i thought it slightly abnormal that i felt i'd had to justify my attendance to a public house, but...
there were plenty of seats available.
"this is the FOOD area, please go over THERE," blurted a 'trendy' waiter. the boy's beard was not as good as mine. ah, thought i, THAT's another reason why i stopped coming here; because the staff are rude and dickish. and rude.
i was with my lady-girl. we paused for a moment to consider whether to get a dessert to justify us being allowed to sit in a pub. maybe they'd be serving something resembling food this time, and not kitten-licked chocolate clouds.
"are you waiting for friends?" another member of the staff interjected. he had an ironic moustache.
"um, no, we're just decidi_.."
"well could you move, i'm working here," he expunged from an ironic sneer.
my instinct was to tell the pretentious prick to eff off, but despite being in the presence of a moron with an over-inflated sense of himself i was still able to retain basic social abilities. my second instinct was to suggest that his job is not dissimilar to working in a Wimpy bar, but instead my lady-part simply said (with just the right level of sarcastic venom to be pleasurable) "actually, we'll just be leaving thanks."
part of me would like to suggest that you should avoid the canton arms, but i'm aware of the chance that some of you are total wankers. some of you would really LIKE to see sheep-cheeks and garlic foam on a pub menu. some of you are dickish media types who'd actually enjoy being in the company of other dickish media types, even if those dickish media types run a badly conceived gastropub filled with old semen.
the canton arms: obnoxious and awful.
within ten minutes walk of the canton arms - if you want a pub with a good atmosphere and a pleasant environment - are The Cavendish Arms and The Fentiman Arms. both of them are great, the staff don't talk down to you and you don't feel your soul being drained when you read their specials board.
the canton arms: as my non-pretentious and beautifully human lady-hand said, "worse than having no local at all, is having a local that you just wish would burn down every day."
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Since the refurb, the food is really good here. It's a rare kind of place that has me trying food that I would never think of eating any other time (maybe I'm just not adventurous...), and I've never been disappointed with a dish yet. Maybe I'm making a bit of a mistake by saying that here, because it's really nice having a highly competent gastropub around the South Lambeth area, and I should rightfully keep it a secret to ensure my place there!
Also nice to have a place serving �3 ales, and the staff are always friendly. The only downside is... erm.. nope. No downside :-)
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By Jingo! A jolly good bar,with good service,four fine ales at �3 a pop. Can't be bettered. Pop along.
anonymous - 26 Jul 2010 11:07 |
Here are too good comments about the Canton in its previous incarnation:
1. 8 Aug 2007
Spot the contributions from management (last three [4 really]comments). Yes pub is ok - nothing special but reasomable at what it attempts
2. 7 Aug 2007
Supurb local pub. Friendly atmosphere and friendly staff - it seems to be one of the few pubs in London which caters for young people where they bother to say goodbye to you when you leave. The homecooked food is of a high standard and is a little more creative than your average pub food. The menu also changes regularly. Very good pub quiz on Monday.
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Home cooked? ie pub reheated, industrially piped, mmm because that's how I always prepare my food at home. And people complain about politicians being mealy mouthed. It comes to something doesn't it when people serving you food try to to mislead you over one of life's basic necessities, a certain kind of sordid trough of deceit. Home cooked indeed!
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5th June 2010 8pm Dinner �80 for 2
Sat outside for a few beers before dinner. Nice fellow drinkers and diners, although bar staff a bit slow and spaced out eg clutching head in hands woe is me type thing. Still beer OK.
Food later, good quality. Pork nice, lamb even better. Good portion too. Starter not bad. Service and wine pretty good. Only one thing missing from the food, heat. I like my hot food served really hot. The hot starter and both mains and side veg (extra �) were all tepid. Why I'm not sure, eg incompletely m'wave reheated or slow pass between kitchen and waiters? Didn't mention it as by the time they've fixed/ denied it/ whatever, the moment has passed especially where its everything rather than just one thing. Of course the other thing is where only one person's dinner needs attention, the other half can feel guilty wolfing away, while you wait. For the price, I'd expect it all to be right first time. I think there are better restaurants nearish by eg 100 yards up the road Estrella or Angels and Gypsies in Camberwell, although the Canton is probably still getting its act together, so could improve with time.
I'd go again, but probably not for the food.
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I'll be honest, the 'refurb' really didn't blow me away (not much more than a lick of paint), and it still has a slightly 'chilly' atmosphere (during the day). The food was indeed great, the service was certainly friendly and there was a little more vibe on the opening Friday night.
I'll keep going back for now.
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The Canton Arms has just re-opened - went there this weekend and its properly lush. Its the team behind the Eagle, Great Queen Street and The Hope and Anchor so the food is amazing and beats your run of the mill gastro food any day. Great atmosphere - laid back, cool - looks great - excellent work on the refurb. I am really excited about this pub - just what the area needs and worth the trip for anyone who thinks there's nothing good south of the river!!
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Due to reopen 18th Feb 2010 apparently. Will be under new management.
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The Canton appears to have CLOSED - shut for about a month now.
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USED TO LIVE HERE AND REVISETED OUT OF INTEREST LAST WEEK.
A VERY AVERAGE PUB WITH NO SOUL OR CHACTER. ACTUALLY STILL RETAINS A COLD FEEL WHEN THEY HAVE A LARGE SPORTS EVENT ON TV.
WOULDN'T AGREE WITH BELOW COMMENT THAT "IT IS PRETENTIOUS" - THREE DRUNKS SPRAWLED ACRROSS THE BAR ON LAST VISIT , AND A HEALTHY AMOUNT OF SWEARING AFTER THE CRICKET HAD FINISHED!
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Very average, quite a poncy pretentious place and not somewhere i would head to again in a hurry
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A decent pub, with 3 real ales on when I went and friendly staff. Beers are a bit expensive but there isn't much competition since the Albert tried and failed to make a go of it.
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A WONDRFUL PUB. GOOD BEER. GREAT FOOD. GOOD LOOKING AND PLEASANT BARMAIDS; BARMAN NICE FELLA TOO. VERY COMFORTABLE SMOKING AREA AS WELL. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. BEST PUBIN THE AREA;EPECIALLY IF WATCHING TV SPORT AMONGST BRITS.
anonymous - 30 Apr 2009 08:56 |
A very nice pub; best pub around Vauxhall and Stockwell. Well worth going to for a night out.
anonymous - 28 Feb 2009 13:17 |
I had a very nice night in there last week. Clean, well presented and friendly staff.
anonymous - 19 Feb 2009 23:38 |
TALLTORQUIL's ciomment below seems rather similar to what SOUTHLOPNDONLION says in his comment about the Royal Albert round the corner...really not sure what he's on about but suppose he's never actually visitd the pubs..... nothing brazilian/portuguesey about the Canton (not that that would be a bad thing)...ex manager dave gone off to work in Richmond now, but Linz et al do a great job of livening the place up. Still a great local, decent beer, decent prices and friendly service.
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Once used to be a good pub. Another sad loss to the area. Is there anywhere pleasant to drink around here anymore apart from Portugese/Brazillian drug backed cover bars?
anonymous - 25 Sep 2008 00:49 |
Have been to this pub a few times. Good size but lacks in diversity. Usual choice of poor lagers, nothing cool. Pint of Landlord is very popular at moment and its Ok here. Avoid the food! Area has better pubs.
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Lovely pub, great staff, very friendly. A decent local, basically. The food can be a bit hit and miss, but go for the drink and the atmosphere and you can't go wrong really.
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A good pint of Landlord here, the pub reasonable with a relaxed feel to it, friendly service. Not very pubby but if the 'moderne' is done properly it can be good. Suspect the staff is Portuguese as a lot of people are around here - muito obrigado, senhora!
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HAS ANY ONE NOTICED THE COMMENT BELOW IS BY THE GENERAL MANAGER OF THE COMPANY CHECK OUT COMMENTS ON THERE OTHER PUB IN FULHAM THE HARWOOD
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Lovely pub, and with a front garden which is great in this weather. The food has improved with the new chefs.
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Very nice local. A bit quiet whenever I've been there. Very friendly staff and a pleasant feel generally. VERY well kept Landlord and Harveys, and sometimes Deuchars IPA. Haven't eaten here properly but did munch on nice nachos and pizzas.
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nice pub good food hope they finish panting soon
anonymous - 10 Aug 2007 02:01 |
Spot the contributions from management (last three comments). Yes pub is ok - nothing special but reasomable at what it attempts
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This is a great pub. Good food, good beer, good landlord. Does all the basics very well. Only ever had lunch there and it was rather quiet - but the food bangers and mash was done very well. Service was with a smile and that does go a long way to making you feel at home in a boozer.
anonymous - 8 Aug 2007 22:39 |
Very nice relaxing pub, with large tables and leather sofa's. Food is excellent and well presented. Good drink details on pitchers and cocktails.
I recommend this for anyone.
anonymous - 8 Aug 2007 22:38 |
This pub seems to manage to please just about everyone all the time, it doesn�t pretend to be anything other than exactly what it is, a great pub with friendly staff and good food. This is nowhere better reflected in its clientele who are an eclectic mix ranging from oldstyle pub locals right through to young families. If you�re in the area give the pub a try I�m sure you won�t be disappointed.
anonymous - 8 Aug 2007 22:37 |
Supurb local pub. Friendly atmosphere and friendly staff - it seems to be one of the few pubs in London which caters for young people where they bother to say goodbye to you when you leave. The homecooked food is of a high standard and is a little more creative than your average pub food. The menu also changes regularly. Very good pub quiz on Monday.
anonymous - 7 Aug 2007 17:57 |
Seems the pub has improved dramaticly especialy in the food area sinse the new head chef took over in febuary, the menue is constantly being improved , i have especially liked the mexican night and carribean night i recomed that you try out the strawberry cheese cake,
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Have had similar expereinces to Tony_L with variable quality of service, food and beers. For this reason I usually avoid
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Seems the pub has gone down hill slightly. Used to have friendly, fun and efficient staff. They all seem to have gone.
Have been going for years, but will wait for a while in the hope it gets better.
Beer seemed fine.
anonymous - 23 Jul 2007 17:00 |
Clearly has good and bad days...visited twice last week:
Mid-week lunch found all real ales on, and in good nick, prompt delivery of very presentable food, and free wifi.
Inspired by this, I took 8 colleagues there for Sunday lunch, with disastrous results. Deuchars was off, and the Timothy Taylor was in very poor condition.
Food service was a shambles, with mega-confusion over some orders, and a couple of our group couldn't eat at all when the kitchen refused new orders, claiming inundation (the pub was half empty!).
Staff weren't as attentive as on my earlier visit either (there probably weren't enough). I might give it another try, but none of my companions will be going back...
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Just come back from this place after having tried their Roasts with a friend.
The service was exceptionally poor as we had to travel to the kitchenette to aquire our own condiments after the bar man dumped the plates on to the table and went back to his blackcurrant soda and cigarette.
My friend's lamb was mostly fat and actually looked like pigs brains and the vegetables, aside from the cabbages, were virtually inedible - completely unable to cut the bizarrely squigy potatoes.
Left most of the food. Nice cheese board though.
Well presented food and the pub was very clean - I should imagine this was an off-day for whatever reason.
Won't be going back for food in a hurry though.
anonymous - 10 Jun 2007 18:02 |
Very nice pub, really friendly, helpful staff and great food.
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Big and friendly pub, with a no-smoking dining area at the back (always a bonus). The staff drink here on their days off which has to be a good sign, and the food is pretty good. For some reason, it attracts a huge number of young aussies, and can get a bit rowdy when there is rugby on TV.
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An update on the beer situation: A year ago the Canton was a place which appeared to have everything you'd want in a pub except drinkable beer (I'm overlooking the lack of dartboard for a second), but on a recent visit this appeared to have changed. 2 new hand-pumps had appeared, a TT Landlord, and a Deuchars IPA. I feel a bit blase about TTL these days, but it is an excellent beer. Deuchars IPA is a superb choice for a session bitter, it beats GKIPA hands-down and I found it be be well kept. I might actually start going in there to eat again, as the food has always been pretty good.
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A decent pub with a nice outside seating area. The bar staff started counting down to drinking up time from the stroke of 11, but unlike many other places this was done in a friendly and cheerful (although no nonsense) way. Some other people were eating and the food looked good.
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Good on Tuesdays when the two for the price of one burger offer goes down a treat
anonymous - 1 Feb 2006 13:54 |
Not bad - good (if slightly limited) range of food and standard drinks. Bar staff attentive and keen to help
anonymous - 22 Jan 2006 00:02 |
Variable - quality of serevice and therefore experience is dependent on bar staff. Recently we went two days running.
On Monday we went in and waited to order food at the bar for 15+ minutes whilst one member of bar staff was serving another customer and having to explain why most of the items they wanted from the menu were not available. Another staff member concentrated on taking down Christmas decorations rather than serving customers - we walked out fearing that our order would take 30 minutes plus to arrive.
On Tuesday our progress was much swifter - we went in, ordered immediately at the bar and received drinks straight away and food within 10 minutes - much better!
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Friendly and good-looking local pub, but completely agree that they don't know how to keep beer - why do pubs do this to themselves?
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Not bad alternative now that the Prince Albert has shut
anonymous - 28 Nov 2005 17:29 |
Supurb local pub. Friendly atmosphere and friendly staff - it seems to be one of the few pubs in London which caters for young people where they bother to say goodbye to you when you leave. The homecooked food is of a high standard and is a little more creative than your average pub food. The menu also changes regularly. Very good pub quiz on Monday. My only slight complaint is that they don't seem to know how to keep beer properly - the hand-pumped bitters are best avoided.
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Having moved to Stockwell 2 years ago the Canton was a very handy local - its been on the slide ever since i moved here!!
The choice and quality of the food and beer has dropped, as has the interior.. the clientele coincide with this slide
Well worth walking the extra 5mins round the corner to the Prince
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This is a pleasant pub with a good wine list and excellent food. Unfortunately they don't seem to know how to keep beer. I have given up even trying the London Pride and I have often had a bad pint of the session bitter.
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This pub used to be a favourite. Recently the menu and food quality has deteriorated and they seem to have given up on vegetarians altogether. Good two-for-one bloody marys on a Sunday though.
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Food is reasonable but not outstanding. �6.95 for a pretty basic bangers and mash is a bit steep in my opinion.
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OK pub - does what it says on the tin, with friendly staff. Food was a bit middling. Potatoes on he sunday lunch were lazily cut and cooked (the size of Geoff Capes' fist).
gnuts - 29 Jun 2005 21:48 |
Hmm pub doesnt seem to know what it is - is it pub serving food or is it pure drinking pub?
The food is very good but the surroundings are a bit raucus for easy dining - the music is usally too loud and the tendency to show football matches on a big screen in the area where most of the tables are is off putting. I think in terms of ambience th royal Albert is better but the menu here is more extensive.
anonymous - 7 Apr 2005 17:30 |
This pub seems to manage to please just about everyone all the time, it doesn�t pretend to be anything other than exactly what it is, a great pub with friendly staff and good food. This is nowhere better reflected in its clientele who are an eclectic mix ranging from oldstyle pub locals right through to young families. If you�re in the area give the pub a try I�m sure you won�t be disappointed.
anonymous - 30 Dec 2004 10:18 |
Friendly staff, reasonable food, good atmosphere - great place to wash away a hangover on a Sunday. Bit expensive - probably its only downfall.
anonymous - 17 Dec 2004 11:49 |
Great for breakfast/lunch at the weekends
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Fantastic place to chill out on hungover weekend afternoons. Comfy, friendly, relaxed and I've never had a bad experience with the food.
Two for one bloody marys on Sunday. Genius!
Sal - 12 Oct 2004 17:30 |
i too live a few doors down from the canton, and it's refurb in 2003 has made a huge difference to my quality of life! food can be iffy (better off at the recently refurb'd Royal Albert), but still a great 'local'.
hugo - 5 Aug 2004 13:07 |
Just moved into the area and didnt know of a decent watering hole. The Canton has great atmosphere, great grub, great lash and great a barmaid. I love you katarina.
James White - 24 Jun 2004 09:35 |
Just moved into the area and came in for a Sunday lunch. Fantastic roast, great puddings and a welcoming atmosphere, I will definately be back!
Robbie Beard - 2 Feb 2004 13:07 |
I live a few doors away from it. It's lovely since they refurbished it in 2003, but the I've had a couple of bad experiences with food there. Staff and atmosphere are great though. If you're visiting the area, it's also worth checking out the Priory Arms - about 5 mins walk away.
Patrick - 1 Feb 2004 18:54 |
Nice, laid back pub. Food is good as is the selection of beers. Definately one to try. Bar staff are generally very nice....
JZ - 3 Jan 2004 13:21 |
Very nice relaxing pub, with large tables and leather sofa's. Food is excellent and well presented. Good drink details on pitchers and cocktails.
I recommend this for anyone.
scott - 26 Sep 2003 12:20 |
Canton is a great pub, what a contract the sleeze-hole that it was. The bar staff are great (and flirty which is cool) as is the food. It's certainly becoming more and more popular though I was surprised to see some lost trendies from Camden or NH wearing silly hats! One girl wore a cowboy hat and thought she was supercool, fool! Apart from that, it's great.
Andy - 29 May 2003 19:23 |
This was a rough boozer until a recent refurb has turned it into a lovely relaxing pub with great food. This pub is going to become a very popular local overtime. Rugby, real Ales and Sunday Lunches are all very popular here already. Good female count as well.
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