Ye Olde Monken Holt, Barnet

Well, in I think all that needs to be said has been said. A number of mistakes, possibly a knee jerk reaction to the newly refurbished Black Horse Tavern and the solid Ye Olde Mitre Inn. Someone from the brewery needs to see these comments before it's too late and another much loved Barnet pub is boarded up, knocked down and turned into flats.

I few comments about the music here. The Sunday night jam night has moved to the Misty Moon - if ever a pub needed a hand the Monk has passed it nicely over to a one time den of youngsters that is now on the up. As the Monk declines perhaps the Moon will rise. I'd just like to add that if the regulars at the Monk wanted Jazz (an acquired taste and not for all), then the open mic night that regularly filled the pub on a Sunday, would have had a heavy jazz bias.

Then there's the live music on a Saturday. Usually really high quality and this Saturday saw the return of the brilliant Paparazzi. But please, why didn't the powers that be do something about sound proofing the pub rather than the insipid refurbishment that many haven't even noticed.

Take this as warning... the Monk needs help ASAP.

3 Feb 2014 08:43

Kings Head, Barnet

Well, this used to be an "avoid" pub. Not any more though. They seem to be getting away from that rough image and reputation that they had in the past. I've been in a few times in the past 5/6 months and it's been fine. Nice to see live music here at the weekends too. Definitely better.

17 Sep 2012 13:25

Ye Olde Mitre Inne, Barnet

This is where you go if the object of the night is good beer, good conversation and a nice smoking area.

It's a nice pub full of very nice people. Some might say boring but not everyone wants football and loud music everytime they go out. (Though they do have live football out in "the stable").

5 Jul 2010 13:12

The Black Horse, Barnet

This used to be a great pub but very different from the place I used to know a year or two ago. We got glared at we walked in. I had to stop myself from saying "this is a local pub for local people". I wanted to leave as soon as we got there to be honest.

I think the most distburbing thing was the number of racist comments I overheard every now and then. Obviously tolerated in this establishment. I found it very cliquey and mainly full lads out to watch the football get smashed out of their skulls. That's ok if that's what you're after, I suppose.

5 Jul 2010 13:08

The After Office Hours, Barnet

I've been here a few times and it seems a bit hit and miss in terms of the atmosphere. The last time I visited we were entertained by a covers band who finished the night with people dancing on the bar and tables, including the staff.

Apparently they do nice tapas, though looking at the menu, it's rather expensive tapas and you're not likely to fill yourself up for less than �25 a head, plus wine/beer. It's a nice enough place and certainly worth a visit.

5 Jul 2010 13:00

Ye Olde Monken Holt, Barnet

This is a friendly pub where you see people of all ages mixing together. I've been three times now, on different days of the week. Once on a Thursday for a steak meal. That was a huge meal, good quality too for the silly price of about �7 if I remember rightly. The wine selection was good too and not badly priced for the quality.

The next time I popped in was to catch a band and see what the crowd was like on a Saturday. It was straight after an England match in the World Cup and thought there would be nothing more telling about the pub than what is was like after a big World Cup match. What a great night! The pub was full of people who may well have been out all day due to the football, but they were very well behaved and spent the night enjoying themselves.

The live music wasn't a band as such but a really good duo, guy on guitar and a woman singing a really nice range of songs. Nothing heavy but a good mix. The punters seemed to enjoy it. If this act was placed where the bands usually go though, I can see why people have made comments as there was just enough room for the duet.

I also returned a couple of weeks ago for the open mic night that a couple of the regulars told me about. It's not just an open mic night, it's a fully fledged jam night with muscians, singers, dummers the lot. There's a little bit of Barnet that has a lot of talent. It was also mildly amusing to watch teenage boys having a go at prog rock and doing very well at it too.

Really very recommended.

5 Jul 2010 12:52