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Dukes Head, Richmond

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user reviews of the Dukes Head, Richmond

please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.

I use this pub most evenings. The beer is well kept - Youngs and Twickenham Naked Lady particularly. The main trade is for meals early evening and it is indeed quiet thereafter, mainly old codgers like me. So it is a good place to meet to talk, except on Friday nights = Open Mic aka Noise Night, which attracts a young crowd who like that sort of thing.

If you get a duff pint don’t just grumble - tell the bar staff
Christo - 16 Jun 2017 18:59
Quiet two bar pub with an overwhelmingly elderly clientele. Beer quality poor. A pity as the pub has lots of potential.
simontheeditor - 4 Dec 2016 19:10
having worked round the corner for 4 years have been in several times and always found nice pub with good ale but in this evening and had doombar which tasted watery and my partner had pride which says was one of the worst he had had. also had some snacks at bar that tasted stale, bar was empty and felt real disappointment that this place seems to have gone downhill in the past 6 months. please turn it around and we would try again. not sure how it is keeping the cask masque.
dariogirl - 1 Mar 2014 23:31
Calm unfussy residential pub with decent beer. Tried Youngs, Twickenham Fine Ales Naked Ladies and Pride.
bedfont - 13 Jan 2013 17:42
Located a short walk from the town centre, this is a Victorian building with a central bar serving a drinkers bar and a more formal dining area.

It has a small outside dinking area and also a couple of tables outside the main entrance.

Serves three real ales and the Twickenham brewery "naked ladies" was a nice drop of beer.

Pleasant bar staff and the pub had the feel of a locals pub which is not that common in Richmond.
beershot - 23 Jul 2012 09:25
This pub continues to thrive: it has a very lively 'open mic' music night on Fridays - which is not over until the now rather fat but once very beautiful Polish lady with the still fine voice sings sad songs . .

To find it, walk up Richmond Hill whichever way you can and ask for the Vineyard, which runs round the hill on a contour about 1/3 way up, not up and down. Il vaut le detour.
Christo - 29 Jan 2012 20:05
A little hard to find but worth doing so. Being out of the town it caters for the locals, of all ages, rather than just the young people who flood the town centre at weekends. Always busy, always friendly and always good beer on tap.
Matthew_of_Ham - 27 Nov 2011 21:53
Large traditional inn in a residential side street away from the town centre and off the Richmond pub "circuit".

Despite having lived in Richmond for a good number of years, I still find it challenging to get to this pub without my trusty, well-thumbed A-Z.

It's a former Courage pub - note the bar back in the main bar indicating this. It's been refurbished within the last year and, whilst it still remains comfortable and cosy, it does now appear to have something of a generic hotel-bar atmosphere to it, based on my recent afternoon visit.

There's a wide range of food offered and there's a clear emphasis on this and the Bed and Breakfast side of the business now. However, you don't feel uncomfortable just popping in for a pint.

I think the previous posting from Nick needs clarifying. This is not an Irish pub - it is a pub owned by an Irish couple, which is not the same thing. The only evident indications of this that I saw were the trademark round black Guinness sign outside and a copy of the Irish Post on a bookcase ( along with info on Richmond attractions ). Football and rugby games are evidently screened and I don't see why they can't show hurling as well if the customer demand is there. Pubs need to be customer-focused to survive nowadays. The fact that Nick ( and myself incidentally ) have no interest whatsoever in hurling is neither here nor there, I'm afraid.

3 real ales were on - Youngs Ordinary, London Pride and Twickenham Sundancer. I found the Sundancer to be a splendid citrus flavoured fruity beer, albeit at a rather pricey � 3.25p per pint for a beer with an ABV of only 3.7% and which is brewed only a couple of miles away. I've previously had decent Sharps Doom Bar in here also.

If you want somewhere a bit more select than the chav-infested pubs around George Street ( particularly at weekends ), you should try and seek this one out.
JohnBonser - 22 May 2009 13:35
If i wanted to watch hurling then i'd go to Ireland. This is England and quite frankly I find these irish pubs irksome. In such a prime location and in such a traditional English building to be confronted with images of 'the old country' is frustrating at best.
nickthefish - 5 Feb 2009 16:41
The Dukes has been refurbished this summer without harming its idiosyncratic character. The dart board has gone; there are now 3 plasma screens [in the lower bar only] for sports watching [including the hurling final on Sunday last]. The food menu is more ambitious and more expensive; last food orders 10 pm. It is open all day, serving breakfast, fancy coffee, etc.. Currently several attractive bar maids [but they come and go].
Christo - 9 Sep 2008 18:57
The Thursday night quiz is back!
dave99 - 9 May 2008 19:45
I've been taken here a few times now, for Sunday lunch and it's great. A very hearty lunch for �7.95, with cabbage too. The jam roly poly came with custard. You don't see that very often these days.
I had a good Twickenham beer here a couple of weeks ago and great Sharps beer before that.
I_love_Ellie - 27 Nov 2007 13:37
My local: beer [Youngs, Price, Bombardier/Guest [currently Twickenham Ale]] consistently well kept; staff cheerful, hardworking and efficient; landlord & lady Irish: Pat & Mairead are convivial; haven't tried the food, which varies as chefs come and go; all ages up to 92 [he's been waiting for a drink since 1936 . . ]; not usually crowded except on match nights & rugby weekends, so a good place for a meet; closed in the afternoons, I think; open til 2330 Sun - Thur [doors close @ 000 hrs prompt]; much improved by the smoking ban. To find it, ask for The Vineyard: it's in the middle. Or go to the bus station and follow your nose uphill from there.
Christo - 24 Nov 2007 12:57
My local: beer [Youngs, Price, Bombardier/Guest [currently Twickenham Ale]] consistently well kept; staff cheerful, hardworking and efficient; landlord & lady Irish: Pat & Mairead are convivial; haven't tried the food, which varies as chefs come and go; all ages up to 92 [he's been waiting for a drink since 1936 . . ];

Continued: not usually crowded except on match nights & rugby weekends, so a good place for a meet; closed in the afternoons, I think; open til 2330 Sun - Thur [doors close @ 000 hrs prompt];

Concluded: much improved by the smoking ban. To find it, ask for The Vineyard: it's in the middle. Or go to the bus station and follow your nose up hill from there.
Christo - 24 Nov 2007 12:55
Continued: not usually crowded except on match nights & rugby weekends, so a good place for a meet; closed in the afternoons, I think; open til 2330 Sun - Thur [doors close @ 000 hrs prompt]; . .
Christo - 23 Nov 2007 22:36
test 3
Christo - 23 Nov 2007 22:35
My local: beer [Youngs, Price, Bombardier/Guest [currently Twickenham Ale]] consistently well kept; staff cheerful, hardworking and efficient; landlord & lady Irish: Pat & Mairead are convivial; haven't tried the food, which varies as chefs come and go; all ages up to 92 [he's been waiting for a drink since 1936 . . ]; . .
Christo - 23 Nov 2007 22:33
test 2
Christo - 23 Nov 2007 22:32
test
Christo - 23 Nov 2007 22:29
I have only been here twice and that is because i gave it second chance. The palce was not somewhere i would choose to go to in a hurry! I ordered a roast dinner and got mash potato-not my idea of a proper roast!! The food wasn't up to much and my friend had a medium to well done steak that she couldn't even chew!! The service was not good and found the waitress to be quite rude and when we aked if it was possible to change the steak she was rude and uncopoperative. The landord-what can i say? He was a little bit worse for ware. The service in the bar was adequate but not up to much... Wouldn't recommend to anyone of my friends.
princesssarah - 24 Apr 2006 18:11
Superb traditional pub serving good value food. Having stopped here a couple of times I found the rooms clean and spacious, the staff friendly and the breakfast delicious.
nobby2sheds - 11 Feb 2006 15:43
A great locals' pub (you have to be a local to be able to find it) that has a good, if rather Irish, atmosphere and a good range of beers that changes regularly. Often my last port-of-call when on a Richmons crawl.
Matthew_of_Ham - 15 Dec 2005 19:48
Great pub with top beer & good grub. Pat the landlord hosts a pub quiz on a Wednesday - assuming he's in a capable state to do so that is. Quiz is pretty good but some of them take it a bit seriously. Well worth a visit, if you can find it.
DaveMere - 12 Aug 2005 13:19
I found this pub by complete accident as I was lost in the backstreets of Richmond - and it was a pleasant surprise.
An old fashioned pub, smoky, with some old punters and traditional decor - Quite nice to go to a proper pub in Richmond. Service was quite slow, but it was busy. Perhaps not worth a visit if smoking bothers you, but seems a good pub to me..
TheGP - 8 May 2005 18:45
Great pub, for people who enjoy their food and beer.

No good for lager louts who fill up the pubs in the middle of town
Craig - 25 Oct 2004 15:02
An excellent, friendly pub. Food is superb.
anonymous - 25 Mar 2004 14:59
Must agree with Jake's comments. *The* place to be in Richmond on a Tuesday evening for (fairly restrained but quite excellent) live Irish folk music.
Food is good and from a varying menu.
Clientele, although not old, tends to be over 30; which is a refreshing change, along with the concomitant lower noise levels.
ian_springham - 7 May 2003 17:41
this pub is full of old people and irish builders who drink cider.. avoid at all costs!!!
the Duke - 19 Mar 2003 10:16
Friendly irish and has a bed and breakfast above it
anonymous - 27 Oct 2002 14:17
The Dukes Head is in The Vineyard, Richmond as is possibly Richmond's only 'real' locals pub. Irish music on Tuesday, Quiz night on Thursday. It's generally full of locals with no loud music and stuff but a great atmosphere and a top place for St Patricks night.
Jake - 19 Jun 2002 15:34

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