please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
With just time for one last drink before getting the tube to Stamford Bridge, I made my last stop the Prince Albert, just at the bottom of Portobello Road. It's predictably an attraction for tourists. So it seems to attract a transient crowd. But I finally managed to get a seat. So I felt a bit more at home. Ales were London Pride, Ubu & Monty Python's Holy Grail. With still no dark beers in sight, I decided to go for a craft cider from a can in the fridge. My hopped cider with mimosa scarcely got me any change from £6. I won't be having that again!
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Bless me father, It's been 18 months since my last review and NOTHING has changed ! Still love the place, the view, the crowd - but the lazy, ignorant, incompetent and rude staff really need to shape up. Imagine the worst case of carbed up, burger overloaded, sluggish, rude and totally useless person who looks like they need a shower ? Then say hello to your bar person ! 'Could do better' as my old maths teacher used to say.
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Is an ok place, but I often get made to feel like I am scum by the bar staff. Average beer selection, decent enough menu.
All a bit touristy given it's location, which (to me) tends to affect the feel of a place
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The pub is alright (though nothing to really write home about) but it's ruined by the service. Inattentive, slow and not exactly charming, and reading the reviews this has been a problem for some time. It's a shame, as the pub has a pretty good location and could be improved a great deal with high class service, but thanks to the experiences I have had there, I won't be in a hurry to return to find out if it's changed for the better.
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Really nice pub, lots of places to sit, good outside area, nice crowd, wide selection of beers and drinks, food too (although I was just staring at others!) but the staff are useless and lazy, no idea who is next to be served, miserable and aggressive. It takes them ages to serve, so even though they could be just one person ahead of you you still wait ages, usually because they serve someone who came to the bar after you but if less of a waddle for them to reach. If you can't be bothered to smile at your punters find a different career path.
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The stalwart Notting Hill boozer - great bar, great beers, great views thru the huge windows, great to people watch - who needs a movie ?
I always stop by for a pint or two when passing this pub, however, I wish the bar staff would speed it up a bit ! Very casual, very slow, very sluggish ! Maybe if they all cut down on the ( obviously ) free staff burgers and fries they might get around the bar a little quicker !
A good local pub, nevertheless !
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I recently visited a friend of mine who just moved to Notting Hill, and therefore it was naturally to visit the Prince Albert. I really liked this pub, I can�t really say why, though... I guess, sometimes you just like some things better than other.
It was quite crowded, great atmosphere and the vegeterian burger was great.
We got nice company as well when we visited the pub:)
BUT, handbags seems to often get stolen there, unfortunately mine was stolen, so please, keep an extra eye on your belongings and keep them close to you!
/ Anja, Sweden
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The staff aren't the best but there's something about this pub that makes me go back again and again.
Great selection of draught and open kitchen with great looking food, although i've bever eaten here!
I prefer this place early week when it's quieter - staff are quite chatty but a touch too cool for school.
Try it and see what you think!
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Staff were painfully slow (waited almost 15 minutes to be served), and were clearly more interested in chatting amongst themselves than serving the hoards of customers waiting. One of the barman even forgot we had ordered food (!) so we had to wait another 30 mins for it to arrive after reminding him.
Food was ok but very overpriced (�11 for a 'platter to share' that would barely feed a small child). Faced with the prospect of 20-minute wait for another drink, I decided to go elsewhere. Never again.
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Remember last years carnival weekend? 2 amazing dj's played from 4 till 12 on the sunday and monday - well a little bird tells me they are back this year! funk, breaks, tech, minimal into electro...........its sure to be a proper party!
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The quality of Notting Hill's so-called "trendy" watering holes continues their nosedive into oblivion. Prince Albert is no exception.
As others have pointed out - rude and disinterested staff are not endearing or amusing.
I guess punters who think it's all part of the local "vibe" will happily put up with it - but there are pubs in the area that know how to treat their customers with a bit more respect.
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Went there after work last week and was hugely disappointed. There were a few interesting beers behind the bar but this was absolutely pointless when the service was so incredibly lousy. The smug, preening bar staff were perfectly content to spend ages laughing and bantering amongst themselves and seemed to think that their lovely pub was ruined by the irritating customers wanting to be served. After standing for what felt like an eternity, and seeing several newcomers served before me, I asked when my turn would come, only to receive a sarcastic reply. That's my custom lost permanently. The owner must be very charitable to employ these people during a recession.
Also, the place reeked of urinals and the flies buzzing round did little to add to the atmos. I recall from a previous visit that the food was alright, but that in itself is no reason to come here.
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two or three beers were off, the switch machine was broken, so handwritten cash only signs, you could smell the toilets from the door. why we ordered food i'll never know, but we did, and about 90 minutes afterwards i was sick in holland park (not a good look in holland park) and my friend, who was going on holiday the next day, was sick outside the Koko in Camden whilst cabbies honked because they thought she was drunk.
I will never go back, and i suggest you avoid it too.
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Very crowded, does real ale, the burgers are very small. Not a bad place however.
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Totally done for the tourist who wants to eat. Only one ale which tasted ok. The furniture is fake Queen Anne chairs and wooden tables. It seems like a pub which could be a gastropub if it tried harder, but the food is reasonably priced (I only looked at the menu, did not try any) and the tables are too closely packed together.
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After popping into the Old Swan and Uxbridge Arms across the road I found this place to be an utter disappointment. I didn�t like the attitude of the barmaid that served me so I opted for a half of Pride so that I didn�t have to stay longer than necessary. This was given to me in a Schneider Weisse glass and filled to the line leaving an inch or so at the top making it look very sad indeed.
Landlord, Greene King IPA and Daleside�s Leg Over were also available along with a healthy selection of premium lagers, but I�m afraid that the �can�t be arsed� attitude that I received massively lets this place down and I cannot recommend it to others and I myself will not be returning.
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The service in this pub can be abysmal at times. On a few occasions I've waited 15-20 mins when it's busy - that's just unacceptable. I'm with housetunes below - they wouldn't need more staff if they spent less time chatting, texting and staring off into space. And their idea of serving in turn seems to be "pick the fittest person of the opposite sex first". "Cheery and pretty" is fine, but it doesn't pull pints. Lets try "efficient and organised" first.
That said, I do like the place. Good atmosphere and a nice crowd of people. I'd like to spend more money here, but they make it so hard...
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Had Sunday lunch here recently - worst experience ever. I ordered the Sunday Roast, I had to take a photo of what they dished up as a yorkshire pudding - looked more like a slab of tripe. The mashed potatoes were still hard and the veg overcooked. My mates didn't fair well either, we waited over half an hour as we were told the wedges were still cooking - so we waited, waited and waited some more. We shouldn't have bothered, 3 small wedges for each dish.
Very disappointing, the staff were clueless, the toilets out of order and well the chef an idiot. He tried to justify his poor excuse for yorkshire pudding by flashing me a pre-packed large square yorkshire.
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Great location and a pleasant interior - and strawberry beer :-) which is a great bonus in my book! But the staff / level of service varies hugely. Some of the bar staff are very clued-up, speedy and pleasant whilst others seem to have been hired for their hairstyles alone. One guy got every single element of our food and drink order wrong - over and over again. The quality of the food is similarly shaky.
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My name is Andy, i'm the assistant at this place. Interesting to read some of these comments, none have them have been made since I started there may I add.
The Albert does have a few problems, like any other pub does - the shape of the bar for instance means that you get a lot of customers on the curve where it is only possible to have two serving members.
The volume of people that arrive to drink there mean that it's might take time for you to be served, but we have been giving a more hands on approach to staff training to try and make sure that people are served in turn.
If you think we should have more staff, as I'm often told then you can't direct that at us - we have allowances.
But the pub has a good atmosphere, a very good garden some interesting new additions to the menu, a new range of beers (over 40 beers lagers and ciders) and some pretty cheery staff - no wait, make that cheer, pretty staff.
watch for our refurb later this year.
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We went here on a Saturday night and it was pretty busy even by 6pm, however this really is no excuse for the appalling service you receive in here. The Prince Albert made inefficiency an art form.
Service was very slow with staff wandering around behind the bar in a dream like state, texting, chatting, eating food or simply serving themselves whilst ignoring those 'inconvenient' customers. Just because you've been standing at the bar for close to 15mins, don't expect any of the bar staff to remember that you're next to be served - "no i'm not waiting to get a pint, I just love standing at a crowded bar with a tenner in my hand being routinely ignored whilst occasionally being looked at like something you'd scrape from the bottom of your shoe".
Toilets are really grim and small, not a bad selection of drinks if you can get around to having one. If you want a sober Saturday night come here - you'll only get around to having a couple of beers before kicking out time. There's too many other pubs to even bother given this joke of a place a second chance.
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I have to be a bit dubious about this place's real ale credentials since, of the three beer handpumps, only one was on, and that was serving Abbot which was VERY definitely passed its best. So, not a good mark in terms of the ale.
The bar was comfy enough, with an impressive stained glass window at one end and some good window seats to watch the West London world go by. It was a fairly quiet, mid-week lunchtime, so it's impossible to say what sort of ambiance this place may have in the evening. By the way, the place boasts the most triangular gents I've ever come across.
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Haven't dropped by since last summer but have it's basically a touch bland but largely enjoyable. Never had a problem with service other than the bar being too small, still quicker to get served than many London pubs. Fantastic to sit in the garden in summer, the food is not so terrible but certainly not worth going out of the way for.
Convenient, very nice atmosphere in the garden, not hip, not classy, not alternative. Could be so much more.
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Went into this disapointing excuse for a pub during notting hill carnival.Staff were wandering around in a confused state.Abysmal service and possibly the worst toilets in notting hill.Would not recommend this place to anybody.0/10
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We visited this pub in the week and were not surprised by the lacklustre service and homegeniety of this place and the other managed places in the area. OK, its a convenient place to meet but thats about it. After one of the tables we were drinking on outside spilt a load of pint glasses on the floor (as it wasn't fixed to the legs) the manager and staff pretty much denied any responsibility or interest. Customer service falls short here - I won't go again. M&B sort out your staff please.
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Hopefully 2007 has seen some improvement in the running of this pub
I had no qualms about it, decor is lovely. Didnt try the food but the cooking section seemed nice enough. Cracking blue labelled ale, and a fair selection on tap. Got fairly packed while I was sitting in there
Would return, would be on the guard for possible thieves...
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Prime location up from the top and near the Notting Hill Gate tube end of Portobello Road.
Tastefully decorated and a comprehensive looking range of lagers, beers and a couple of ciders.
Decent enough for a saturday lunchtime Guinness during the sheeting rain pleasant enough but reading comments below can see shortfalls being a problem, and maybe this is the kind of place that rests on its laurels in terms of its location and the disposable income of its local clientele and passing tourists.
Gents toilets require to be seen to be believed. It wouldn't take too many Guinness' to find yourself mistakenly wading through the urinals themselves.
I'll give it 5 for it's tasteful decor and range at the bar but only 5 because it did not go out of its way to impress and the aforementioned (coughs) facilities.
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In the mid-70s this was an Irish pub with Celtic posters plastered all over the place.
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I was there yesterday evening, which was a Friday evening. Understandably it was packed and we had to stand. Didn't try the food, but there's a good selection of beer.
The management have to be congratulated for not playing pointless piped music that would have drowned out conversation. Bravo!
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I'm very surprised by the negative comments listed by others on this site. I have been a regular for several years and have never had any problems even though I'd avoid the food. There is a good selection of beers and I've never had any issues with the staff. A great place to start your friday evening.
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mavichen? next time you order addlestones cloudy cider, dont expect pikey magners cider on ice. you got what you paid for. addlestones is my tipple, its meant to be cloudy, its meant to be warm. its not pikey cider. i agree, the service is slow, the toilets could be improved, but the products are what you ask for. signed mr a. regular
anonymous - 24 Nov 2006 15:56 |
I was in there with friends on 15.11.06. Some nasty piece of work spiked my drink with Rohypnol. Luckily, I was with my boyfriend who managed to get me home. It has been reported, but watch out.
anonymous - 17 Nov 2006 00:56 |
Its difficult to add to the comments about this pub already made. Not even a place to say to your mates 'lets meet at the pub by the tube station for a quick one and then push on.' Do yourselves a favour and stand in the wind and rain and not go into this place.
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the staff are the very rude in this place, its a pity as the place is nice, as is the garden... they think they're too cool to be bothered to serve you.
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There are now signs up saying that theives operate in the bar. The service is slow, the toilets rubbish but because of this it reminds me of a student bar. Don't go if you want a good meal, well kept pint or quiet drink with your croonies. Go to people watch, get drunk with rowdy mates and talk to complete strangers as you share more personal space that is health. I like it, in a weird way.
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I have been to this place twice, with terrible service both times. And, the last time I went, my purse was stolen from right under our noses, and the staff didn't even seem to care! I was understandably upset (especially as this is the second time something like this has happened to me in the last 4 months), and they had the gall to yell at us for 'disturbing the other customers' and ask us to leave. According to the police, thieves operate in this pub a lot, and the staff haven't put up warning signs as many pubs do, nor have they put clips under the tables so you can keep your stuff close easily. I think I was doing the other customers a favor by letting them know what had happened and getting upset about it so that they could be warned. I will NEVER go back to this place. Oh, and the food is a terrible value for the money as well.
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I must agree with the negative comments about this pub. I was in on a Friday early evening and the service was slow and poor, despite the fact the pub wasn't incredibly crowded. Any atmosphere that may have existed in the pub was ruined when, after I'd been in for about 20 minutes, the music was turned up, rendering conversation slightly difficult. I departed not long afterwards.
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Been here a couple of times. they do a good job. certainly not the cream of notting hill.
anonymous - 14 Feb 2006 15:03 |
Was in the Notting Hill Gate area with a friend trying to find somewhere decent for a lateish sunday lunch.The prince albert looked like a good bet from the outside,gastro looking and busy. Ordered two glasses of wine (painfully slow service)while deciding whether to eat or not. Was almost tempted to order a roast dinner until we saw what was on offer.For nearly a tenner you got 2 potatoes, 2 bits of broccoli some carrots, yorkshire and two ropey slices of meat.Surely all the people eating realise they are being ripped off? After a visit to the ladies (not very clean and broken hand dryer)we decided to try and find some where better.
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This pub is a classic example of two people sitting together and getting slowly drunk. Then suddenly one says, "I know lets run a pub! All we need is a few good bar staff, a sprinkling of really expensive food and the Notting Hillbillies will come from miles around to see and be seen"
And so the Prince Albert was born, well to be honest it was still born. The bar staff make incompetents look intelligent, the food is expensive! But rubbish and the toilets would offend a vagrant.
Note to the management, when you had the idea for this place, someone really needed to tell you that you are mixing up ambition with ability!!!!!
You are hopeless.
Note to customers, Avoid, Avoid, AVOID...
anonymous - 4 Jan 2006 16:42 |
If it wasn't for the warm London Pride and running out of most of their bitters, I would have given this place 6 out of 10. Despite it's good location I'm forced to give this a poor 3 out of 10. The music was slightly on the loud side too. If I want loud music I'll go to a club dancefloor.
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As pubs in Notting Hill go,this is one to avoid.It used to be a real good bar,but has now become such a shite hole it deserves to close down.How anybody could have a good time in here baffles me. (Extremely)Loud music, terrible toilets,expensive, and warm cloudy cider which management refused to change.Nasty.
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Anything named after a dodgy piercing has to be bad and this was just the case. If you fancy getting in a fight with the bar staff about wine that was almost boiling, this is just the place. Rude staff, not friendly at all and totally crap. Wouldn't go there if i was paid or unless I wanted to be asked out back to "sort the matter out" with the manageress again. Really classy. Totally arrogant and unprofessional........then again, so is a Prince Albert.
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food v, v overpriced. bogs are piss poor
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Awful. I went in here with an old mate and we thought, it can't REALLY be as bad as it seems. It was. Loud blaring music, no soft furnishings so all sound doubly amplified as well including the shouted conversation of the clientele ... harrassed looking bloke cooking the food in the trendy but pointless open kitchen area (I don't want to watch the chef looking harrassed and pissed off as he cooks my grub) ... groups of girls in tight tee-shirts doing shoulder massages for a �5. Obviously mainly blokes were taking this up. We left and went to the Uxbridge instead.
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Was inclined to say that the best thing about this place stopped working behind the bar a couple of years ago, but that's kinda harsh. Still does anyone remember Jessica the barmaid. She was awesome!
Where was I...Oh yeah, it's a pretty cool place especially in summer. Nice place to go with mates or for a cheeky one in your lunch break. Gets kinda busy in the evenings so it's a case of getting there early but the vibe is relaxed.
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This is a comment of a tourist.
Here we had one of the best dinner in London Pubs. I've found it funny and nice.
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When I was last here some bloke chucked up all over the floor. There are lots of beautiful people here, which may make you feel ugly, inferior and dribbly. It certainly made me feel like that. It is expensive. The theatre upstairs is really good, but is not actually connected to the pub.
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Oh God. I used to go in here fairly regularly about 5/6 years ago after work or before going to the cinema. It was just your normal regular boozer - now look at it. Ponced up, poncy clientel with ridiculous prices. I always laugh at these places. All poshed up and then you go in the bogs and there's piss all over the place.
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Seems expensive and there's never enough bar staff. It's a lazy choice of pub as there's much better in the area.
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Great murals by New York's Alex Martinez in the beer garden. But everybody's usually too drunk to notice.
Q. Letts - 24 Aug 2004 10:41 |
Best pub in Notting Hill. Great garden out back for weekend barbeques. Good food and choice of wines. Very friendly and competent staff. Definitely worth a visit!
stuart - 21 Jun 2004 15:36 |
poor choice of draught beers.
poor atmosphere
one fit bar maid though
anonymous - 31 May 2004 13:18 |
Not good enough to warrant the crowds - ie. it's too busy and you never get a seat. The toilets ming too!
Jim - 3 May 2004 22:23 |
Popular, young and fairly friendly on the times I've been. I nipped in there last Sunday, got deafened by the dance tunes and walked straight back out. It was partly the fact that I wanted to chat to my mates, and partly because there was nowhere to sit but honestly, I love dance music, but I don't want to scream over it on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
Otherwise, a worthy pub to visit on a Notting Hill crawl.
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This pub is ok but they need to choose staff on their talent, not their looks.
The manager and owner are arrogant and unconcered about losing customers, so if you have a complaint about the food or service, don't hold your breath for it to be resolved!
Kate - 13 Oct 2003 16:17 |
I really like this pub, the staff seem really friendly and it's a great place at any time of the day. Good food, great atmoshphere and in a prime location!
Charlie - 10 Sep 2003 16:19 |
I remember this place before it was gastrofied. I just cant stand places like this.
anonymous - 4 Aug 2003 20:47 |
Fab, Fun & Fantastic Food (although they stop serving grub at 8pm).
Sally - 21 Mar 2003 11:40 |
