please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
if you want to turn up somewhere at midnight, already having greased the wheeles considerably, this is your place. going in sober is not recommended!
open till about 3am on a fri / sat night the music is ok (usually popular music that fills the dancefloor and people can sing along too) the beer is non-existant - stick to the spirits - but the atmosphere is friendly and good natured.
found it to be a good pick up place - lots of both sex's seemingly using it for just such reasons.
all in all, turn up pissed and you'll usually have a great time. turn up sober and you might see it for what it is; dark, dindgy and overpriced.
go for the former option and have yourself a good night!
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I've now been a few times since my original posting and agree with brucerob 22/7 except I think it's OTT saying the beer is crap - I don't think there *is any* (except Guinness)(?)! IIRC I paid �3.40 for draught Grolsch which is not out of line for a bar with entertainment (though entry for latter now up from �3 to �5 for Tuesday night). Wasn't particularly flyblown in the gents, just constricted.
Overall one to support if going for the music as there is a diminishing number of venues for good Jazz. Other nights - can't comment.
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I also went for the jazz.
This place would make (is?) a really nice intimate music venue. Decor and atmosphere are fine.
The only problem is that everything else definitely isn't. Beer crap and expensive. Still, flies seem to like the place judging by the swarms of them in the Gents.
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Finally got round to visiting this venue, exclusively to see the Tuesday night regular jazz set, this time a jam featuring several well known names. It was packed at 10pm but thinned out a bit later - they might consider an earlier start than 9/9.30.
I don't think this could ever be considered a beer drinker's place (and I saw nothing to indicate it was being sold exclusively as such). But for Guinness and lagers (Grolsch, Carling and maybe another one or two) I could see no draught beers or ales although there appeared to be a few bottled ciders and so on plus an array of spirits.
Someone also in the audience suggested to me that there had been a change of management (or ownership?) in the last year or two.
Fairly small or at least compact downstairs location with two sets of women's toilets it seemed but only one cramped gents'.
I don't know what they offer on other nights but the high standard of the Tuesday jazz on this occasion for me justifies at least another visit for further investigation if only for the music rather than the drink...
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Yeah...they were doing afters last night til 2am...only licensed till 12 I think...don�t tell that woman upstairs
anonymous - 17 Sep 2007 10:44 |
I hear they�ve started opening up on Sunday nights again - does anyone know if they�re doing afters?
anonymous - 14 Sep 2007 19:13 |
Haven't been here for years but I did hear a story about how he had stitched up the people who ran Bar Selon across the road, which has now closed down. Is it really up for sale?
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Now up for sale apparently
anonymous - 20 Jul 2007 13:27 |
Camden Council finally caught up with this muppet. Bet he wishes he hadn't stitched that bloke up now, eh?
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3one7 in Finchley road is now open til 2am on Friday and Saturday nights. That's where we all go now. Hagan is finished.
anonymous - 13 Jul 2007 16:45 |
Oh dear! This place has really gone to the dogs. They now close on Sunday nights and stop serving at 2am on friday and saturdays. Hardly anybody goes there now.
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Used to be the best place in West Hampstead until recently. Old staff have left. Music's crap.
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To put it simple terms, West Hampstead is bollocks for pubs and bars. There are two sorts of watering holes. 1)Complete dives with no atmosphere or Character. 2)Snobby trendy type bars full of trendy twenty somethings (W*****s). So the Lower ground bar fits nicely between the two. There is nowhere else to go late for a drink. It's really not that bad. For a late night drink it's ok, besides why waste your time drinking in West Hampstead?
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Went here on wednesday for the free comedy night when we saw the board outside, otherwise we would have missed it. We didn't eben know this place existed as you can't really tell ftom the outside. Some of the comediens that were on first weren't too good, but the headliner, Ian Stone, was brilliant.
Went back on thursday as the bar is open late and had a good night. Unpretentious place and a bit tacky but nice rnb and house music and friendly bar staff. I liked it a lot.
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Comedy night on Wednesday nights - free - the best fringe comedy in London in my experience. It is called Mirth Control. Worth going for that but it really is a dive and the beers are AWFUL.
anonymous - 4 Jan 2006 14:47 |
Pure filth.
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Great fun as long as you don't expect too much. Post 11pm this place gets packed. Slightly older crowd (mid 20s up) so no kids which is great. Have enjoyed some really good pissed nights here
Booze - 5 Nov 2004 15:51 |
It was a gay bar about 6/7 years ago. Known as 269 then. You'd also get an assortment of West Hampsteads "characters and faces" which gave a pleasant feel to the place. It was good then because you could get a drink after hours on the weekend in relative comfort.
anonymous - 5 Sep 2004 11:38 |
I like it a lot.
Feels like you're entering a Spectre lair when you go in as there is a camera to check the suitability of all potential patrons. Quite small but with friendly bar staff and owner. We were on first name terms by our second visit. Good quiz nite on Tuesdays.
Don't know what previous reviewers are on about gay haunt as, apart from the people I was with, everyone seemed as straight as a die.
Watsonian - 27 Aug 2004 16:54 |
This place was opened in homage to the phrase "It seemed like a good idea at the time". Any sane person only contemplates this venue when completely off their face. Having said that it is the perfect post pub venue in the post-11pm entertainment wasteland that is West Hampstead.
Also an alternative approach to basic cleaning procedures means that any draft beers are likely to leave you in a world of trouble for several days following a visit. Beware.
anonymous - 23 Aug 2004 10:30 |
Used to be a gay haunt in years gone by. Don't go there much now but still okay for a drink after hours. Around 11.30/12.00 it can get very very busy. Hear about the odd fight now and then though have never seen that myself.
anonymous - 25 Aug 2003 20:23 |
Don't go there much now. Used to be a gay haunt in years gone by. Gets chokker after closing time.
anonymous - 24 Aug 2003 20:10 |
Look for an unassuming door on the High St and a sign by said door. Nip down the stairs (providing they like the look of you through the camera) and enjoy.
Lousy in the summer for the simple reason that it's, uh, lower ground, but it's nicely decorated and the beer gets you drunk. Occasional stunners waltz in. They still ignore you though. Well, they ignore me.
Used to go fairly regularly to their Tuesday night quizzes hosted by an excitable Kiwi called Terry Frisbee who was once on the Weakest Link. We were called 'The Wizard's Sleeve'. Stupid name. We never won.
Quality bar though.
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