please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Pleasant pub, beer good value for the area.
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A touch more corporate-looking than some of the others Nicholsons pubs but it has a wide range of beers and is pretty quiet during the day, which makes this a great place to pass a lunchtime. I would give this a solid 8/10 on that basis - in the evenings it gets extremely busy and often has the sport on which makes it a rather different proposition.
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Visited here at Lunchtime yesterday. Nice Pub and Good Beer. I was doing the Nicholsons Pub trail and wanted a Tee shirt "As advertised" the Manager abruptly told me He was not part of the trail (even though I pointed out he was on the Map", had No Tee shirts but did have the stamp to stamp my Map. He then went back to repairing the Dishwasher which had parts all over the Bar and he was banging something which spoilt the atmoshre. He did howevr break off to serve food to a table (without washing his hands!!!!!! Will not be going back any time soon especially to eat. 5/10 for the pub and beer. 0/10 for Landlord and his attitude.
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Visited here whilst walking the Regent's Canal from Little Venice to Limehouse. the pub is usefully just about halfway. And a pleasant little place it is. What I would call an archetypal London pub. Heavy dark fittings, dark mauve wallpaper and a bar built like a battleship.
Smaller thgan other pubs of its ilk that we have visited, it had a good range of real ales - eight I think. Being a sucker for a stupid name ( I know, I know, I'm an advertiser's dream ) I had some pints of Seven Giraffes and very pleasant they were too. All of our beers were fine.
Fish and chips at �9.95 was very good value when you consider that for this you get TWO pieces of fish. And it's hake, not the much persecuted cod. Not a vast quantity of chips but after all that fish I wasn't too worried about that.
Would happily visit again if in the area.
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A standard Nicholson�s establishment, you probably know what to expect by now. The walls are blanketed by a number of large screen TVs, dominated by football. Kicking out time involved being plunged into darkness at 11:20. Subtle.
Not a bad pub, but I doubt I�ll be back given the abundance of superior choices in the area.
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Correction the 14th Oct
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Visited this pub on Saturday evening 24th Oct
The place was very busy but yet the service was painfully slow. Could double it's takings if the staff speeded up a bit. I saw people give up and walk out after waiting so long to get served.
Guinness was average but drinkable. A very good selection for the Ale drinkers.
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A very frustrating pub. As a real ale fan I am always delighted to see a bar littered with hand pumps. Indeed the spread on this particular day was very good.
The pub itself is nice enough, a little branded but comfortable and spacious.
However, what lets it down is the incredibly poor and inattentive bar service. I have been to this pub probably 3 or 4 times over the last year and every single time it has been the same issue. Not enough staff serving and the staff that is there having absolutely no appreciation for who is next in the queue. It's the most basic requirement of the job, inexcusably poor.
This Saturday I was with a friend who'd come to London for the weekend. He was blown away by the breathtakingly bad service. We stood for over 10 minutes on a Saturday afternoon waiting to be served. There was hardly anyone there yet everyone that came up to be served were served before us.
As I say this has happened every time I've been in and is no coincidence.
Try the much cosier and more aware pub, the Charles Lamb 2 minutes away.
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Ludicrously well priced house wine.
A rare bargain of a pub for the area.
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In here yesterday, choice of tim taylor, plus others, busy with the footy on, and seating out front in the evening sunshine, plus people watching which is a great game in this dolled up females part of london. food orders stop at 9.25 sharp
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Very pleasant traditional pub in a good location a short walk from Angel Tube. Lovely building, dimly lit but comfy interior with a touch of elegance about it. Bar staff were very good and the prices are about average for the area. The beer is fantastic and well worth a visit for. A range of guest ales supplement the usual array and for fans of Timothy Taylor's Landlord, I have to say that this pub served me the best pint of that particular brew that I have ever had when I was here the other night. Food looks and smells amazing too, but unfortunately I didn't have time to eat on my flying visit.
The only downside is that it can be uncomfortably crowded in here at times, but if you can manage to get in here during a quiter moment and grad yourself a table, this is a very good place to while away the hours with some good company and a top quality pint.
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Two visits over the weekend. Great beer selection on, reasonable prices and served up well. Pretty packed but that added to the post shopping atmosphere. Didn't try the food but a lovely waft of custard at sunday lunchtime almost tempted us. One of life's little luxuries being perched in a pub window during a downpour!
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This prime site Nicholsons pub was one of my regular haunts when I worked in the area but, as often mentioned by others, it can suffer during busy periods with poor service and a lack of seating. The L shaped interior is a typical Nicholsons attempt at retaining a traditional pub style with plenty of old fashioned character; bar frame, chessboard tiled flooring, fancy mirrors etc. The interior is quite dim but has a cosy glow at night from the candlelit tables. The walls have plenty of interesting old pictures and portraits including a quite scary Hitchcock that seems to permanently stare at you. Always a decent selection of Ales with Pride and Landlord being constant with 3 guest beers usually available (a list of forthcoming beers is shown above the bar). Prices are very reasonable and, like all Nicholsons and Cask Marque accredited pubs, they operate a try before you buy policy. I have rarely encountered the place when it hasn�t had a fairly bustling atmosphere and the customer base always seem to be on the more sensible side of things. There are 3 TVs and a big screen used mainly for sport and a fairly large outside seated area in front of the pub if you handle the traffic along the busy High Street. I have always enjoyed my visits here but can understand that the crowds can be a bit offputting.
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Visited last Friday. Absolutely packed with as many people outside as in. At least 4 real ales on and my pint of Morrisey Fox Blonde was good. Good selection of beers for a nicholsons pub. I still feel they are one of the better chains. Our beers worked out at an average of �2.80 a pint, which isnt bad for around N1.
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Good real ale selection, had 4 on and tried the Badger. Can get very crowded as it is a popular meeting place but had no trouble getting served by friendly bar staff.
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this pub is given a hard time by alot of customers, I use it regularly on the way home from work to the tube, for food and drinks, although mainly the real ales I admit, I have sadly been witness to very overworked staff taking torrents of verbal abuse and occasional glasses being thrown them,and yet they still try to smile and do their minimum wage job! Give them a break! as for the eejit moaning about dirty glasses, take it you never visit a wetherspoons then?
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I went into this bar the other day for the first time. I was served by a girl who became upset with me when I asked for a tall glass with my beer. She explained the tall glasses were only for Stella and not the Starpromen I had ordered. I looked up to see all the glasses were stained and decided against one anyway. The member of staff then decided to moan to her college which I noticed. I poured my drink into a tall glass I found not to be dirty which seemed to annoy this girl even more. I walked over to both staff members and asked for why they were talking about me and what the problem was. They replied our glasses aren't dirty but that it was a problem with the dishwasher. I explained I've been in the pub trade for over 35yrs and that I grew up in pubs and that the problem was they were adding to much cleaning detergent to the machine. This only made the male member of staff retort that I was wrong. I then took a random glass and ran my finger across the glass to show him the grease, asked for my money back and to speak to the manager. Jo, the manager gave the staff member the pub tel no and said she was busy. I phoned 1hr later and was told she was still busy. I phoned the next day and Jo wasn't working so I left my No. JO replied listened to my complaint and then said " are you finished now" I hung up. I'll be looking to speak to the owner next. Rude, no customer service and the staff need sacking or training. That's my opinion of my first visit. It's a shame people don't realise customers are an important part to their business.
uh_oh - 17 Mar 2008 10:45 |
A good range of ales 5 in all but only 2 bar staff for approx 90 people.
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Been in here a few times when up in islington for gigs or the club behind Angel.
Usually quick service and the pints are alright, decently priced as well.
Will be going back again next time im up that way.
No idea what the food is like.
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Unfortunately it's such an obvious place to meet for a pint after work that it can take 15-20 mins to get served. It's not worth it. Okay but nothing special.
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Fairly typical Nicholson's - nothing special, but still a real pub rather than some ghastly theme bar. Reasonable pint of Timothy Taylor's Landlord,
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A good range of beers but it's no good if you haven't got capable staff who know about regularly cleaning the pipes and general beer maintenance.
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lovely pint of pride
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Respectable ale and good for watching football in. A surprisingly rare combination in Islington that.
Also went there last night and sampled the very drinkable guest ale 'XXXB' or something.
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Perfect for a sitting outside on a Summer's evening people watching, other than that would go elsewhere.
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Decent pub very near the tube station, so ideal for meeting people in. While it is true that there are far better pubs in London (I wouldn't go miles out of my way to find this place); it is one of the better options on Upper Street itself, as one of the few (though by no means the only) places to have remained as a regular pub. It has a good choice of beer, reasonable service, and decent food. Can get very crowded in the evenings, but this is Upper Street! Would recommend meeting people here, then heading somewhere off the main drag.
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Looks like a big inviting pub. However lacks atmosphere, food is very dull from the heated-up variety.
Try to ask staff anything other than your order and they look at you like you're from outer space.
Would have potential in the right hands.
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A good choice of ale but it would taste better if they stopped bottom-filling the pints via a swan neck spout. Fuller's London Pride should be pulled into the top of the glass, not the bottom. The bar staff are quick to notice you, I must compliment them on that, but they give you your pint as soon as the glass is full and on three occasions I let the beer settle, then had to ask for a top up to fill the half inch of air space between the beer and the rim of the glass. Don't be tricked into paying for air!
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Decent pub and none of the usual Islington style attitude. Handy for the tube, good place to meet people.
celt7 - 29 Oct 2006 20:58 |
Haven't been here for ages, but glad I made it back -it has definitely had a clean up! Bar staff smile more now too. Real ales were excellent, nice to see the old speckled hen on tap, have not had a pint of that in ages. Wasn't going to eat but caught a waft of someone else's burger and had one myself - very pleasanty surprised, massive portion, tasted far better than expected, and best of all they are still showing sport (unlike so many others in upper st). Thank goodness for you York! I shall be returning en masse regularly!
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I have been here a few times over the last year and it seems fairly relaxed, now it's warm you can sit outside (if you can find a chair). I agree that this a good stop off on way to/from tube, certainly no need to make a special visit!
IPA was off last night even though pump badges not covered or turned round, TT's Landlord was fine. Bar staff not very happy or communicative.
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With its location it is always going to be useful for a quick one, and does half decent beers. Good meeting place.
anonymous - 3 Jan 2006 12:41 |
A bit of an "old man's pub" with food that's okay and beer prices which arent too bad. Good for a change of somewhere to meet close to Angel tube station.
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Went in last week for first time while in the area, busy yes but got a seat outside, quick service at the bar and a good pint of pride aswell. Friendly staff, top boozer will be going back.
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dont panic! new management is on the way, she's fit and feist and guaranteed to sort out any crap. Will be a pub worth a ten within months
anonymous - 23 May 2005 20:07 |
Shabby,..shit service,..yeah,.."ok for football" sums it up.
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rated this boozer for some time, but yesterday nearly brought the fvcker down to a 1..... sh1t service. i'm giving you a three, york. buck your ideas up.
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Went here last night before a gig. It was fairly busy but got served promptly. The staff were friendly and helpful (told us how to get to Carling Academy which avoided us walking round) We drunk the Addlestones which was good esp as I wasn't in a beer drinking mood. The menu looked good and was quite reasonable too. Would definitely go there again if I was going to a gig.
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Very popular football/rugby pub, right near the Angel tube station. Ultra-crowded but astonishingly free of smoke. Well-kept Bombardier. An OK place if all you want is a reliable pint and some breathable air.
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Standard issue really. The pub is about as bland and undistinguished as this review. Outside is nice in the summer, inside is alright in the winter. Nothing particularly memorable about it. Not worth travelling to but if you're around Angel tube then it's definitely your best bet. Actually to be fair the pub isn't quite as boring as this review (as it's not obviously part of a chain) but, hmm, yes..
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Ok place. It never killed me. Nice to sit on the steps outside when it's warm.
Larry Edelstein - 7 Jan 2004 05:45 |
Standard English pub, remarkable only for being popular with Goths on the weekend (going around the corner to Electrowerkz?). Bar staff should do a better job of chucking out drunks - ignoring the fact it's supposed to be illegal to serve drunks, it's really unpleasant to get harassed by piss-artists that have obviously been there for a while.
Ewan Booth (local resident) - 31 Dec 2003 19:50 |
