please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Used to be a much better pub when quieter and cheaper maybe ten years back. Beer choice good but last two visits coincided with an fa cup semi final and a rugby international early evening meaning full of tourist sport watchers. Saving grace is having just come from a football match you can go outside to the plentiful seating to avoid having another attack you from numerous screens at every turn.
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B3xter'sr review made me laugh.
I didnt realise at the time that this was both a CM pub and a GBG 2017 Entry.
This required a Cert Scan and a Blog Entry :-) - http://mappiman.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/201016-mabels-tavern.html.
Shepherds Neame House - I tried a first Spitfire Gold, which like all of their beers, can be filed under inoffensive. £4.30.
Very typical London Pub, although this is geared up fro showing sport - which is something to keep in the back on my mind should I ever be looking in the future.
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Full rangeof Shepherd Neame beers in good condition, but pub caters mainly for the sport watchers amongst us, large screens abound which detracts somewhat from the pub atmosphere.
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It is always busy with the after work drinkers or the ‘just the few crew’ before the train home.
The staff are always friendly and efficient. You see quite a few in here with their half pints of spitfire or whatever, scanning the QR code for the Cask Marque Ale Trail trying to get round as many pubs as possible in the hope of winning prizes. Food menu is pretty standard and at prices you’d expect in this part of town, it always looks quite appealing when it comes out.
It is a nice pub, but offers very little in the form of atmosphere. You would struggle to spend your whole evening here.
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Had lunch here with wife and son. Food was relatively cheap and quite delicious. My wife really enjoyed the falafel burger. I had a the Masterbrew, Kent's Best and Bishop's Finger which were all in good nick. Was surprised to see Samual Adams Blonde Ambition on a handpump. Not my style though. Very nice pub.
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Friendly Shepherd and Neame pub just off Euston Road.
Came in on Saturday evening around 10.15pm and it was fairly quiet.
4 ales on draught of which I had the Bishop’s Finger and it was very good.
Nice pub that is probably worth eating in as the food selection was pretty good and evenly priced
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Full Shepherd Neame range available when I went in lunchtime - went for the Spitfire and it was a pleasure to drink and hit the spot. I live up N and when I have it up there it is poor - it obviously don't travel well. Pub was clean and tidy
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Popped in here last Sunday for 2 pints. Surprisingly no Spitfire or Masterbrew but had the guest "Spring Ale"? Beer was highly enjoyable. Noticed the pub was full of men mainly due to 2 separate football matches being shown on the 2 TV sets. Didn't interfere with our talking or drinking. Some interesting looking food coming out if a little pricey.
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Always busy when I have called, and Tuesday was no exception (but it was 6 in the evening and buzzing with after-work drinkers enjoying, like us, a couple before the train home. In my experience the beer has always been served in good condition, although it is unusual to find a full set of SN ales available. Well worth a visit every time.
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Shepard Neame pub with a good selection of the brewery's beer including Autumn Red (in the middle of winter!), beer was in good nick. The pub is fairly large, light and airy, has a real fire.
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Went in here last night (saturday). First off they had no Spitfire on.
Next visit to the bar they had only 2 ales from the the 5 hand pumps. Had they run out of beer? No i was told they wanted to clean the pipes so they were not going to put any more beer on. This was at 9 pm.Saturday night in a busy pub!!! Amazing.
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The beer is well kept in this place, and the staff very friendly. Loos are clean. The food, however, is really dreadful. Go for a beer, don't go to eat!
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I quite like Shep's beers so this is a favourite pub in an area where the beer range is getting better by the day. There are several good boozers around the Kings Cross/Euston area now and I have missed my tube on several occassions as a result. This is a nice well-furnished pub with good beer and a friendly ambience.
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Excellent Shepherd Neame pub close to Euston. Beer was excellent.
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Exellent pint of Bishops Finger Nice interior comfortable seating shame about the traffic noise
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Good pub, managed to sit in the lounge chairs by the fireplace and order food had tempura veg to start and then sausage and mash - not a bad way to waste an afternoon.
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I recently stayed in a nearby hotel as I was catching the Eurostar early the next day. Had a look in my Good Beer Guide and chose this pub. It was quite busy on the Saturday night as the Six Nations Rugby match they were showing on the 4 screens around the pub had just finished. I was served quickly however and had a pint of Kent's Best Bitter which I hadn't tried before. The pub was set with tables and chairs and some high tables and stools. There was also a couple of lounge chairs facing each other as you walked through the door next to a large bookcase. I then had two pints of Spitfire which I really like. It's certainly handy for the stations at Euston, Kings Cross and St Pancras and I would definitely call in here again if in this vicinity.
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Yet another pub that I�ve been to many times, that I am surprised I haven�t reviewed before for BITE ! This time I do have an excuse, as it was closed for refurnishment a few months ago. To be honest, the only thing I noticed that had changed was the wallpaper. But my frined pointed out thta one area has now got some plush sofas for sprawling on.
On entering through the main (corner) door, there is a more secluded raised area immediately on the left, the bar is to your left, with another raised area beyond it, and more seating to the right by the windows. In summer there are tables outside on the street.
The pub is a Shepherd Neame tied house, and has their entire range available on tap. It�s always been a good pint, whatever I�ve tried.
Food is available, supposedly until 9pm, but staff have been known to remove the menus earlier than that. The menu used to proclaim �Mabel�s famous for its burgers� � which we noticed tended to be left uneaten ! (Though I always found them acceptable). Nowadays burgers are still on the menu, but no longer featured so heavily � pretty much a standard �pub grub� menu. Prices are high, but not ridiculous � and you certsinly get value for money. Last time I had the gammon, and the plate was piled high with meat, chips and peas � and very good it was too.
The pub has 3 or 4 large TVs strategically placed which show football when it�s on (which seems to be always !), otherwise shows music videos. It can get very crowded early evening, or when big matches are on, but is quieter at other times. One annoying feature is that the place seems to attract groups of people who congregate together by the bar, and make it impossible for others to get to the bar and order.
8/10 � I like this place, a good solid pub.
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Had a few beers in here last week. Quite nice. Good range of ales, not too loud, found somewhere to sit easily. Pretty enjoyable experience.
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Nice backstreet boozer which is handy for Kings Cross station. The Bishops Finger is the pick of the ales.
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Street corner Shepherd Neame local just off (but visible from) the Euston Road. Has the full range of SN ales and the Master Brew was reasonable enough. Okay if in the vicinity.
anonymous - 19 Dec 2010 12:18 |
Quality Shepherd Neame ales (5) and plenty of space so can always get a seat. Could expand the the single malt whisky range in my humble opinion. Not bad for a swift livener on the way to some of the areas other pubs.
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Visited a few days ago. Just off the Euston Road and compared to the nearby "Euston Flyer" seems a lot quieter. A full range of Shep Neame beers- 5 in total.
The barstaff were friendly and easy to talk to. The TV was on but wasn't overpowering.
Had an interesting chat with some of my fellow customers.
All in all a decent place to have a drink.
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One of the better pubs in the area and doesn't suffer too badly from the close proximity to a major train station.
I've eaten there twice and it's been a average.... certainly not good value for money but maybe I was just unlucky.
Decent pub for watching football too....
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A good spot for a pre train pint just set back from the Marylebone Rd so has more of a local feel than other nearby bars. Its listed as Euston but it is as near to Kings Cross/St P as it is Euston.
Serves 5 Sheps beers although Kents Best was off on Saturday morning. A decent enough pint of Late Red at �3.30, which seems to be the going rate in London SN pubs, expensive as it is.
One largish room, broken by what I think is a stairwell in the middle off one wall. A mix of seating, generally traditional in type but with a drinking shelf and stools by the front door. Various framed caricatures on the walls, I didn't bother looking who of, a couple of big screens were showing Sky Sports News muted but with subtitles.
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Cosy Shepherd Neame pub (as most of them are) with a full range of SN beers on offer - Spitfire, Bishops Finger, Master Brew, Kent' Best and Late Red.
Being south of Euston Rd helps this place and despite a few obviously transient types the atmosphere was warm and friendly. Clientele were a wide variety without anyone being offensive and there was plenty of seating.
Try it out - better than most in the area including the Euston Flyer and Doric Arch.
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I'm a regular visitor to Mabel's. Not a bad pub. A bit sanitised, but a good selection of beer and as others have pointed out, compared to nearby competitors, it's very good.
However, a couple of occassions when I've been in when a big match has been on TV has seen the place woefully understaffed and seemingly completely unprepared for the (entirely predictable) increase in staff and food orders. This isn't out of character as service is pretty average on a normal evening.
So, if it's quiet or you're not in a hurry, and you're in the King's Cross area, it's worth a visit.
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Not such a blatent tourist rip-off joint as many pubs in the area. Nice range of Neame ales on tap. Quite quiet on a Saturday lunchtime. I'll drop in again if I'm in the area at a loose end.
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We arrived at the new St Pancras Station, and went to Mabels Tavern, which is nearby, as it looked so nice (from the outside) We were hungry and straight away handed over �25 for 2 "Sunday Roasts", 1 x white wine(no Rose available) and 1 mineral water. The special menu said lamb or beef, but there was only chicken. 45 minutes later we were still waiting. There was one girl doing the whole bar, including taking food orders and delivering meals to tables. There were dirty pots on the bar,and behind the bar. Most of the time there was noone behind the bar at all. We asked about the food, and a few minutes later it arrived, with no apology for the waiting time. The food was bad. Chicken still on the bone, 4 lots of under cooked frozen vegetables, hard roast potatoes and greasy gravy. Don't goto this place. I felt embarrassed that it was in my country for foreign visitors to chance upon. Just awful.
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A nice pub just off Euston Road. The beer is always in good condition. Bishops Finger and Porter are Sheps best brews, shame they dont produce Porter all year round! Very friendly bar staff.
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Reasonable pub with three Shepherd Neame real ales on, lots of sport. Doesn't get the rough crowd which the Euston Flyer, round the corner does.
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A nice Shepherd Neame pub. The beer is well kept. TVs well spaced around the place. Has Setanta so will definitely visit her again.
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Loveley little pub, great food, REAL ALE!!! A lot of screens! Well worth a visit!
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Loveley little pub, great food, REAL ALE!!! A lot of screens! Well worth a visit!
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Usually has full Sheps range on - fine if you like that sort of thing as it's well-kept if pricey. Something about the layout here is not quite right, but a good rendezvous point.
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I'm surprised by the negative comments. Does have a lot of Tvs so probably the best pub in the area for watching football. Five SN beers on, including good pint of master brew. Bar staff polite and efficient and prices lower than anywhere else I know round here!
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Popped in here as it was in the Good Beer Guide, what a mistake, beer ok but outrageously expensive served by a miserable monosylabic antipodean barmaid. Bliddy TV screens everywhere and almost no atmosphere, why oh why is it in the GBG?
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There were four out of five Shepherd Neame ales on during my visit and the usual limited selection of draught that you find in all SN pubs. I�m not a great fan, but thought that I would have a pint of Spitfire whilst watching the football on the large plasma screen at the rear of the pub. There are another two plasmas at the front, but the reception on all of them was pretty bad for this day and age.
I found the barmaid to be quite miserable and there wasn�t much atmosphere. I was a little disappointed as the pub seems set up for watching sports, but doesn�t seem to pull it off.
There are better pubs in the area.
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Worth poppng in for a couple , especialy if you fancy a well kept pint of Shepherd Neame , my Invicta ale was good enough. This place has got a little bit more of a character than the regular run of the mill London boozers with half of their pump clips turned the wrong way round..
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Older drinkers may recall this pub from the 1970's, when it was a Whitbread theme pub called The Escape with 2 bars called The Cooler and The Compound and barbed wire running along the top of the bar and POW pictures / photos etc !. I vaguely remember visiting it then when it was listed in the Evening Standard Guide to London Pubs
Now, some 30 years on, its a more sedate affair - a comfortable, traditional Sheps pub that has been in the GBG for the past few years. My pint of Spitfire was on good form last Sunday lunchtime.
It has that rather transient feel that only London pubs seem to have - people popping in, staying for one and/or some food and then moving on.
I was reasonably impressed with the pub on all counts and would happily return if passing through, but it's not a pub to make a special effort to visit
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Good selection of Shepheard Neame beers, friendly atmosphere and not too expensive either for the area. Food not great, but it was more than made up for by the good pint in my hand. Bar staff weren't the most friendly and the toilets were poor, but the service was quick. Would definitely go there again when in the area, and great for Euston / St. Pancras.
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one of the better pubs just off Euston Road which mostly seems to have large, souless generic pubs, good for an after work drinkathon and a couple of bowls of chips!
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A rare Shepherd Neame pub in the capital but on our visit had the choice of Spitfire (over-rated) and the Kentish Best (ok). Where was the delightful Master Brew?
Otherwise had football on 2 TVs and golf on a third. We found a corner table piled high with plates (cleared shortly afterwards) for our well kept but expensive ok pint.
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Went in yesterday afternoon, very nice pint of Whitstable Bay although quite pricey at �3.10. Only a few pople in when I visited but the service was very friendly. There's a few chairs outside on the pavement ideal for us smokers.
tanky - 25 Jun 2008 12:09 |
The beer is excellent, with a good range, albeit not exactly cheap. But the interior is a bit grotty. Its still in early 1980's cheap wood panelling, with scuffed carpet and poor lighting. The toilets certainly need an upgrade!
It could be that the students who make up much of the trade don't really care, but they could make it really good, for relatively little effort. I don't want to sit in what looks like a past-its-best student union bar (done that), and the location and product deserve better.
MikeB - 27 Apr 2008 15:58 |
Gotta love gem gems...the best barmaid in King's Cross.....I love you Gemma.....will you marry me????
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Full of butch, hairy, predatory lesbians. If you have a half decent girlfriend, don't take her here; she'll be leered at by these vile 'women'. I am not joking either - this is a terrible place.
anonymous - 15 Mar 2008 01:11 |
Called in here on way home from London Drinker Beer Festival and had an excellent pint of Spitfire. Beer was good but a bit pricey. The food was OK and the service was great.
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Mable's is a fairly solid and reliable pub but prices are a bit expensive. Don't know if it's just me but the Shepherd Neame Porter seems a bit lacklustre recently.
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Sky and real ales is an all too infrequent combination. �3.05 for a Late Red.
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Came here after a visit to Sheffield with London Saints. Nice little pub but I'm just not sre about the Shephern Neame beers. Had the Late Red and Master Brew and neither set the world alight. To be fair I'd already had about 7 pints and had been to the Devonshire Cat so maybe not a good time to rate it. Worth a visit though.
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Very enjoyable pint in this nice, quiet pub. Service good, beer well kept.
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Great little pub, nice atmosphere, fast service, bar staff could smile a bit more. Food enjoyable if a bit pricey.
anonymous - 28 Aug 2007 12:54 |
not bad at all, especially for the area, always found the beer well kept.
mps77 - 13 Aug 2007 13:27 |
nice little place off the beaten track and all the better for it, decent pint as well !!
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Full well-kept range of Shepherd Neame beers. Staff very friendly and helpful. Lovely pub.
daffy - 25 Jul 2007 09:45 |
A handy pub within very easy reach of Euston, St Pancras and King's Cross. The ales have been good on my visits.
alexw - 28 May 2007 16:05 |
well run friendly pub well kept Shep Neame Beers - shame i dont like them much !
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Don't let this place put you off Shepherd Neame beers. I've had some wonderful Shep beers elsewhere, but here they are pretty tasteless.
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All the bar maids are chubby but sexy.
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Stumbled on this place one day after work when I had some time to spare before meeting a friend. Thought it was unusual to find a Shep's pub in this neck of the woods. Enjoyed a couple of beers and thought the atmosphere was pleasant enough. Beer quality was good and will certainly consider returning to try out the food. Good pub away from the madness and claustrophobic establishments of the Tottenham Court Road area.
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Not sure if this place has changed drastically since the CAMRA North London award, but I honestly can't see what it did to warrant the award. Spent an early evening in here last weekend. Football was on, and a number of "colourful" locals were in. Thankfully, the most over-served members of this contingent wandered off when the footie finished.
As ever, the Shepherd Neame ales are distinguished only by their total mediocrity. I swear I couldn't tell the Master Brew and Kentish Best apart. Didn't try the Bishop's Finger, and thankfully the Spitfire (aka Loony Juice) was off.
It's a shame, as I really like the look of the pub from the outside, and it's not too bad inside. There's a bit of effort gone into the menus - had a pleasant enough sarnie early on, which was satisfying and reasonably priced. But it looks a bit like the place is in danger of drifting quite badly into neglect. The prevailing smell in the bar is a none-too-pleasant nostalgic mix of stale tobacco and beer. The gents were fairly nasty, also.
Also, after the footie they switched the big screen to a piped-in music channel, which was just loud enough to be annoying.
By no means a bad pub, per se - but it really falls far short of justifying the award in my eyes.
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Odd place. Right next door to Unison (I think) but hidden away enough from the King's X outspiill to keep it reasonable. When I was here there was a crowd of Rugy league fans having a whale of a time and a load of union/office workers drinking away their Friday night.
Was fortunate enough to go with a mate who knows the landlord. Got a free drink out of it so it's bound to influence my rating. As far as local competition this is a decent place to go if you're not looking for a DJ bar, strip club or crappy station boozer.
You're most likely to end up here by mistake but if you do then it won't be the end of the world.
anonymous - 2 Feb 2007 19:30 |
I've only visited once so far & cannot see what the hype is about (if you can call CAMRA North London's recent award "hype". Some would say not). Perhaps my expectations were too high, because I came away a bit disappointed. Shepherd Neame beers are nice enough, the interior is fine but nothing out of the ordinary. Staff seemed a little on the surly side.
Not bad, but not especially good either.
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Not a regular visitor to this place, but when I do go the beer is always reliable. Another place worth remembering in the Euston / King's Cross / St Pancras area.
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Shepherd Neame ales in superb condition. Efficient service. Great!
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Great little pub this. Fantastic beers on, both quality and well kept real ales and nice foreign lagers.
The Late Red was fantastic and I can see why they won Shepherde Neame cellar of the year for 2005 and 2006. I can also see why they got the CAMRA Pub of the year for North London cuz I don't think I've had beer this well kept for a long long time.
Food menu looked good and the bowl of chips me and my mate shared was really good as pub chips go.
They have Sky Sports on big screen and also the elusive Premiership Plus pay-per-view channel.
Decor was a bit oldy woldy and sort of worked really.
I have to agree the atmosphe could've been better but it started to fill up mid-afternoon for the footy scores.
Well worth a few quiet beers here, highly recommended.
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Good Sheps beer, but not much else to recommend it.
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CAMRA North London pub of the year? I don't see it myself. It's OK, the Bishop's Finger and Masterbrew I tried were decent enough, but there are a much better pubs than this in North London. They had some cheesy 80's music TV channel on while I was in there which didn't add much to the 'atmosphere'. Next time I'm in the area I'll go to the Head of Steam instead.
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Visited last night for a few pints of the Bishop's Finger.It's an okay place but I'm really surprised that it won a CAMRA award,staff could do with a good manners course.
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Very ordinary pub, I cannot for the life of me think why it got voted north london pub of the year! Shep Neame beers are consistent, fine, but only consistently average. I can think of better pubs within a few minutes walk of here - the Lamb, the Lord John Russell, even the Head of Steam. Puzzled.
anonymous - 7 Jun 2006 15:38 |
Has just been voted Pub of the Year 2006 by CAMRA's North London Branch. That I find surprising, given some of the well-established real ale places their members drink in, like the Wenlock, the Head of Steam, the Packenham and the Oakdale. But all credit to the Mabel: it really has turned things around since being taken over by Shepherd Neame a few years ago. This success goes against the oft-expressed sentiment that the bigger SN have got, in terms of pub acquisitions, the worse their ale quality has become.
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An OK pub in an area struggling for them. OK beer, OK clietele, OK staff. So it's OK then
dodgy - 18 Apr 2006 08:43 |
Shepherd Neame acquired this haunted pub from Laurel Pub Company in 2002. Dublin born Mabel Macinelly and her cat Buster ran the Tavern until her death in 1972. Her ghost has been heard many times over the years. That story is the most interesting aspect of this otherwise quite ordinary but comfortable and pleasant pub.
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Previous postings refer to excessive smokiness: I can vouch for this, as I have known the individuals responsible for fifteen and twenty years respectively. The situation would be easily resolved if they started buying genuine fags rather than the fakes sold by dubious pikeys.
Other than that, the Mabel is a fine place although like the Head of Steam down the road it can at times suffer from sudden shortages of real ale. Not an ideal situation for the Mabel when their only choice is Shepherd Neame anyway!
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Fine Shepherd's Neame beers, plenty of seats, very few students. All in all a decent local though the story about the ghost of "Mabel" the owners try and ram down your throat is complete bullshit.
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Everything about Mabels is reasonable - the selection of drinks, the service, the food and the atmosphere. The only real blackmark is that for some reason when more than two smokers light up the interior becomes obscured in a fog so thick you can literally feel the cancer cells dancing on the inside of your lungs. Thankfully Mabels is rarely packed, but those wishing to live past 50 may wish to avoid Friday nights.
Apart from this health risk though there`s nothing to put any passer by off Mabels, but then there`s nothing that will particularly make the same casual drinker want to go back. Basically its the sort of average pub that you go to because its close to your work, and after a few consecutive visits you`ll suddenly find yourself sitting back and thinking - hmm, maybe I should go to that other close-by-average-pub for a few weeks ...
6/10
anonymous - 31 Mar 2005 18:13 |
Reasonable food, good beer, excellent venue for after work beers or lunchtime. Gets a bit smokey but you can't have everything
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Best pub in the area - A quiet sunday drink to recover from the weekend should be had nowhere else. Try Bishops Finger if you havnt already!
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This is the nearest pub to my hall, luckily however it is not full of students, as they all seem to have the impression that if somewhere serves drinkable beer then only 'sad old men' can go there. Fine by me, i hate student pubs. Anyway, the place is nice enough to sit in, decent range of shepherd neame beers, usually some combination of bishops finger, spitfire, master brew and a seasonal beer (the winter porter was fantastic). Prices are a little too high for me to spend too much time there (�2.75 for a pint of Spitfire last time i checked). Nice place though, reccomended.
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Came to the area to try the Head of Steam just by Euston Station but was forced to look for somewhere else because the H.o.S. was shutting early. Had a little wander around and found this place. I would describe it as vaguely pleasant but nothing special.. perhaps a little characterless. Tried the Spitfire bitter which was fine.
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The best pub in the area. Food is a bit expensive for what it is, but the staff are great and the beer is excellent. Well worth a visit.
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Best pub in the world, great beer, great food, really friendly bar staff.
Ben - 11 Nov 2004 17:01 |
Ah-ha, t'was me that organised the Undrink there, as the pub is just around the corner from Friend's Meeting House, having four ales and being haunted by Mabel herself, a cat owning local who works the non-existent dumb-waiter.
The staff are nice enough and the beer was good, it�s an honest, serviceable boozer that does food until 8.30pm.
Didn't make it down on Sunday night but never mind. On to UnCon 2005!
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Good range of beers, comfortable pub. I don't know about teachers but it was full of Forteans when I was in there....
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The beer here is really good and the place is nice - only problem being i'm a poor student and its pretty expensive.
Martin - 27 Oct 2004 23:19 |
Ten minutes walk from Kings Cross, this is my favourite North London pub. Excellent Shepherd Neame beers and good food at very reasonable prices. Teachers? It's right opposite the NUT headquarters.
Popper - 21 Oct 2004 20:43 |
first visit in about 10 years, still quite and friendly, well kep Shepherd Neame ales and a suprisingly good (i havnt sampled) looking wine list
Steve - 6 Sep 2004 17:44 |
could do with some pint jugs
anonymous - 27 May 2004 13:31 |
great pub near st pancras station good range of superb shepherd neame ales good tucker too
fat dog - 11 Apr 2004 20:14 |
