please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Small and atmospheric in a country-pub type of way. Good ales and service. One major downer - it's more expensive than other pubs in the area. And they're not exactly cheap
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A tidy looking pub if not a bit dark inside at the heart of Shepherds market.
4 pumps distributing 3 ales and 1 cider. My pint from the Windsor & Eton brewery was good. The usual European lager, Peroni, Estrella etc also on tap.
Pub food served though I didn't look at the menu.
Friendly bar man who made two "strangers" welcome.
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Dull selection of ales on Friday - Pride, Doombar and Tribute with a slightly more interesting Youn's Gold. �3.75 a pint though!
TV is overbearing and unnecassary when there is nothing worth watching.
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Overall pub had nice decor and atmosphere, pint was ok, but staff were a bit rude!
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Good beer selection ande well looked after, good service but I can only agree with Mayfairdandy. Seating is uncomfortable and skysports dominates from every wall
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Popped in on what I thought was going to be a quiet lunchtime. Far from it! Busy little pub with an upstairs bar (for eating and drinking). Decent selection of ales and the food looked good and judging by the sales must have been! Understand MayfairDandy about the high tables and chairs (I hate them) but I didn't get the "Chain Feel". Friendly barstaff, well managed. Not my neck of the woods and Mayfair prices but will use when in town.
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This place has recently had a facelift and the " we know what's best for the customers " interiors team has installed the high tabled perches for our benefit and wired every wall with plazma screens as they obviously "know best" !
Oh dear . . . . . .oh dear indeed.
No real atmosphere anymore, 100% pub chain feel ( which it is ) and it`s now lost what little personality the place used to have.
Shame.
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John - Good news about the Kings. I see your responses, and I trust your judgement. I was back here again in 2001 after a 14 yr UK hiatus and then last in 2004. This was one of my locals back in the mid to late 80s. A few pints and then off somewhere else, but always made it. The decor never changed, and when I was there, they always seemed to have a good manager. I remember Hurlimans being served in 84/85 that was toxic !
Cheers for the update.
Joseph65
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Pleasant, but rather unremarkable pub situated in Shepherds Market just a stone's throw away from Ye Grapes.
I was originally going to give this one a miss, but a prominent pair of Cask Marque symbols and a sign starting with the words " Dear Valued Guest" encouraged me inside out of sheer curiousity.
The ground level bar is bare boarded and low ceilinged, with some fake looking beams, but the faux traditional air is rather spoilt by a few of those long high tables and perches that most punters detest, but are favoured by the big pubco's as it makes cleaning and sweeping up after closing time so much quicker and easier.
A sign by the entrance says "Welcome to the Kings Arms from Mark and his team" and, unusually for a London pub, a man who I presume was Mark came over and politely asked if I was enjoying my beer / visit. When I said that I was, but that I thought the high tables and perches looked out of place, he tacitly agreed with me without as much as actually saying so.
There's an upstairs bar and restaurant accessed via an impressive curved staircase. Downstairs an unobtrusive TV was showing Southampton v Portsmouth.
Beers on were GK IPA, Doom Bar, Rev James and Youngs London Gold, the latter being a pleasant tasty pint - � 3.32p.
I think I'd probably call in again if passing
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Underwhelming pubco outlet, featuring Pride, GK IPA and Doombar at expensive prices, although this is Mayfair we're talking about. Sky sports on the TV and more seating upstairs from what is a fairly small room at ground level. Nothing special about this place at all, I'm sure the area has better.
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This place had Pride, Doom Bar, Greene King IPA and Spitfire alongside a standard draught selection, all of which were overpriced � probably to pay for the steward outside who took it upon himself to order people about that weren�t even drinking in the pub � tit!
I knew that I wasn�t going to like this place when I spotted the tip trays on the bar for the unsuspecting tourists to fork out even more money. There is another bar upstairs which has more seating for people who choose to dine and both bars have a TV which were both off during my visit and I also noticed that the pub does not have Sky Sports.
I wouldn�t drink here again as there are far better pubs in the area.
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The most trad of the pubs visited in Shepherd Market. I did not try eating here, but a pub is really for drinking and a restaurant is for food, though if pubs do a valiant effort and provide quality nosh who am I to disagree? This is the first pub you come to in the Market area so it gets the passing trade, though there being so many pubs nearby, including the once bizarrely named (I am the only) Running Footman, why stop at just one? Indeed I believe the pub is very well set up for drinking halves instead of pints, as that is what one does on a pub crawl (or a bar hop, as my American pal in the Grenadier put it).
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Ignore my last comment! I was talking about the King's Head round the corner...
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Despite all the moaning, this lot have a range of relatively cheap, well kept beers (the Tim Taylor's a treat) and a good wine list. You can do a lot worse round here.
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Upstairs better than down, full of sticky, dark wood.
As for food - you'd need your head read to even consider eating anything more than a bag of crisps in a place like this, so you get what you deserve. Leave it to the Italian tourists.
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Oh, and no hand dryers in the toilets...
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Stumbled across here on Tuesday and has a very comfortable ye olde style, especially upstairs.
Fish and chips were very good, though only had the large option for a tenner. Large? More a normal size.
Green King IPA was ok, and gin and tonics made the right way.
Staff very good and attentive. Will go back.
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I think Rogue Restauranjts broadcast on the 28th August 2008 says it all about this pub. avoid like the plague.
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In my view this is the best pub in Shepherd's Market which is a bit like being the tallest dwarf As Gilo says its a boozer not a restaurant.
There are a lot of better places in Mayfair unless of course you just need somewhere to get up a bit of Dutch courage before a visit to one of the local working girls
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My local, quality boozer - but that's what it is, a Boozer i.e. if you want to eat, go and do it in a restaurant and stop taking up the tables! (I'd recommend the Windmill on Mill St - although not technically a restaurant - pretty close).
Excellent in the summer when it effectivly merges with the Grapes, and the market place itself turns into one large beer garden. Very few tourists, nicely tucked away off the main Piccadilly drag.
Decent beers as long as you like Pride IPA and the odd guest, friendly staff. Just a pity FYEO has shut down!
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Like the Ye Grapes its a better place to visit in the summer. Given a choice between the two I would just prefer this. Again if you're in the area use if not you'[ve missed absolutely nothing.
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This was probably one of the worst meals i have ever had. My over cooked bbq chicken breast slither was so over loaded with burnt flavouless chedder that i could barely recognise it....hardly saved by bitter salsa sauce on soggy lettuce , my boyfriend nearly lost his teeth when biting into his impossibly overdone burger of which he had to leave the entire burnt outer ring, into the kings arms i will never return.
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Luvvit at Shepherds Market!!
Any pub here will do, and if you don't like the Kings Arms, there's the 'Shepherds Tavern' or 'Ye Grapes' or O'Neills bar around the corner. One of these bars must suit you, sir!
There will be tourists, and Japanese with cameras, and the odd city gent propping up the bar, staring into his empty bowler hat & wondering where he left his head..!! But there will be 'nice' folk and 'salt-of-the-earth' folk too. The full multi-cultural mix! The nearest tube is Green Park, but Shepherds Market is walking distance from Piccadilly Circus, unless you're American..!(Apparently the yanks lose their walking gene very early on in life)! or your pissed & walking in the wrong direction!! TJ
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Love drinking outside this place on a summer's evening when it's great for people watching. Ale usually passable - had a slightly dodgy pint once but it was replaced straight away without argument. Also you used to be able to take your drinks over to the pizza joint opposite but think that's changed hands now. Always enjoy the "sleaziest part of the poshest area in town" vibe. Not tried the food - it's never looked particularly inspiring, but there's plenty of other places to eat within a stone's throw. A regular haunt when I worked in Mayfair and I still venture back in there from time to time - particularly when I want a beer somewhere central without the hassle of a West End crowd (Green Park station seems to be easy to get to from pretty much anywhere in town).
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Yup, I remember many of those nights (below) with George, Craig, Keith, Pete and the strippers - whiling away the hours drinking after work drinking copious amounts with best buddies and attractive girls - what more could a man want??
Me? Nothing!
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i used to work in the next bar along from this...ye grapes! would spend a lot of time...day and night in this pub. lot of good memories. nice bar for a fun night out.
george
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Used to work here and it was a great pub, was here about 2 months ago and is now OK, I suppose, used to prefer Ye Grapes but that's fallen downhill at a rate of knots!! The only reason I stayed at the Kings and didn't go to the Shepherd Tavern or the Rose and Crown (Old Park Lane) ws I saw a load of my old friends and liked drinking in my old boozer!!
Staff were okay, beer was acceptable (if a little warm as stated in previous comment, but, yeah, with the right group of people - top notch but isn't that true anywhere, it's not where you're at it's who you're with!
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single women who come here beware! this place is full of married male's on the cheat!!! pub ok in summer. expensive....dodgy men
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a warm cosy atmosphere. bit expensive, but this is mayfair. beer is a little warm. choices of spirits is a little dry. Bar Staff are very friendly and really helpful, especially Natasha. food is good.
anonymous - 22 Sep 2005 14:54 |
Good place in the winter (first floor bar has a nice atmosphere to it) and the summer--if you can deal with the crowds outside. Good ale selection, but at Mayfair prices. My favorite in Shepherd Market.
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Had a few drinks here last night, staff ok (at first), but was rather annoyed when they kept reminding you how many minutes was left to finish your drink( and they started whining about this 2 sec after they sold the last drink)...I mean..they even came up to the table and asked you to finish your drink quickly..it was ten past 11 (I didnt have much left in my glass)!!! So didnt feel welcome at all in the end. Too rude to go back to!
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How do you fancy paying �6.95 for pie and mash? Of course you do, pie and mash is lovely, and so is mayfair. But what if the pub doesn't care about you and only wants to fleece you? Well this will happen if you go to The King's Arms, where they'll serve Smash, yes Smash, for your seven pounds. Do yourself a favour and avoid.
anonymous - 1 Mar 2005 16:15 |
Friendly staff, nice vibe, good decor... the upstairs has lovely window seating. Over all you can't really think of anything negative to say about this pub. Shall look to tie in ye grapes and go for a crawl in the area some time
Good for: A pub crawl definately, or just a couple of beers before the journey home.
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okayish but not the best. Again, being next to ye grapes it is in a great location for summer evening drinking. Does also give an alternative for buying beer if the queue in ye grapes is too long. Food pretty ropey
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Nice one this one. My brother and I practically lived here in the 80s. Still holds up today. Always a good staff. Kept clean as well. Brings back a lot of great memories when I go back to London. Miss the Swiss Hurlimans (sp?) they used to sell there in the 80s. High octane ale that was !
Joseph - 15 Oct 2004 18:04 |
Lovely location, nice pub, big smile.
Pauly H - 1 Dec 2003 12:59 |
The mileage estimate above for the distance to Ye Grapes is 0.0.
- try the distance of a poorly struck soccer ball's flight. Upstairs dining, and a entrance level bar that I found inviting not for its decor but for its efficient and friendly staff
Bob F. - 19 May 2003 19:55 |
The staff are friendly and it has a truly English feel. Popular with the locals. Really enjoyed it!
Candice - 13 May 2003 00:25 |
