Craft Beer Co, Holbornback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
I remember this place when it was called the Oporto. A pleasant enough place then for sure. It's certainly bury now, but what is it about so called craft beers which seem to me to be nothing more than old style keg bitters? Still modern hipster types seem to like it.
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Hard to fault on the beer front with a brilliant, wide ranging and reliably tasty range. Too many good ones to mention and it's rare to come across a pub that keeps so many beers so well. The downsides are awful acoustics in the lower bar (something that is also a problem in the upstairs bar in their Brixton outlet) where you can't hear yourself speak, the location (anyone who regularly makes a habit of drinking in the tourist trap of Covent Garden needs their head testing) and the fact that we will, in two years time, hate them with a passion as they take over the world - as with Pizza Express, Wagamama, JD Wetherspoons, Nando's and all the rest, we need less of the entrepreneurship and expansionism.
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Craft Beer Company's newest and maybe their best pub. On the corner of High Holborn and Endell Street, within 5mins of Tottenham Court Road Tube and reachable from what seems their corporate bus route, No.38 (serving their pubs from Victoria to Islington) pub on two floors, service on ground floor only, and the basement can appear gloomy especially if empty /quiet. Again over 30 beer choices and what looks like a huge spirits selection. Often busy especially at night but staff numbers seemed adequate on my two visits in recent weeks, with less than a 5min wait to be served in a packed pub. All the staff seem to enjoy their job, and the manager (big tall, loud guy) has a unique entertaining style behind the bar. Food is the chain's usual limited burger menu, for varied food outlets take a stroll across the road for shops of all nationalities in the square by the Google building. If you bring your coat, you'll be wearing it all night as there's nowhere to hang it up, making it more a summer pub than a winter one.
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After a brief visit to the Holborn Whippet, I continued to my second Craft pub of the day. This branch appeared to be focussing on Kelham Island ales with Pale Rider, Riders on the Storm, Kelham Best, Pride of Sheffield, Radar Men from the Moon & Rye Plains Drifter all on. There was also Dark Star Darkness & Green Hopped IPA, Kent Clerkenwell Pale & Zingiber, Rother Valley Ebulem Raspberry Porter & Tyne Bank Barrel of Monkeys. The real cider was Millwhites Hedgelayer. This was my second visit here. We managed to get a table near the door. But the ground floor bar can get fairly congested and it's difficult to see what beers are on. The basement is generally much quieter and is seemingly favoured by diners. But I do find it a bit dull and dingy down there for a lengthy session. Probably the best of the Craft pubs. Although I've yet to do the Brixton and Brighton ones yet.
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This recently re-opened as Craft Beer Co. Covent Garden. Similar range and atmosphere to other Craft Beer Co. establishments. Will rate later.
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Currently known as Rudy's Revenge .... no further details
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Seems to open quite late - not exactly sure until when. A good place to have a couple of quite pints for the road after the pubs have kicked out (so good if you don't fancy a club or the intrepid fox). Never gets particularly busy.
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bar is ok, quiet, chilled out atmosphere, decent music, big windows, easy to get a seat, nice place for an hour or two. not bustling but as a pre-club hangout its good.
the toilets however are a disgrace.
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I like this bar. We've been using Oporto as a pre-club drinking spot for a couple of years, and the service is friendly and quick, and there is usually somewhere to sit, and the - generally chilled - music isn't at ear-beeding volume - a miracle on a Friday/ Saturday in central london. And when the downstairs bar isn't hired out - there is a pool table to amuse the boys.
It does need a bit of attention though - the ladies toilets are appalling (we don't like trailing our jeans in leaking toilet water - just so you know) and not checked (I hate having to ask for bog roll at the bar - just not cool). And a bit of an overall bar decor tidy up would help too, potentially a great bar - but will have to settle for 'handy' from me right now!
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Went in there to watch football. They didn't have Sky TV.
Matt H - 30 Jun 2004 15:51 |
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