please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
On Xmas day 2013 we walked over 3 miles to the top of Golders Hill park.
There used to be two pubs here. One has died. The Old Bush and Bush seems to have survived.
Is a pub a Public Space or not? Is not the Public bar of a Pub open to the Public 365 days a year?
We were thrown out of this "pub" at 2pm on Xmas day 2013., as not having reserved a table for Xmas dinner.
Is this place a Pub or simply just another mediocre and modern restaurant in terrible disguise?
What is happening to the Pub business in this country?
Minus 10 for pretending to be a Pub when it isn't.
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St. George and the Dragon £3.40p a pint. Not that i care much for it.
Points for pub 6 out out ten
Less 1 point for no complete and comprehensive drinks list explaining to customers all the drinks, mixers, cocktails and beverages they have available to choose from, together with a summary description of those drinks of what they must taste like.
[They were able to produce such a list for wines, why not beers and other drinks?]
Less 1 point for no drinks price list for customers to use.
Less 1 point for no receipt given after purchase of a drink. All pubs should automatically give receipts, as they do on the continent.
Summary = 3 points
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Some kind of pseudo-neo-krypto drinking/eating establishment. Had a nice (if pricey) pint of Urquel there but it ain't no pub.
anonymous - 24 Jul 2012 18:09 |
was a beautiful, quirky pub full of atmosphere and lots of history. was being the operative word there. how can they still call it the old bull and bush when they gutted the place and made it look like any one of 1000's of other pubs.
real shame as was a definite must see before they ripped the soul out of it, hikes their prices up and got an inferiour chef in.
shame, real shame
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A shameful gutting of a once great pub in a beautiful location, the extensive menu betrays what its corporate owners are hoping to achieve and it's so 1990s, one half expects Morcheeba to be emanating from the piped sound system. The makeover is vandalism - pure and simple - and almost a criminal offence.
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The Landlord was off at 12:30 on Saturday afternoon, but the Adnams was good enough and there was a large selection of premium lagers. The barman asked me if I wanted ice in my pint, I declined the offer � I just wish that he had not left room in my pint for some ice. This place is now very gastro and it may even be verging on the restaurant side.
It is many a year since I was last in here and I didn�t really like it very much then, so now I�m looking forward to another few years of no Bull and Bush.
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Well, they have an ale. There might be other positives, but I am at a loss to think of them.
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Meh. Food ok and atmosphere not dreadful, but probably not one to make a special journey for,
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Came for the history - 'The old bull & bush' - but now a modern gastro pub with bright lighting. Plenty of totty though and a good pint of Taylors Landlord
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Why on earth did I go here again? Perhaps because Golders Green is so dearth of pubs. Anyhow got the bar where stood a poncy barman wearing a French brasserie long white apron kit, How fakely Parisien. "How much is a cognac?", we asked him. About �2 he replied.
"ABOUT �2?" I said. "what is the price?" I asked again. There was no price list for regular drinks displayed anywhere.
How much longer did I want to stay in this destroyed establishment? ABOUT 2 minutes.
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This pub died after changing its format. It was one of the best pubs in north london. Now I wouldn't bother to go there at all.
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Walked two miles to get there yesterday. Guess what? There was no bitter of any kind available. No real ale, no keg bitter. And I was gasping for a pint. Will not make the mistake of going there again. And I question whether you can call this place a pub at all! A restaurant maybe, of perhaps a bar. But a pub? Forget it.
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Went here on Saturday. I'm sure during the Summer months it is nice to sit out in the terrace and enjoy a pint and a smoke (regarding Ant_from_London's comments, if you don't like the smoke outside, go inside, don't see how you can really complain considering the "terrace" is right by the road and you're breathing in car fumes!!!!!). This pub does not have a lot of real ales on tap, mostly lagers. As far as service, they are way understaffed. Whilst the staff may be nice, the service was slow - REALLY slow. And I didn't feel well after eating the fish and chips (three hours afterwards had to lie down for the rest of the evening and NO I wasn't drunk as I only had two pints).
This bar/pub is fine for a summer day if you want to sit outside and soak up some rays and wait at the bar for about 10 minutes first but not a destination (we live in Hampstead and even for us this pub is too far out of the way). BUT if you want to try real beers/ales, you'll want to avoid.
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I love the Bull & Bush. I haven't been so impressed by a pub in a very long time.
The food was delicious, I had the yummy fish cakes and my partner had spit roast chicken which literally fell off the bone it was so tender.
The pub is so cosy & welcoming , especially when they have the open fire going and the spiced apple toddy set me up very nicely for a chilly walk home.
I'll be back very soon !
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we booked a table here today to celebrate my daughter's 16th birthday. the service was attrocious - quite rude, the food was cold and greasy and we left very upset and feeling quite ill. i could go on but that would just be a rant!
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The Bull and Bush has its faults, but it has a lot of good points too. We live quite close and have been there regularly since it opened in its current and vastly improved black and white theme. We go there for a casual drink or a cup of coffee, we go for lunch on the terrace when the weather is good and we bring foreign guests to enjoy an upmarket pub meal.
There's a good selection of food, which changes regularly. We like the sharing plates like the greek meze. Overall, prices are a little higher than we would like, but the experience is worth it. My only real gripe is that they haven't yet banned smoking outside on the terrace - which is only sometimes a problem. This is an enjoyably civilised pub. If you want loud music and vibrations - this is not for you.
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I must say that I am shocked reading some of thereviews. It is a shame I admit that the pub culture is changing. Tall drinks, restarurants are most certainly taking over.. I took my family for lunch and found the staff very helpful, friendly and the price in comparison with some pubs was reasonable for the quality of the food we had. Maybe some of the reviewers should go to the pubs that supply 2 meals for �7.00 Brian Gage not anonymous Lived near the Pub for 50 Years
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...just realised those wooden beams would have always been there, but still.... too low for us tall people!
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It's so sad to see such an old & characteristic pub next to the Heath, turned into what it is today.
I visted this pub for the 1st time at the weekend since the refurb.... absolutely packed out with young, loud, rich kids who nurse their cokes for 3 hours & strut about wanting to be noticed.
Really disappointed especially as it's one of the very few pubs in the area! And those wooden beams are way too low! I think you need to be very small in height to get about in there...
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Used to work here. Am glad I don't now!
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Avoid, unless you like:
- Rude, unhelpful and unwelcoming management
- Jobsworth, snooty staff
- Over priced food
- Being treated like your presence and custom is an inconvenience
Hopefully they will carry on ignoring and rejecting customers (and our cash) and go bust - take the zebras with you when you leave!
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This place has to be seen to believed.....only England can lead the Western world in doing something so profoundly and utterly WRONG as this.
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It so upsets me. Its a beautiful old building - or was. It's also potentially my local - a beautiful stroll through some woods with the dog.
But this place is SO wrong on SO many levels.
- The staff are unbelievably rude and unfriendly... you want to apologise for disturbing them.
- The decor has been butchered - earlier zebra comments are spot on the money
- The beer... and this is the worst bit... consistantly tastes off.
And this is EVERY time I've been. But no more! It sucks.
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I used to use the B & B in the mid to late 70s and it was the best place in London to meet girls and friends, especially foreign students and au pairs, it was well worth the trip from Streatham most nights, great beer and always crowded - in a nice way. It's very sad to hear what it is like now - do the publicans never read web sites like this, who owns it now ?
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Before the recent reworking, this pub was pleasant enough, and was generally agreed to be the only pub within walking distance of Golders Green worth bothering with.
But now... oh my Lord. Just hideous. Ill-conceived on just about every level.
Shouldn't there be a law against this type of thing?
beaky - 10 Sep 2006 12:56 |
last time i was in it was great, ok that was years ago, yet another great pub ruined.
anonymous - 4 May 2006 00:43 |
It's a sad day when the only reasonably decent pub in the Golders Green area becomes too awful to frequent.
Prior to the re-furbushment the prices soared and the service was terrible. They wanted �150 for hire of the side room last August with a licence only until 11.00. The wine was often off and the ikea decor didn't do the building justice.
Since the refurbishment you can no longer get a bottle of house wine. The cheapest bottle is refered to "entry level", the food is expensive and the decor is garish. Remember to get a token from behind the bar before leaving otherwise you get stuck in the car park. I would rather walk up to Spaniards then visit the Bull and Bush again. It has lost all it's character and the welcoming feel it used to have in the past.
anonymous - 27 Apr 2006 19:22 |
....
The staff are just as pretentious and unfriendly as before, the food is just as ridicilously expensive and the decor is like they slaughtered several zebras and just chucked their skins all over the place.
Its horrorific,
Luckily it no longer counts as a pub. Its now just resturant with beer taps.
If you want to go to a pub after a sunday afternoon on the heath, go to the Spaniards Inn....
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It's now reopened and it's completely smokefree inside, which is always a good thing in my book. the big side room on the left is now the restaurant, where you can have good wood fired pizzas, sausage and mash, steaks etc. not particularly cheap but what we had was good and not overprized IMO. Good service, and a nice selection of beers, including a fine Bavarian white beer. The new decor is quite swish and upmarket, black and white leather sofas, etc... but it's definitely comfortable. A good place to go on a Sunday afternoon after a walk on the heath!
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Currently being refurbished. Mabey another month before its ready.
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Oh dear oh dear..... The old Bull and Bush.... what has happened to you.
While in its heyday the B&B was a friendly warm place it is now a souless shell of its former self. The bar staff seem to go out of their way to make life dificult for you. Drinks are taken away half full. Food is slow and the quality seems to rise and fall on a daily basis due to different chef shifts. Its had to explain the other element that drives me away from the Bull and Bush; you always feel like you are tresspassing on the landlords time and he'd feel alot happier if these damn customers didnt get in his way.
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Can't remember when I was last here but it was winter, cold, gloomy and pretty empty but it looked like the original fittings were all there - mind you it was pretty dar. There was a sign up saying it was going to close for refurbishment. Returned here today.........................oh dear. As previous comments have said, the soul's been ripped out. Gentrified, sanitised, clinical and just well, dull. It could be an All Bar One, Slug and Lettuce. When will this trend end?
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i used to drink regularly at the Old Bull and Bush in the mid 70's - it was a great pub really old fashioned and traditional, but at the same time full of trendy young people like myself then - now it's terrible the soul has been ripped out
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they place the same tape/cd all of the time . worse, it's non-descript jazz/funk .uninspired, lazy-choice inoffensive music. no one may actually LIKE the music, but no one will actually specifically DISLIKE the music .
dan - 22 Sep 2004 16:39 |
It's an ok pub - although I concede the point about being 'trendified' by various continental beers which aren't actually that nice - but I no longer go there due to the rudeness of the staff. Still, considering how full it gets on a Friday night I suppose they feel they can afford to drive a few people away...
Will C - 22 Sep 2004 15:45 |
Saw kaz's comments about the food and had to defend it by saying I had the best pub burger of my life here - beautifully done, "burger" was not sufficient to describe it! Having said that, it's not a brilliant pub, very trendified inside, with expensive continental lagers etc. being served, and lots of 'beautiful people' milling about. Big garden, though, and car park, so ideal to stop at if driving across the top of the Heath.
Grecian - 17 Aug 2004 12:13 |
We had quite possibly the worst pub meal in our lives there today..father's day. Really disappointing. Lettuce in my salad was brown, vegetables were brown (even the broccolli) and the lamb roast was the tiniest bit of meat - for over 8 quid! No kid's portions either and really junior bar staff. Looks like a great pub - but food truly awful.
kaz - 20 Jun 2004 20:44 |
Quite shocked it is not listed already. Over 300 years old and one of the most famous pubs in the country. The "Down at the Old Bull & Bush" song-hall tune is based on it. Lots of famous people throughout the year, lots of ales, poncey beers and a big beer garden at the front.
Nik Webb - 21 May 2004 13:01 |
