BITE user comments - Doob
Comments by Doob
Limited selection of Brodies available (and nothing very special) and TV's on too loud to hold a conversation. If you've never been to this pub before you might think it's OK, if the last time you were there was a couple of years ago you'll be sad to see it's decline.
3 Jan 2017 11:42
Beer selection was lacking any dark beers, which was disappointing for a cold, Winter night. Even more surprising is that they pay for Sky TV (not cheap for a pub) so I had to endure a darts match being shown, with the sound very loud. Not sure why a pub in such a prime location needs to rely on this. The quality of the beer was fine and I would have stayed for more had it not been for the racket and the fact that I couldn't stand anywhere that might have blocked someone's view of the screen.
3 Jan 2017 11:38
Excellent locals pub near the station. Always a couple of Adnams beers available and they make the most of the other 3 handpumps with some interesting offerings. Promotes live music and always a friendly crowd. There's not much else on that side of the railway line but definitely worth a visit.
25 Apr 2016 13:03
Has a wide choice of beers but unfortunately the quality rarely matches the quantity. They should also learn that if a customer takes a beer back because it doesn't taste right it's not an invitation to an argument - "it's a new barrel....that's how it's supposed to taste...etc", it's an opportunity to provide some half decent customer service and offer an alternative. It’s handy for the station but is expensive and certainly not as good as it was a few years ago.
25 Apr 2016 12:57
Expensive beer and can't say I like being asked to pay a 10% service charge on 2 burgers and 2 pints, ordered at the bar. Do I look like a tourist or something? The beer was OK but then it should be at these prices. Plenty of better options around. This is, after all, just a Nicholson's pub - i.e. an over-priced Wetherspoon.
6 Dec 2015 14:47
The Central Bar, Shepherds Bush
I’m not a huge fan of the identikit nature of the majority of Wetherspoon pubs but had to take the opportunity to put in a good word for the service from the barman, the duty manager I believe. It was very busy but he did a great job and (just about) managed to keep his cool. This despite the provocation from some very ignorant, impatient punters. (The young woman who had to wait 2 minutes to have her wine glass rinsed out deserves special mention in that category!).
A reasonable selection of beers too, including a couple of local ones (Truman and London Fields), with the Oat Milk Stout (from Croydon’s Clarence & Fredericks brewery) worthy of a special mention.
26 Feb 2014 12:42
Very friendly and welcoming pub. Excellent local beer from the Weatheroak brewery. My only complaint is the location – a 100 miles from where I live!
3 Feb 2014 15:17
The Jerusalem Tavern, Clerkenwell
The only criticism is that it’s a little on the small side! The St Peter’s beers are a mixed bag but that’s the sort of selection that a brewery should have. You can’t expect to like them all but if you like any at all this is the place to drink them. I was very fortunate on my visit; they had their Christmas Ale available. Excellent and, despite the 7% ABV it was not excessively priced. A gem.
22 Jan 2014 13:08
Any serious beer drinker should love this place. The beer I had (a rare outing for Crouch Vale Mild) was spot on. Reasonable prices too. A selection of newspapers available to browse as well so ideal if you're a saddo like me and on your own!
22 Jan 2014 12:55
The Exmouth Arms, Exmouth Market
Four handpumps (only three available), with small breweries from Cornwall seemingly the order of the day. Very good beer but then at over £4 a pint (4.6 ABV) so it should be!
Tries hard to be trendy with a whole host of keg beers available. I expect some people call them craft beers which shows what can be achieved with marketing! If it’s produced like a keg beer and dispensed like a keg beer then it is a keg beer.
Worth a visit if you happen to be passing but there’s better options close by.
22 Jan 2014 12:50
You won't have to look too hard to find better pubs than this that charge a lot less for their beer. Unless you have an urge to be ripped off best avoided. Luckily it's not that easy to find.
31 Aug 2013 10:38
I was pleased to see beer from the local Country Life brewery available. The barman offered me a sample which I accepted.
Yuk!
One sniff warned me it was off, one sip confirmed it. I suggested the barman try it for himself. He looked at me blankly and gave me a sample of the other beer they had on, Sharps Doom Bar. That was OK so I ordered a pint, although it was disappointing to be contributing to the profits of Molson Coors instead of a genuine local concern.
A few minutes later someone else came into the pub and went through the same steps as I had…he turned his nose up at the Country Life and opted for the Sharps instead, but still the barman didn’t get the message that sometime real ale goes off and you have to change the barrel!
Despite all that, the pub was OK. Touristy, obviously, but it wasn’t particularly busy when I was there on a Friday afternoon in June. Food wasn’t bad value but sadly the barman needs to learn his trade, or return to the delights of London where he so obviously came from.
17 Jul 2013 17:41
The Hartland Quay Hotel (Wreckers Bar), Hartland
Great location, especially on a sunny evening. Just a shame you have to sit outside to enjoy it - the view from the pub itself is restricted by the outbuildings! Not surprisingly, considering it's location, lots of families and children so I'd certainly avoid it in July/August. The beer quality was good; I had the Dartmoor Legend which is as close as they have to a local beer. The food is OK, in the 'chips with everything' category, but at least it's reasonably priced.
3 Jul 2013 13:22
Generally leans more toward being a restaurant than a pub but on the plus side, they never allow all of the tables to be prebooked. The food is good and worth the few extra quid that they charge. The beer is OK too – Otter Ale and Skinners (and the ever present Doom Bar of course). Overall worth a visit, even if it’s just for a drink. It’s a popular place too, not surprising considering the alternatives in Hartland! Plenty of tourists (eating) and a few locals round the bar. Just a shame they don’t stock any Forge beers - the brewery is 100 yards away!
3 Jul 2013 13:14
Looks a bit rough but don’t let that put you off. It’s a large, unpretentious, pub with various seating areas. I had a couple of excellent pints of Oakleaf Hole Hearted (a new barrel had just been put on so good timing on my part). It has a large seating area outside, the tables were in a bit of a state but pleasant enough on a warm evening. The locals may seem a bit scary but all seemed friendly enough to me.
21 Jun 2013 09:52
Busy early evening and the barstaff seemed a bit stressed by it all. The pint I had was average but the fish and chips were good. Small seating area outside, at the back, which was a bit overgrown and not as comfortable as it should have been. More of a smoking area than a garden. Not a bad pub but the reviews had probably led me to expect better.
21 Jun 2013 09:40
You'll struggle to find too many better pubs than this in London, especially with regard to the selection (and quality) of ales. Brisk and friendly bar staff and I like the small roof terrace too. A 'must visit' pub.
31 May 2013 13:03
Metropolitan Bar, Baker Street
Not great. Most of the bar staff look like they'd rather be somewhere else and not a particularly good choice of beers. If it's busy then it's not too bad but when it's quiet it's like being in an aircraft hanger (and a grubby one at that). No redeeming features other than the usual JDW selling point of cheap beer. Its location makes it an obvious location for a late drink, if you happen to be using Baker Street station, but it doesn’t have much else going for it.
31 May 2013 12:51
The Knights Templar, Chancery Lane
Probably one of the better JDW's in that it doesn't have too many wino's clogging the place up. Completely soulless, of course, like drinking in a hotel foyer, but the beer quality is generally good. Service is a bit up and down although since I always feel like the only person that still uses cash when buying a couple of beers it's not surprising I get frustrated waiting for the bar staff to process credit card transactions. Not their fault, of course, but would be good if they at least made an effort to serve people in the order they've been waiting.
Worth a visit.....if you happen to be passing.
31 May 2013 12:42
This pub has improved greatly since I started going here, some years ago.. It now has 9 handpumps with a good selection of beers, a far cry from when Doom Bar was as good as it got! Maybe they're trying to compete with the wide choice of beers offered by Edgar Walace, just round the corner, which can only be a good thing. Can get crowded when there's a 'big' game on the telly but it always seems a friendly enough crowd and the bar staff seem happier now than they once were. Considering it's location you might expect it to be full of tourists but I've yet to see much evidence of that. Good to see a pub on the up!
31 May 2013 12:33
Worth searching out. It was quiet when I was there, on a miserable Wednesday lunch time, so some warming dark ales went down very well, as did the freshly prepared sausage sandwich. Not as small as I'd expected and certainly no problem getting a seat but, as I say, the weather, was probably a factor. Seems a bit churlish to be critical on the choice of beers, with 5 handpumps including Leeds, Goachers and Thwaites, but would have been nice to see some local beer too. Having said that, their selection of bottled beers included both Meantime and Camden, as well as the usual (but welcome) suspects from German, Belgium and the USA. A very pleasant way to keep out of the cold!
14 Mar 2013 11:58
Judging from some of the previous reviews perhaps I did well to go here on a cold and miserable Wednesday night. It was still fairly busy tho, at 8pm but a lot quieter on my second visit an hour or so later. Naturally, being in Camden, there was a distinct lack of lighting, i.e. it was gloomy, and although I’m not a great fan of trendy sofa seating it was still comfortable enough. The highlight, as it should be with any pub, was the beer. Four handpumps, one was off but the other three had Purity, Twickenham and Redemption. I had the latter which was very good (both times!). OK, £4 isn’t cheap but I’d rather pay the extra few pence if it means getting a decent pint – from a smaller brewery too. It has the added benefit of being near to the Barfly music venue too, near enough, in fact, to get a beer in after the support band but before the headline act! (And one thing you can be sure of, if you want to drink decent beer and not pay too much over the odds you would certainly choose the Lock Tavern over the Barfly!)
27 Feb 2013 12:11
I agree with a previous comment that the beer straight from the cask is, at best, unreliable. They have an impressive selection but I'd still stick to the ones on handpump unless you want to risk disappointment.
Bar staff are efficient tho some not as friendly as they could be.
Overall a pub that seems something special on the first couple of visits but the gloss soon wears off. Always worth a visit if you're using Euston Station tho.
20 Dec 2012 09:26
Hard to fault. Good (tho fairly safe) choice of beers.
Comfortable atmosphere.
The only criticism I could levy is that it gets too crowded - deservedly popular!
20 Dec 2012 09:13
Had an excellent pint of Youngs Christmas Cracker.
Large, quiet and old fashioned with a clientele to match. Quaint and friendly.
Worth popping in.
20 Dec 2012 09:09
I believe this pub went through a bit of a transformation in the last couple of years, with a new owner. It has certainly lost much of its atmosphere with the public bar exuding a depressing run down feeling. McMullens is not one of my favorite beers although, to give the pub credit, they did have 4 to choose from. Not a bad pub but I wouldn't make an effort to search it out.
20 Dec 2012 09:05
Large, modern interior.
I hate to be critical of their ambition but the number of handpumps does seem a bit over the top unless they have the turnover to support it. Maybe they have, although it was quiet when I was there. In all tried 3 of the beers, 2 were not at their best (flat), the other was spot on.
Still a very welcome addition to the Barnet pub crawl!
20 Dec 2012 08:57
I have to confess, I didn't bother to have a drink. As per a previous comment, a bit like going to Tescos. I know that sounds snobbish but let's face it, if you visit a Wetherspoon pub, especially at lunch time, you know what to expect - winos and students, and anyone else that wants cheap beer. Why CAMRA insist on putting these pubs in the Good Beer Guide I'll never know. Maybe it’s something to do with the fact that Wetherspoon bankroll their membership.
27 Nov 2012 16:09
Certainly one of the better Shepherd Neame pubs I've been to recently (in London). I had a very nice pint of Skinners Betty Stogs. I liked the interior too, a couple of different rooms which made it feel slightly homely. I was there at around 1pm on a Tuesday lunch, it was fairly quiet, but it looked like the food was quite popular. For its location, just outside the city, worth searching out.
27 Nov 2012 16:02
I was here at about 1pm on a Tuesday lunch time. They don't (appear) to do food so perhaps that's why it was so quiet. Quite large downstairs, with a dart board as an attraction. (I didn’t venture upstairs). Had a slightly 'trade and socials' feel to it but I'd still recommend a visit. I had a very nice pint of Hackney Best. Not unduly expensive. Friendly bar staff too.
27 Nov 2012 15:53
I was here at about 1.30 pm on a (wet) Tuesday lunchtime. I must admit, being someone who remembers the bad old days of keg, I can't quite make up my mind about this so called craft beer. They only had Titanic beer (2 different ones) on hand pump, very good but expensive. The pub was fairly quiet, both upstairs and down. Not sure that I'd search it out again, a bit soulless, but just a few mins from Barbican tube so worth bearing in mind.
27 Nov 2012 15:48
Very quiet lunch time when I was there. Excellent ale tho. I'll hopefully get in this pub again soon.
3 Oct 2012 14:40
Three Horseshoes Inn, Sidlow Bridge
Reasonable selection of beers and the Surrey Hills was in excellent condition. Shame about the bunch of locals that crowd the end of the bar where the handpumps are, but getting served further along wasn't a problem. The food was very good too (toad in the hole). The pub has a large car park, an attractive garden and is an ideal stopping off point if travelling to Gatwick from the North. I can imagine the locals would wind me up a bit, when I'm trying to see what beers are on, as they stubbornly refuse to move, but still worth a return visit or two.
30 Sep 2012 12:35
Excellent selection of beers, 8 different ones I think, all chalked on a blackboard, which is always good to see. (Including abv and price). Beer quality is high, but unfortunately so are the prices. I've been here a few times and have yet to be served a bad pint. I've only eaten once, but can recommend the Wallace Burger which was actually very good value. (If there's any wine drinkers reading this, if you don't mind sacrificing a bit of quality, make sure you specify you want the house wine. Much better value for money). I've no doubt I'll go to this pub again but sadly the prices mean that won't happen as often as it could.
30 Sep 2012 12:23
Worth searching out and, contrary to a previous post, I thought the prices were low, especially considering it's location. (The food looked to be good value too). Full range of the Brodie beer. The barman offered to change mine, without being asked, because it looked a bit cloudy. The pint I was eventually served, the Bethnal Green Bitter, was spot on. Interesting selection of memorabilia on display too.
30 Sep 2012 12:10
Good selection of local beers, I had excellent pints from XT and Vale. It was very quiet when I was there, a weekday lunchtime, but the owners were friendly and clearly have plans to take the pub forward. They weren't doing food but were quite happy for us to buy some rolls from the (very good) bakery nearby and eat them in the pub. I look forward to coming to this excellent pub again.
30 Sep 2012 11:58
Can't seem to decide on whether it's a resturant or a pub. On entry it feels very much like the former, very out of character with it's rustic appearance. It has a very new, artificial feel. On reaching the bar you'll find the pub part, with a not particularly welcoming crew of middle aged 'blokes' desperately clinging to it. This doesn't exactly make it easy to be served, having to talk and reach over these stubborn locals. They probably think they keep the place running but I wonder how many people they deter from returning - myself included. Anyway, the beer was fine (from the White Horse brewery) and the food looked OK, tho a bit fussy and not exactly cheap. I suspect that if the resturant side of the business does well the locals may find their bar stools consigned to history. Could be so much better.
30 Sep 2012 11:43
Not such a wide choice of beers as I'd hoped but no complaints about the quality, the Landlord was very drinkable! I was there on a Saturday lunch time and unfortunately they weren't doing food. (According to their website they only do food on a Saturday when West Ham are at home). Despite this it was still busy, with football on the large tv (and racing on the other one). Seemed very friendly, chatted with a couple of the locals and the bar staff were welcoming too. Hard to believe there are many better pubs in the area.
30 Sep 2012 11:21
The Sun and 13 Cantons, Soho
Throw back to the bad old days of the 1970's - the only beer on offer is keg.
13 Jul 2017 09:22