BITE user comments - TheKindnessOfTrees
Comments by TheKindnessOfTrees
The Coach and Horses, Isleworth
Formerly a pub of a more traditional bent (save for the Thai restaurant that was incorporated there), the process of gastrofication is almost complete – almost, because the area around the actual bar has ostensibly been left to the drinkers (and the garden too). The rest of the pub is defined by the food served here, the room towards the rear particularly so. Books occupy the shelves, as if people might go there to read them. A glazed cavaedium adjoins this staid edifice to the pub's core, its decor suggesting Morocco, or something Byzantium. The overall effect is of a hotel bar opening out into a restaurant, but with enough architectural curve balls to dampen the effect. If you can stomach the overbearing smell of meat, the place just about gets away with it. 7/10
24 Nov 2014 20:44
Pre-gastrofication, this place was fumbling for an identify. The furniture was all wrong, punters were scarce, and those who did drink there were too interested in the football. Then in 2013 the place was heavily refurbished: walls were knocked through, furnishings improved, and the menu became king.
Drinking there now, I sometimes feel like I'm waiting to be seated, even at 9.00 on a Friday evening when all I want is a few quiet jars. One settles in eventually, although the redolence of the food served there – often fish – has been so strong on occasion that I have been forced to quickly leave.
Yet the service is generally good and the art-work hanging off the walls is a little more interesting than the stock rubbish you get in a lot of these more modern pubs, although they could do with dimming the lights; I suppose the customers need to see what they're eating... 6/10
24 Nov 2014 20:37
Part hotel lobby, part medieval 'bierkeller', why are so many of London's best pubs wasted on ‘The City’ and the people who work there? A high vaulted ceiling, discreet snugs, leaded came glass-work, Gothic touches... but why so bright? It's Sam Smiths, which means it's both cheap and distinctive in flavour. 8/10
24 Oct 2014 19:47
The problem with some of pubs in this area is that they don't open at weekends, and so it goes with the Old Nick. This is a great shame because it offers much. The area directly in front of the bar isn't up to much, but down to the sides and around the bank there's enough to justify a visit, where proper traditional pub décor permeates, especially in the sectioned off bit at the back. The lighting could do with being dimmed a little, mind. 7/10
24 Oct 2014 19:44
The Dolphin Tavern, Bloomsbury
This curious, almost triangular drinking hole, offers gentle reprieve from the more hectic hostelries nearby. Caught in a sort of time-warp, The Dolphin Tavern attracts an odd crowd, but the atmosphere is pleasing enough, certainly not threatening. The seating is well appointed, although space is limited, and the place is well-kept. Friendly service and reasonable prices make for 7/10.
24 Oct 2014 19:41
There are many pubs in central London arranged this way – long, rectangular, bar on the right, toilets towards the middle and back. The Enterprise bucks the trend with a fussier, more ornate interior décor, almost of the kind you might expect to find in Madrid. There's a delightful drinking area out the back, and plenty of room generally. That all said, it's not a cheap place to drink and can often be found bursting at the seams. 7/10
24 Oct 2014 19:40
This ominous beast of a pub is best avoided. Mostly empty, the folk that do drink here never appear to be having a very good time of it, not during the week, at least – it could be a different matter come the weekend. One is not made to feel in any way welcome, and the lack of lighting out the front just adds to the sense of menace that pervades throughout. Reasonably priced, though. 3/10
24 Oct 2014 19:39
This pub is proper old, although maybe not as intimate as that fact might imply. It's quite open, in fact, with big windows – like a Edward Hopper's 'Nighthawks' but with reduced melancholy. The bar is partitioned into three parts, which means there's somewhere for everyone, and even drinking outside represents a worthy option; this listed pub's exterior is impressive, and St. Michael's alley – where you will find this hostelry – actually contributes towards its character. 9/10
24 Oct 2014 19:37
The Nell Gwynne, Covent Garden
It's well worth suffering both the suits and the paucity of available seating to grab yourself a pint in this little wonder. Stuffed down some back passage coming off of The Strand, glance towards the south side of the street and you'll miss it. We're talking traditional boozing here: high ceilings, dark red walls, dim lights, a jukebox, and Victorian artwork. It is great place to visit during the winter months, but any time of year will do. Nell Gwynne was apparently the mistress of Charles II, among other things. 9/10
24 Oct 2014 19:33
The Ship and Shovell, Charing Cross
Ship and Shovell, The Strand: A pub of two halves - quite literally. The Charing Cross side is the larger, more open and redder of the two edifices, and maybe the more sociable too. Embankment side is more intimate, riven with snugs, and has one of the smallest bars I've ever had the privilege of being served from; there is an upstairs, however, so it terms of floor-space maybe there's not so much to choose between them. And then there's the space that separates these respective enclaves – Craven Passage – a sort of physical intermediary where people gather around upended barrels to drink, talk, maybe smoke. 9/10.
24 Oct 2014 19:28
A mercifully sympathetic refurbishment has done only a little to dampen this pub’s charm. We could have done without the raised tables to the left as you walk in, and there’s too much emphasis on the ‘gastro’ side of things for my liking. Still, this is very much a drinker’s haunt; it’s the dark wood, low ceilings, real fires and the sense of it being a REAL pub that does it. If they could just sort out their music policy...
14 Oct 2014 22:23
A fully paid up member of the over-priced Craft Brewery racket it seems (£5 a pint for the guest lager?!), but there’s Beck’s Vier for those of us who aren't quite so solvent. I like the seating out front because it looks over Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, although they’ll reel you in come 10:20 (because of the ‘neighbours’). There’s always the back yard, which is cosy, and the pub itself of course, which is nicely done out – the area behind the bar is awash with tiles and stained glass. All in all, a pretty dent boozer.
14 Oct 2014 22:10
A pub that has benefitted from not interfering with its formula – if it ain't broke don’t fix the goddam thing. The walls are awash with all sorts of strange imagery, and a hotchpotch of chairs and tables meld well with this theme. The staff are generally friendly, the music good – especially when carefully chosen from the jukebox – and there’s a pool table too. Nice little beer-yard at the back, swamped with plants and flowers and things. 8.
14 Oct 2014 21:52
The Royal Oak, Vauxhall: On the face of it, a pub that has seen better days. But pubs are things which are often better off that way - or that can certainly suffer from overzealous overhauls or modish refurbishments. Indeed, there’s nothing about this place I would change particularly, other than maybe a lowering of the light, or a drawing of some of the curtains: this is not a cosy place to drink, but nor is it a summer sort of place either. Still, it’s not bad place to sink a few jars.
14 Oct 2014 21:40
The Coach and Horses, Isleworth
A few years ago this place suffered a radical overhaul, and I feared the worse. Such apprehension has proved to be completely unfounded. There’s too much emphasis on food, for sure, and the flock furnishing can be a little overbearing. But at night the light is set low and the place is open and broad enough to satisfy a variety of fancies. The garden area is just splendid, and the building itself presents a satisfying visage. That all said, this more contemporary iteration of the Coach and Horses still lacks something, and that something is that feeling of being in an actual pub – it could almost be a hotel bar-come-restaurant. An 8 for the effort, though.
14 Oct 2014 21:34
The Bridge Inn succeeds despite itself – too much sport, not enough seats, a rowdy bunch tends to drink here, and there’s a Thai restaurant conjoined to it. But the lighting is good, the service area has character and the shape of the place bestows a certain charm.
Nothing much really has changed here over the last 10 or 20 years, which is refreshing. I’ll give The Bridge Inn a solid 7.
14 Oct 2014 21:21
The Red Lion, Isleworth: Since the demise of the Royal Oak, the Red Lion is undoubtedly the best pub in the whole of Isleworth. Ale drinkers will need no convincing, but that will only take a pub so far. It’s the physical geography of the place that really appeals: two sides to it, each with its own ambience, both equally pleasing in their own separate ways. Sport will be shown, but never over-awes. There is a pool table for those feeling a little more interactive, and a jukebox too. The garden is a delight, despite a ramshackle quality to it, and the Red Lion attracts a pleasant crowd. Only the dirty pint glasses sometimes let this place down – hence I give it 9.
14 Oct 2014 21:14
The Woodlands Tavern, Isleworth
The Woodlands Tavern, Isleworth: A strange pub that fails to convince. There is nothing inherently wrong with this place; the bar area is pleasingly traditional and there’s a nice seating array. The pool table is a nice touch, too – a rare thing nowadays – but the lighting can be a little bright and the choice of music is invariably poor. It can also feel cold of a night. All in all, not a bad boozer, but not a great one either.
14 Oct 2014 21:05
Once the mightiest jewel in Isleworth’s crown, this pub has recently undergone a transformation of monstrous proportion. It’s the decorative equivalent of a war-crime; the likes of the old Royal Oak are on the brink of extinction. It’s akin to finding a rare 1960s’ garage record and then sticking it in a cheap picture frame and hanging it on the wall. It’s analogous to buying a Victorian house and then knocking it down and building a bungalow in its place, just because you liked the lay of the land. It’s like taking 20 years of my drinking life and chucking it on the nearest fire, along with a load of broken pallets and rotting leaves. 10 for what it was, 1 for what it has become – split the difference and rate it a 5.
14 Oct 2014 20:57
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The White Swan, Twickenham
A unique pub in a unique location; off a residential road directly overlooking – and with direct access to – the River Thames. A detached, open aired enclave provides succour in the summer; there are fireplaces providing warmth throughout the winter. In any case, the meagre size of this establishment could mean you'll struggle to find a seat, although there's always the pavement.
It's the age of the place that really impresses, and the impracticability of it all: seats in the way of each other; subterranean lavatories; tidal incursions that literally leave people stranded, perched upon wooden benches for the while it takes for the river to ebb away. 9/10
24 Nov 2014 20:54