BITE user comments - pejpm
Comments by pejpm
The Prince Regent, South Kensington
Total rubbish. This really does encapsulate everything that is wrong with London pub's now. The Black Widow was quirky and fun....this is just a mcdonalds with beer taps. The owners should be ashamed.
12 Feb 2007 10:27
The Duke of Devonshire, Balham
I've always enjoyed coming here for a drink, especially for a pre-dinner drink before going to the excellent Ciullios (sp?) next door. Good selection of beers, huge bar area, and never have to wait long to get served. Also, I had a really nice roast dinner in here on Sunday. We didnt get there until 3:45 so unfortunately they had run out of Chicken and Beef, but i had pork and my partner had the vegetarian nut roast and it was very good and reasonably priced. Plus they were playing an excellent selection of 80's/early 90's music!
5 Feb 2007 10:53
Yes, I must admit that the bishop is a cut above the other pubs on lordship lane that I mentioned, I apologise for that, and I have never had any complaints with the bishop. My gripe is with the number of 'trendy' pubs that lordship lane and other streets like it are now made up of, which i feel actually reduces the amount of choice the modern drinker has. When I lived in Dulwich, I found myself going to The Castle as it was one of the few pubs in the area which still feels like a pub. Like the guy earlier who referred to the Forresters as a 'hell hole', it seems that anything old or that still reflects the personality of the area it is in are looked down upon. Dont get me wrong, I wasnt a huge fan of the forresters though. I'm not alone in feeling this, looking through the reviews of the bars in clapham, dulwich, etc their seems to be a large market for people who want simple no nonsense pubs. I think the Alexandra in Clapham Common is a good example of this. Is there really no room on our high streets for pubs with a modern approach, and old fashioned traditional pubs?
I'm going to try out the clarence probably this weekend. Dont get me wrong, I'm not having a go at the bishop, its very well run and pleasant to be in...I'm probably just being overly critical because its nice to have a pub owner actually respond to reviews! Keep up the good work!
18 Jan 2007 10:33
The East Dulwich Tavern (EDT), Dulwich
Last time i was there, I ordered a stella and it was totally 100% flat. i told the barman so he poured me another absolutely flat one. I told him the pump or the barrel must be knackered and to try a different pump. He said 'it still tastes the same, what difference does it make??' and walked off. Thankfully a girl working behind the bar came over to me and said, 'your right, thats totally flat, sorry about that' and poured me one from the other pump on the other side of the bar which was absolutely fine. Just an example of the regard in which this pub holds it client�le.
14 Jan 2007 21:08
maybe the point is that people dont always want a 'minced angus steak burger' in a 'sourdough onion roll'. The problem is that the average high street are being filled to the brim with places which are all pretty much identical with no real character or soul. the bishop, the magdela, the uplands etc etc I think that the bishop is an example of this. It's good for what it does, I have no complaints about the service or the general running of the pub, it just makes me sad that it seems that only 'gastropubs' are acceptable for the modern drinker. My local pub, the abbeville, even asks drinking customers to vacate tables if people turn up wanting to dine!! I know this has nothing to do with the bishop, i just think that decent old style pubs are so few and far between, and this is a bad thing.
P.s. i think its great that you check this and respond to reviews, most landlords wouldnt.
14 Jan 2007 20:54
I'd agree with Headley. The food is definitely overpriced. The food is good without being great. for the prices that are charged you would expect better. The last time I was there, a burger and chips came to the best part of a tenner, and it was ok, not that special.
headley :- are you joking with your post??
"the kind of hell-hole that presented a catalyst for social derogation to manifest itself in an area."
the forresters was a bit rough and ready, but i drank there quite a lot and never saw any trouble in there. If you are happy to see every pub on the high street become a clone, then fine. but i think their are quite a few people that still want to drink in places with a pool table, old style bar snacks, and not 'chips with aloli'!!!
9 Dec 2006 23:43
i live round the corner from this pub, and as a pub its great. good beer and a nice atmosphere. however, i tried the food for the first time yesterday, never again....i ordered chicken schnitzel, when it came up it looked fairly bland but I thought that it might be nice anyway. I started eating and had got about one third of the way through (which was fine), before noticing that the chicken was TOTALLY RAW on the inside. I dont mean a little bit pink or undercooked, i mean absolutely raw. I dont see how its possible for a chef to make a mistake this bad and dangerous. Obviously they took it off the bill, and didnt make me pay for the two beers that I had, but i was still annoyed and to be honest I dont think I should have had to pay for my girlfriends salad as she was so sickened by this that she couldnt finish it. My girlfriend had a chicken salad, thankfully the chicken wasnt raw but it was dry and tasteless. Its a shame, but i dont think i could bring myself to try the food here again.
10 Sep 2006 21:33
I really like it here. I remember when it was the forresters, and whilst I agree that old style pubs do have a place on the high street, I think the bishop is infinitely more preferable to the spit n sawdust hostile atmosphere of the forresters.
My only gripe with the bishop is the volume of the music....its so so quiet! They do play good music there, but you can only hear it if your in on an afternoon! Obviously I want to be able to hold a conversation with the person sitting next to me, but on a friday night I think that having the music a tad louder would really improve (the already great) atmosphere. I thought it was just me, but all my friends that go to the bishop think that same thing. Anyway, this is only a small criticism/suggestion, keep up the good work!
24 Apr 2006 12:52
The Clarence, Balham
It's OK here, but like the Bishop it's pretty soulless. I dont mind it as a meeting point, but I much prefer the Devonshire across the road. I've never found it particularly comfortable here. It's like the coldplay of pubs, nothing particularly offensive but nothing to get excited about either.
23 Aug 2007 16:31