BITE user comments - skorch
Comments by skorch
Incompetent, useless bar staff. With a horde of thirsty drinkers at all times looking to get their beer, the staff couldn't give two tosses about picking up the pace a bit. It used to be a great pub - not I can't stand thinking about ordering a drink there. I've taken my business elsewhere.
12 Jun 2008 12:08
As a place to get drinks after work, 1888 is head and shoulders above the nearby pubs on the High Street - though, that's not a difficult accomplishment. None the less, the bar staff are excellent. No matter how busy the pub gets, you can get your order in a timely manner. The bitters are over priced and The Abbot and IPA are shockingly cold. It would be nice to see a new pint from time to time. None the less, it's still my preferred watering hole east of Marylebone High Street.
12 Jun 2008 12:05
Indeed it's re-opened as a gastro, but my goodness are the steak sandwich and club sandwiches fantastic. The BEST in London. They've got a microbrew, house ale which is quite good and the lager, stout are all from Meantime brewery. Things seem a bit expensive, but you get what you pay for, which is more than I can say about most pubs. At most pubs you'll pay �7-8 for a burger which is barely edible. It's my new favourite pub to eat lunch.
10 Jun 2008 16:04
Great layout, decent rotation of ales, friendly bar staff, _awful food_. I'm in there once or twice a week. The monday night pub quiz is very good. The music isn't very noticeable over the bar noise. I try and avoid the place on Fridays as the place becomes overrun by tossers. Open until midnight! Every once and awhile they try and do something new like an acoustic or DJ set. It doesn't usually stick but at least they try.
20 Jun 2007 17:50
The Famous 3 Kings (F3K), West Kensington
It's come a long way over the last year. It's slowly being converted from a drab and dull place into a first class sports bar. Plasma TVs (supposedly HD) at every possible angle, great staff (and wicked manager), great prices and fun atmostphere makes this place one of the best sports bars I've been to in London. They've got every imaginable sports game available. Even if there's a big and popular match on, if you call ahead, there's a good chance the manager will put your lesser match on a tv somewhere.
I've been told that they're planning a large, weekly NHL night which will recap the weeks hockey games. Music to my ears.
26 Jun 2006 13:38
When I first moved to London, the Maple Leaf was great. There were friendly Canadians behind the bar and they understood their roots. I have no idea what's become of it these days. With the NHL finally back in action this year, I just wanted my hockey fix once a week on Sundays. Every time I went to watch, it wasn't on. Either 1) They forgot to tape it (get Sky+ already), 2) They messed up the taping (see point 1) 3) They showed the games 4hours earlier than advertised or 4) there was something more important on tv (madness).
Word to the wise for the current management: Canadians like to watch hockey. Every single Canadian I've met who's been in London for over six months have the exact same horror stories about trying to watch hockey at the Maple Leaf.
If you want to watch hockey next season, go the Famous 3 Kings. They've got TVs at every angle, digitally recorded games and friendly staff. They even stayed open for the NHL finals - fully licensed.
26 Jun 2006 13:33
The Windsor Castle, Kensington
When it's busy it can be a bit of a turnoff due to the fact that there's absolutely nowhere to put your drink down. But that doesn't really bother me since by the time it's time to put the pint down, it's empty. I love all the nooks. The doorways are quaint but a bit bothersome after a while. It doesn't take too long to figure out that you're better off going out the side door and back through the front door if you want to get from one side of the pub to the other. Full marks for character. Decent selection of ales available. The large table in the back is a nice private place to enjoy your drinks.
19 Jan 2006 16:11
One of the better pubs in Bayswater. Downstairs is traditional with a decent selection on tap. Good live music and a few tables outside for some decent people-watching. Upstairs is a cool modern lounge with nice leather seats. If you're lucky enough, you can sit outside on the balcony.
18 Oct 2005 17:36
Nice looking pub. Not much to see from the outdoor seating but tourists dragging their suitcases behind them. Nothing overly striking about the pub. Nothing that ever kept me comming back.
18 Oct 2005 17:34
They have some fantastic non-mainstream ales on tap. The little garden out back is my favorite place to drink beer on a sunny day. The interior is dark and dank but in a cozy way if you like that sort of thing.
10 Oct 2005 16:02
Excellent selection of world beers but no real ales which is a shame. The atmosphere is a mixture of traditional and contemporary that meshes very well together. I've been to many pubs that have tried this and failed. I'm always impressed with the music they have playing. I like the quaint beer garden in the basement.
10 Oct 2005 15:53
The food is surprisingly good if a bit expensive. Staff is very friendly. They only have one cask bitter but it's a good one - Courage's Best. Extremely difficult to find a table in the evening and impossible if there's ever any hockey on the TV.
10 Oct 2005 15:46
This is my regular watering hole. They have an excellent rotation of real ales on tap - and properly conditioned! Bass, Tetleys, Bombardier, and unfortunately Pride. The staff is friendly and very stable. It is rare to see someone new working behind the counter. My one complaint - Please get new music. The music is awful.
10 Oct 2005 10:31
When I walked into the place for the first time, I noted to myself "this is what a proper pub should look like". It was early on a Sunday afternoon - the tables were full but it wasn't overly busy. We ordered the Sunday Roast and it was hands down the BEST pub roast I've ever had. It was both quality and quantitiy. Heafty portions of everything and it all tasted better than any other I've had - and for the same price as lesser meals I've had. Our food was brought out to us very promptly and we had no problems whatsoever with the staff.
10 Oct 2005 10:25
The Mitre, Holland Park
This place rubs me the wrong way. I have no idea what it's trying to be - is it a gastro, or an all-bar-one clone? Either way, I've only been two or three times in the last four years that I've lived in the neighborhood. I wouldn't want to sit here drinking a pint, and I wouldn't want to sit here eating a meal. So that's lose-lose on the atmosphere.
Holland Park has a serious lack of decent pubs, and this one is right at the bottom. Holland Park is screaming for a nice pub with a good atmosphere and great, but simple food. There's a HUGE gap in the market. POW/Castle has the worst kitchens known to man. Academy and the new Clarendon are far too formal for a quick bite.
Marylebone has some excellent locals with great pub food. Why can't Holland Park? Grrr!
12 Aug 2009 12:18