The Canonbury, Canonbury Place

I disagree with most of these reviews.
The "old" Canonbury was tired and dated and long due an overhaul.
The "new" Canonbury has had a fantastic refurb that has really brought it back to life.
Regarding the prices, what do people expect??? This pub is right in the heart of the most expensive and exclusive part of Islington. �4.00 for a pint of Kronenbourg is worth it in this place because the surroundings are superb, the beer garden is the largest in London and I know numerous dreadful pubs in the vicinity that will charge you �3.80. Come on people an extra 20pence!! It hardly breaks the bank.
We live very close to the Canonbury and whenever anyone visits this is where we take them.
We have never had a bad meal here and have always been impressed with the quality and quantity of the food. Their Burgers are superb and very well presented. A particular favourite is the pork belly which comes with pigs cheeks. Absolutely delicious.
The Canonbury is what it is. A bar and restaurant. It is not a pub.
If you want a traditional pub, and I regularly visit traditional pubs in the area, the Canonbury is not for you.
It is unashamedly modern and is a great place to have a meal or just a nice jug of pimms in the garden.
I do however agree with some aspects of the service. All is great when the place isn't too busy, friendly courteous staff who always greet you with a smile, but when it's really busy the service level drops and it can take some time to get served. I can only assume this is down to extra part time staff who don't have a clue. The owner needs to get this problem sorted as it certainly annoys customers and should be fairly simple to get right.
Visit during the week when it's not to busy and you won't be disappointed.

7 Jul 2011 14:46

The Compton Arms, Islington

This pub is great. It's like a little old country pub that's been transported from the countryside to the heart of Islington.
I have noticed some rather strange comments on here about a day when some Sunderland fans "visited" the pub.
To put the record straight, I was there that day and the Landlord did a fantastic job.
This pub is predominantly an Arsenal pub on match days because of it's location. However this is NOT a football pub as such.
About 20 Sunderland fans arrived en mass and there were probably already 25 customers in the pub. Within 10 minutes the number of fans had swollen to nearly 100. The pub's capacity is only about 75, as it is small, so you can imagine how packed the place suddenly became.
The Landlord did not turn anyone away and asked them to keep the noise down.
These silly fans became more and more raucous and all the normal customers were leaving. By the time the Landlord asked the fans to leave they were standing on tables banging on the roof, swearing like I've never heard and generally being ***holes.
The landlord was very restrained and did a great job.
Sunderland fans please stay away from this lovely pub and drink somewhere else.
On a lighter note, the Compton has lovely food, a good selection of real ales and is a warm and welcoming place to drink with great staff. Well worth a visit when your in the area.

7 Jul 2011 14:02