The Albion, Barnsbury

What used to be a great boozer has become, perhaps, London's least welcoming pub. Sure, in the past, it relied on its beautiful location a bit much, but this was still a place where OAPs could rub shoulders with media luvvies and get on famously. Not any more. The Albion is no longer a pub, it is a restaurant in a former pub staffed by inept, unwelcoming staff and a selection of managers with degrees in moodiness.

Last night I went to celebrate my birthday with my friends and girlfriend � herself a restaurant manager. I knew it'd be busy, so was prepared for a bit of a wait for table. I wasn't prepared to be informed that I wouldn't get a table ALL night as they were all for diners. One group enjoying a beer and crisps (Kettle chips naturally) were unceremoniously shoved off when the ubermensch eaters arrived and had to huddle in a little corner with us. Here, you certainly knew your place.

After an hour of this ineptitude and rudeness (getting short-changed by a tenner was typical of our night) we decamped to the Barnsbury pub. Not only did a table appear after half an hour, but we � and people who don't fit the Albion's narrow demographic � were welcomed and made to feel at home. Why, the place even had people with � gasp � grey hair in it. Some had food, some didn't, but we all had a good night.

I'm a fan of gastro-pubs, they can often turn previously ordinary boozers into great places to go. But they are still pubs. You want to eat then you'll eat well. You don't want to, well that's cool too. Around the Albion, boozers like the Barnsbury, Easton and Crown manage to do this, but one of the great secret treasures of London drinking has become an example of everything that's wrong with the current pub scene. A despicable place.

26 Oct 2008 11:12