Ship, Monumentback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Nice traditional boozer that is tight on space (inside and out). I prefer some elbow room and I'm not fussed about real ales, but apparently they had a good selection and were in good nick.
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Visited on a Tuesday lunchtime. From recollecion, this is the first London pub I ever saw serving Tribute on a regular basis, and its still on here a couple of years' later. Not the same barrel, of course.
In the limited time I've been a BITE member, this is the 3rd Nicholson's pub I've reviewed in the area (the other 2 being the Horniman, and Crutched Friar), and qualifies as my favourite of the three. There are alway regular beers (Pride, Youngs, and one I can't remember), together with guests. Yesterday, one guest was off, but remaining were the gingery Everard's Sly Fox, and St Austell's Tribute. I tried each, and both were in good condition. Good marks for quality. Service can be slow on occasions, though was speedy yesterday.
The inside is pleasant enough, and the moment the sun shows itself, everyone piles out onto the alleyway pavement. Yes, it does tend to towards the suits, but I don't see that as a pro or a con in itself, and you expect that on the edge of the City anyway. The atmosphere is decent, and I've never seen any trouble there.
I've said before that I think Nicholsons (though, of course, they are themselves part of the M&B stable) are one of the better chains, and I think The Ship is a good example of why.
Well worth a visit. 7.5ish out of 10.
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How do you escape a Nicholson’s boozer in central London? It’s possible of course, but there does seem to be rather a lot of them and as stated in previous reviews, they are all fairly similar. The Ship however, is perhaps a little different. Situated in a court yard around the Eastcheap/Fenchurch Street area, it may attract the usual suspects in the form of its clientele (hello suits!), offer your ears the usual, though be it, inoffensive MOR music and serve up well-conditioned real ale, but whets different about it is the interior. Both the downstairs and upstairs bars are incredibly snug and quaint. I really was quite surprised and as so many seemingly enjoy standing outside smoking (evident enough on my visit, Weds 9th April) you may even get a seat inside. With the old fashioned-style furnishings, you could easily be fooled into thinking this is genuine old city hostility. After all I’m sure it was before it became a McPub. Sorry, that was unintentionally harsh. I do actually recommend a stop here and Nicholson’s do tend to represent the better side of the pub chain.
HTM69 - 15 Apr 2008 18:49 |
Fairly typical Nicholsons pub down an alley way close to the Monument. Timmy Taylors was in good nick yesterday. Not a must visit pub, but well worth popping in for one if passing through.
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Really liked this particularly the upstairs. The alley is sheltered outside and even has an ashtray for us outcasts! which is handy
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Excellent - along with the Swan in Leadenhall about the best pub in the City
Small but authentic with plenty of space in the alley for outside drinking.
And still people go to the P&P, AB1s of this world
Madness
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always very popular.
prompt service.
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Visited this place last week and although very busy the place had decent ales inc. Timothy Taylors and so we got stuck into a few. Mostly foreign staff who wanted to be obliging and helpful and I was grateful for that. Nice place and I will be back.
Mcloj - 14 Jun 2007 13:31 |
Tasty little trad boozer. Like it.
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One of my fav City pubs. I notice the one bad Anon review but trust me this is an excellent pub. Good range of beers the St Austell Tribute was spot on. Service is always good and usually quite attractive. If you can find it down the little Alley go there.
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Great range of Ales - Hounddog was my choice last night and a fine pint it was!
A l;ittle crowded but on a balmy spring evening it was Ok outside.
Definitely worth a trip - an oasis in the city!
One word of caution - barmaid was not the most fluent English speaker but she did her best!
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Good pub, nice range of beers, excellent service and a real pleasure to drink in and explore. Friendly atmosphere and a good traditional feel to it.
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Never had any problems in the Ship and the visit last week was no different.A good selection of well kept beers on offer. Good venue in the summer and they have outside heaters if you want to venture outside in the winter when can get quite busy inside.
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No worries at my last visit. Service was unremarkable. Beer was fine.
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Been drinking here loads of times and never had bad service or a bad pint.
Staff have always been friendly so maybe there was something more to poster of 13th Oct!
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Went there last night and had a fairly good experience. Beer range was good, but quality was nothing special. Given the big comment below, I would like to say that the service was polite and good.
Verdict: good pub to go to on a date (the upstairs is well suited to initimate tete a tets), but not much space anywhere if there is a group of you going.
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Bad experience, eh? Good pub in my opinion... staff always polite!
anonymous - 19 Oct 2006 14:56 |
Do not go to this pub – ever.
I am relaying a shocking incident; a disgusting example of bar staff ineptness and rudeness.
Halfway through my pint, I popped to the toilet and left the glass on the ledge behind my friends (as you inevitably do when you are stood outside). On my return, my pint was gone. My friends were flummoxed, they had noticed staff collecting glasses, and there were a couple empties around, but no-one said to them “is this half a pint of beer dead?” so they never noticed my drink had gone.
I politely asked the girl collecting glasses if she had picked up the pint, to which she said yes. Understanding that it was busy and that it is hard to keep track of whose pint is whose, especially with lots of empties around, I said that it was a mistake. I had not finished it and she had not said to the two people stood there if it was dead, as it the etiquette.
Outrageous, she shrieked back: “That is your fault. Your friends fault, they saw me and didn’t stop me take it away.”
I pointed out that they hadn’t seen her take my drink, and she should have asked if the pint was dead, which she admitted she didn’t do, insisting it is not her duty to ask if a parton has finished a drink, it is the patron’s duty to stop the staff from taking unfinished items (probably one of the most bizarre ideas I’ve seen applied to the service industry, especially as her colleague asked us earlier if the drinks from the previous people were dead). Obviously people leave drinks sometimes, and how is she supposed to known each groups’ drinks, which is perfectly understandable, but that doesn’t mean she can sneak around, take drinks without being noticed and not ask if it they are dead, and then blame the patron’s friends for not stopping her. I asked for a half to replace the one she took, she effectively said: “Well, it’s tough, it’s your fault. It’s your fault. I have not got the authority to give you half a pint and neither has the manager.” This was her first LIE.
She then rather rudely walked away. Infuriated at her reaction to a simple misunderstanding (is “Sorry sir, you can appreciate it is very busy and sometimes these things happen” – too much?) I went in and asked for the guv’nor. The chap pointed towards this “lady”, who then revealed herself to be the “assistant manager”. Even more irked (after a few more “it’s your fault” lines from her again), I asked to speak to the manager. She said he was not there. This was her second LIE.
Angered, I went outside, got my two friends’ pints glasses and walked back in to give her a barrage of abuse. Lo and behold, she was frantically talking to some guy. Noticing me, I asked if he was the manager and, of course, he was. I calmly tried to explain the situation, how it was an honest mistake to make, my friends didn’t see her and she never asked if the pint was dead. By this time, she was having some sort of juvenile fit and verbosely heckling me that it was “my fault”. She was so animated and confrontational, at one point the manager had to practically restrain her and usher her away.
To his credit, he was pleasant, gave me half a pint and apologised.
Even so, I am appalled. Obviously when business is busy it becomes hard to keep track of drinks, but in my 10 years drinking, I have never, EVER, had a drink (let alone half a pint) taken from me without being asked if it is dead (let alone stolen from me when I am in the toilets) and then to say it was my fault.
Don’t go to The Shit (sic) unless you want to be abused my some disgraceful, unprofessional, irrational, lying, glorified barmaid… or enjoying taking your pint to the bogs with you…
anonymous - 13 Oct 2006 09:59 |
Tucked down a little ally, this is a pretty good little boozer. The ale was well-priced at £2.55 a pint and served by friendly bar staff; albeit an over-sized head on a couple of pints. Not the best selection, with Pride and Spitfire, although both Timothy Taylor and Deuchars IPA were excellent. Also, no plebs drinking Magners, so hopefully that’ll fizzle out as a summer fad.
There is not much space inside, so throngs of people standing outside drinking, which is something I am not overly keen on.
Even so, worth a visit for a good and competitively-priced ale or two on the way home.
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Great Pub and more importantly, Great Beer. Deuchars IPA,Tim Taylors, London Pride,Greene King IPA,Adnams Broadside etc.Bar Staff are very efficient.
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Quite a nice place to have a drink in the City. It's hard to go wrong with well kept choices like Landlord, Deuchars IPA, Adnams Broadside (i think there were a total of 8 real ales on). I was there along with the after-work crowds, and still felt welcome even though I dress like a ragamuffin. Service was quite efficient as well.
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Very old alley pub, nice patina of age on the bits that haven't been 'made over'. Some of the floorboards look especially ancient. Adnam's Broadside was spot-on. Staff were friendly but rather keen to get you out after last orders (can't say I blame them). Upstairs non-smoking room. Oh yeah, and the cleanest khazis I've ever seen in a London boozer.
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One of the better pubs in the City. Expertly run and the beer is always immaculate. Great for after work drinks outdoors.
anonymous - 28 Apr 2006 15:06 |
Nice location down a side street but was there as the offices closed. At least 100 people standing milling about outside. Hard to judge the pub with such a crownd.
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Great little pub hidden away in a side-street away from tourists. :-) 6/10
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