please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
quiet, dignified and appears untouched by civilisation since 1982. Another top SS boozer.
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Only ever been here twice - the second occasion being last Monday - but both visits have been very favourable. A friend who was with me on my latest visit commented that the place had a certain "dinginess" about it, which maybe it does, however it adds to the traditional, comfortable feel of the place and to me is an attraction, not a deterrent. Good quality and cheaply priced Sam Smith's beer tops off the package that makes this "slighly off the beaten track" pub worth a visit if you happen to be in the area
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I can't remember why I stopped using The Cardinal a few years back, but whatever the reason, I was delighted last night to find it back as it was about 20 years ago - a real, traditional London boozer, pleasantly dingy, with its marvellous dark ceiling giving it a slightly cavernous aspect. Sam Smith's beer at less than £2 a pint is a bonus - and not a negligible one, these days. I shall certainly be there more often, particularly now that The Buckingham's been ruined.
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Its not too bad, went in for the first time in 4 years the other day and it hadn't changed a dot. have always though it would be better with the roofs painted white....
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It's the God Damn best dingiest, darkest Sh*thole I've ever had pleasure to drink in. Currently working in Victoria and to mix with the best scum of the earth heralding from the area can only be described as perplexing! Still, great old school drinking mans pub! superb!
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Paid my inaugural visit here last Monday - it's very much a place that gives you the impression of being a "proper pub" and, as with all Sam Smith's outlets, the ale is of a good quality and it's also cheaply priced. Nice quiet location just tucked in behind the Cathedral and away from the main road and worth seeking out.
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This is just round the back of Westminster Cathedral so one might expect to see a few priests in there if not a cardinal. It is a former Charrington house, now part of the Sam Smith’s estate, which makes it one of the few pubs in London for a sub-£2 pint of real ale (or any beer for that matter).
How do they do it? They must have similar running costs to other pub operators.
The pub itself is a quiet oasis of calm in central London, very dark wood fittings and popular with the retired (presumably because of the prices) . It is also Derek Conway MP’s local but he wasn’t drowning his sorrows when I was in there earlier.
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could do with turning a few lights on, very dingy and possesses the most poorly designed toilets I've experienced. that said, the beer's cheap (£1.99 a pint), fast service and clientele of varying ages makes for a good night out.
like it.
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great pub best in the area in fact cheap price for a pint in victoria and not bad beer, love the fact there are more younger people using this place at the min staff are very helpfull
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How can you not love this pub - man in the box, dart board and polish bar staff that forget to turn the taps off so you cna top up your pint when their backs are turned.
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The Cardinal is unlikely to win any awards, and many will avoid it because of the Sam Smith's range. Yet it's a perfectly reasonable pub: (very) cheap beer, dependable if unexceptional food and a charming interior. And all only five minutes' walk from Victoria Station. Note, however, that women seem to give this pub a wide berth: the male/female ratio among the drinkers the other night was about 20:1.
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Cheap as chips which is very nice for the poor civil servants that frequent it. However can't drink too much Old Brewery as its not exactly the best ale going. That said there is a good selection of bottled beer that is worth looking at. And for the lager drinker the Ayingerbrau still does the trick!
One of the few pubs in the area that has a dart board. Normally there is someone on it.
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Not entirely sure what beercritic and anonymous 10 Sept are talking about - this pub isn't heaving all the time, but even at weekends it has a steady trade in a dead area and it's quite lively on some evenings.
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Do NOT go anywhere near this pub. I like it too much, especially £1.99 for the lager formerly known as man in a box. If you do pop in, save me a seat.
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One of the few good pubs around Victoria, bit of an old man's pub but great Sam Smith's beer. If you want an antidote to the Ha Ha bar then come here.
A solid 8-10.
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Agree with previous comment. This pub has really gone downhill.Church halls can be more exciting than this place.
anonymous - 10 Sep 2007 14:28 |
What has happened to this pub? It used to be a comfortable place to have a decent drink. Went in there yesterday and it looked like it was on its last legs. What a difference a new manager can make!
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"Beer drinkable but not good" don't know what ChrisF was drinking but the handpump Bitter is Fine, unless one of these people who call lager beer?
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Home to some great Sam Smith brews, well worth a visit in winter, a little dark in the summer.
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Really liked this pub, particularly in an area that lacks decent pubs. Beer fine, pleasant atmosphere, could get a seat on a Friday evening. Will definitely go back.
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Popped in here at lunchtime and marvelled at the way that a pub with such huge windows could be so gloomy. It defies the accepted laws of physics. The odd lights may have a part to play here. However in its unassuming (and rather dark) way this is a fine pub. Two pints for £3.44 can't be sniffed at and the scampi and chips were fine. We're not spoilt for choice in Victoria and if you're looking for a real pub you'll find a home here.
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Sam Smith's pub so you know what you are getting in the way of beer. Operational dartboard which is a plus, as well as an increasing rarity in the Central London area.
High ceiling which should make it airy, but it seemed to me to be fairly dark and dismal. I suppose in the summer it will be brighter in there. Certainly getting a bit scruffy around the edges, but it certainly qualifies as a "real" pub, which is a definite plus in my book. Good to see office workers still hard at it in the pub at 3.30 PM, combined with a few of what appeared to be local regulars. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a "no frills" pub.
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A pub having the usual advantages and disadvantages associated with Sam Smiths pubs (cheap as chips , beer drinkable but not good). Major plus point is the perfectly situated dartboard.
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Tucked away from the main streets. Its a large pub with a no smoking restaurent area at the rear. It does get busy at lunch time. Decent atmosphere and bar staff. Food portions are generous. Worth a visit if you like Sam Smiths.
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It's a Sam Smiths pub so you don't need me to tell you what to expect. An OK place to drink.
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Convenient location (at the back of Westminster Cathedral), Samuel Smiths beers (which I like), pleasant interior (though as yet I've only seen it by artificial light), central bar lit curiously by lampshades.
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This quickly became my local pub and darting venue every lunch break as i work two minutes walk away on victoria. The Cardinal also gave birth to my love of Sam Smith pubs, brown booze at £1.72, and has started my quest to drink in all the Sam Smiths in the london city area, and throw darts where i can. I'm curently up to about 15 pubs, keep an eye open for the reviews.
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Went there on Thursday evening for a drink. Beer was typical Sam Smiths - cheap prices, but hit & miss on quaility. Decor oldish & shabby-ish, but it does give the pub character. Well behaved office types were standing drinking outside (no seats) on a fine late evening summer, very pleasant as Francis Street is all but traffic free. Inside there were plenty of seats and it was women friendly. Bar staff quick and friendly. Food was being served which I didn't try, but I did see an enormous and fine looking plate of chips. No music. Clean air no smoking area at rear, air conditioned. Toilets small and in the ladies only one cubicle!
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Without a doubt, this is the best pub in the Pimlico area. Fine ale is served at very reasonable prices. The barstaff are extremely friendly.
anonymous - 26 Mar 2006 00:54 |
Been using this pub, on and off, for about 15 years. Always seems the same, no matter what they do it - smokey, dark and in need of doing up (again!). At least thyey got rid of those dodgy seats that covered the radiators and came away from the wall when you sat down. Could do with restuffing the the other chairs along the long wall though.
Beer is nearly always good, the food has got a lot better, and at a reasonable price for the area (the beer is almost the cheapest!).
Having said that, still one of the friendliest pubs in the area and doesn't mind large groups enjoying themselves.
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Been using this pub for about 4 years now.Seems to be getting busier in the last few months. Real mixture of clientele inc. Priests in dog collars from nearby Cathedral pop in for a 'cheeky pint' on occasions. Can get smokey though.Same landlord ensures high quality staff.Off the beaten track but well worth the detour.NB. The price diffence between the 2 lagers on sale is just short of 70p. The Alpine is still under £2.
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This pub is one of the few remaining with real English character in the heart of London. Pints are cheap, atmosphere is jovial, staff are friendly! Definately a pub worth a pint and worth preserving well into the future!
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This dark and smokey old boozer may not be for everyone, but it provides welcome relief from the trend towards the 'All Bar One' brand of soullessness. Popular with civil servants, voluntary sector workers and the Westminster working class who haven't been swept away by gentrification. Busy most week nights but dead at the weekend.
anonymous - 23 Sep 2005 11:27 |
I used to study at Westminster Uni and live in the halls of residence round the corner from this pub. Needless to say I have many happy memories of the place. Back then it was a Bass pub and entertained a strange mix of drunk students and grey suited men.
I've been there since in it's current Sam Smith's state and am sorry to see that the pool room up stairs is gone. It also seems a lot quieter... no students from the halls anymore.
However, the place looks great with a dark cosy atmosphere. The fact that it is soaked in fuzzy memories and is now a Sam Smiths pub all means it scores points.
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Proper Sam Smith's boozer frequented by proper old geezers and lamentable civil servants. £1.70 a pint of best - you can't go wrong.
Home to Kamilla (tall, brunette) definitely the hottest barmaid in all of Victoria, if not London. Great pub for a game of darts.
Gets proper busy on Friday evenings when hordes of grey-suited, grey-haired, grey-skinned civil servants shuffle in for Joan's/Derek's/Keith's* leaving drink.
*delete as appropriate
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A welcome change of pace from the normal Victoria pubs. Quiet, gentle atmosphere and the usual Sam Smith's drink (if thats what you like, fine, but if you don't yr generally stuffed). Nice interior, cosy chairs.
anonymous - 1 Aug 2005 14:25 |
Enjoyed the Ayinger weissbier on tap as a change of pace. Very cool interior.
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Lovely pub in a nice quite area just away form the mahem of Victoria station and the main roads surrounding it. Nicely done inside with a good selection of ales. Never had a problem with the staff myself but have only been four or five times when in London, looking forward to going back again soon.
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A reliable stand-by in this desert of boozers. I'm not a big Sam Smith's fan and the bar service is below average (one of the senior staff in particular is frequently unpleasant to customers). But still worth a visit and one of the best from Victoria's limited offerings.
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A fine old boozer, though the pictures of Catholic hierarchy on the walls can be a bit off-putting when you're trying to neck your fifth pint of a lunchtime...definitely the best of the back street Victoria hostelries though.
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Lovely pub and one of the few near Victoria that you'd want to drink in (other than the Cask and Flask). Typical Sam Smith's style atmosphere (e.g. cosy, fag smoke, old men) and the dart board is an extra added bonus.
Paddy - 20 Aug 2004 10:19 |
Loads of very comfortable seating, with a traditional old pub glass frontage which I find quite quaint. The cheap beer is great, and I've never had a problem with the staff who, in fact, I would describe as very efficient. I would recommend it as a good place to have a good few beers, particularly if there's a few of you.
Tony - 23 Apr 2004 14:49 |
I like the sams smiths pubs fro their cheap beer and the Kid in Wapping is exellent but this pub is awfull, twice I have been and had my drink snatched out of my hand by the rude landlord that was after he kept pestering me to finish the drink, me and a friend actually now find it quite amusing to go there and wind this guy up.
Trev - 3 Apr 2004 18:07 |
Undeniably cheap beer, but general 'old man's pub' aura and heavy cigar smell is off putting.
Bill - 6 Feb 2004 16:06 |
Great Yorkshire bitter, average to good food. Very easy to get settled in and miss getting back to the office. No birds though!
Jim - 24 Sep 2003 17:28 |
Typical Sam Smiths offering, but atypical in the rude and obnoxious manner of the staff - watch out for the short-changing Kiwi and Aussie bar staff (a scam to subsidise European trips).
Ivan - 2 Jul 2003 09:59 |
It wasn't that friendly to those of us who weren't locals... But it did have rather cheap beer and was bigger than expected.
Diddy Kong - 4 Jun 2003 06:19 |
No totty to speak of, ever!
anonymous - 12 Feb 2003 16:04 |
Very cheap beer and first rate service. Definitely worth a visit for the preliminary drinking session or the "one for the road" routine at the death.
Ed - 5 Dec 2002 11:28 |
Nice pub - pretty cavernous despite narrow frontage. Well worth a try if you've strayed off the beaten track from Vic Street
Pauly H - 12 Aug 2002 11:43 |
It is a Samuel Smiths pub, cheap beer ie £1.64 a pint and good food. Has a darts board and friendly staff.
Arthur Barnes - 23 May 2002 13:39 |
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