please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
having read the previous reviewers comments i would like to make all bite readers aware that since taking over the hoop in november last year it is now open until at least 11.00pm without fail, sometimes later having a 1.30 am licence, and i`ve yet to have to ask anyone to "drink up ".
in light of the otehr comments i feel it would be inappropriate to keep the £15 tip so generously left by the reviewers colleagues for the quality of food aqnd service received and it has therefore been donated to the hoop and grapes nominated charity, currently help for heroes.
many thanks
your landlord
mike stokes ambii
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A friend and I had boycotted this pub for a number of months (despite it being close to work and doing good chips!). We had been there one summer evening enjoying a nice bottle of wine and had decided to get another one at about 10pm. At about 10.15pm, the barman decided that as it wasn't that busy he wanted to get an earlier train home and so more or less threw us out. We didn't have a problem leaving early as there are plenty of bars in the area, but we did object to having paid for a reasonably expensive bottle of wine, not being able to finish it within 15 minutes of buying it (and not being warned that they were closing early), and being treated very rudely.
We gave this pub another chance for a colleague's leaving do at lunchtime, but soon wished we hadn't. The landlord was very pleasant on the phone and we agreed that I would pick up a menu so that we could pre-order as there were 15 of us.
Drinks were served relatively quickly by a nice waitress and we had the upstairs of the pub all to ourselves.
Things went completely downhill from there. Having pre-ordered and the pub not being that busy, we expected the food to come out at roughly the same time. However, the meals came out about every 7-10 minutes, 2 at a time in the strangest order. People had ordered bowls of chips to go with a starter or a main and these came out well before the other courses, which meant by the time the main courses did come out they were cold. The chicken caesar salads came out last, but came without the chicken so had to be sent back. From the first meal coming out to the last arriving, we had been in there well over 45 minutes and so people were just starting their meals when others had been finished for a while. I had to keep going down to ask when the last meals were arriving. It was a shambles. In addition, the food was all deep fried and not very nice.
To add insult to injury, the 'chef' came out to ask us how it had been and as we mumbled 'mmm fine' in a very British way, he looked quite smug and self-satisfied as though it was a job well done.
Will not be returning.
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the hoop and grapes is now the first- and only- shepherd neame pub in the country with cask marque accreditation.
this means that the beer is independently inspected for quality by experienced brewing professionals.
it also means you are welcome to "try before you buy " to ensure that you purchase a pint that suits your taste.
cheers from your landlord
mike
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A mate of mine has recently taken over the tenancy in here and he certainly knows a thing or two about keeping a cellar - after a "comprehensive quality control test" on my last visit I'd say that the Shepherd Neame ales are as good as you'll get anywhere in London - good work Mike, I'll be stopping by for a pint after work soon I hope.
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Typical dark-wood London pub interior, and surprisingly dull pint of Bishops Finger. Nothing special.
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This is now the 3rd visit I have made to this pub this year. It has changed quite alot under the new management. All the offensive posters have been removed and the place seems alot cleaner and friendlier. Would recommend a visit!
joe39 - 23 Mar 2007 10:31 |
I work nearby and must say I have been pleasantly suprised by this pub recentlty. The new management have really spruced the place up and are providing a freindly service. The food is good value and the pub just seems to have a nicer atmosphere.
Give it a try !!!
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I liked this pub, it is unusual for the area in not being a bar on the ground floor of an office block (or if it is it transcends that by its atmosphere). Someone is bound to complain about the Spitfire ads especially the 'ones that got away' in the back courtyard, but so what? "No Nazi aftertaste" indeed. Hee hee.
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this is the kind of boozer you'd travel for. suffice to say on a bright sunny lunchtime it was dark and deserted. this is talking my kinda language.
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I live locally but have never been in here until last week - popped in at about 9 on a friday night. Just a few dreary suits sitting around drinking that awful Oranjeboom stuff brewed under license in Kent. This may have been a bad time to be fair - maybe it is better on a lunchtime. Was not impressed I'm afraid - barmaid was friendly enough but that was about the only positive thing I can say. The interior is very corporate - too many "patriotic" (i.e. rather crass) ads for Spitfire. Only two real ales on - Kent Best and Spitfire - both uninspiring. I admit to not being a fan of Shepherd Neame beer and pubs but the Betsey Trotwood, also an Sheps pub, further up Farringdon Road at least had Bishop's Finger so there is something worth drinking. Big thumbs down. Sorry.
anonymous - 20 Mar 2006 10:02 |
I believe that janiceontheroad is talking about a different incident as we visited the pub on 25 January, before she arrived in London.
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After five days in this lovely city I am about to depart to Paris. I was surprised to see the comment below and gratified to some extent since I have regretted not acting myself that day. I was in that intimate little pub in one of the secluded stalls and I heard that obviously inebriated man. The language he refers to went much further than the word he mentioned...he had a foul mouth. I felt very sorry for those young waitresses having to hear how he referred to them as women. As a lone woman I did not say anything because belligerent drunken men can react in very mean ways. However, having just walked over from a wonderful day at the Museum of London and having been much entertained by the exhibit on The Great Stink of 1858, I couldn't help wishing the Fleet River didn't still run by the door of this pub so that the man could have fallen in and been pulled with the rest of the sewage into the sea. I was glad the proprieter ejected him and only regretted he didn't put a boot to his backend and dust his hands off at the same time.
At any rate, the pub is a charming intimate one and the French chef Philippe is a treasure. I ate this salmon dish with a sauce to die for, and confess that I washed it down with a fabulous PORTER that rivalled the Yeungling Porter I quaffed in Pennsylvania..Yeungling being the oldest brewery in the U.S.
The pub is located in a wonderful old section of LONDON made for walking, and the proprietor very knowledgeable about the history of the area. Not only did he send me round the corner to the obvious St. Paul's Cathedral, he sent me round another corner to an old old medieval church that was compelling for its ancient silence and long ago footsteps of Henry VIII. It's just next the spot where he cast off the mantle of Rome and announced the creation of the Church of England. Not only that it's next the spot where William Wallace was hung, I still can't watch the end of that movie, and there were bouquets of Scottish thistles by the plaque...it was very moving. There are no end of other sites to see walking around this neighbourhood. Ask the proprietor of this charming pub, knock back a porter and say hello to Philippe. Enjoy! I'm off to Paris.
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Initially my impressions of the pub agreed with the more recent positive comments. It was nice that on a quiet Wednesday evening the bar staff remembered what we were drinking and brought over another round to our table when we asked.
However, this positive impression was spoiled by the landlord making an absolutely ridiculous over-reaction to us using the F word in our conversation, basically escorting us from the near empty bar. If this had been a country pub on a Sunday afternoon with lots of children about I could understand, but we were a group of 4 professional people having a normal pub conversation.
To add insult to injury, the landlord was completely wrong in his argument about the etymology of the offending word being the reason for it not being acceptable language.
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Forget the so called theme pubs. The traditional English pub is alive and well at the Hoop & Grapes Farringdon Street London. During a recent visit my wife and I had lunch here and were most impressed with the menu choice and traditional seasonal English ales. The experience was made that more pleasurable by the excellent service, friendly and attentive staff. If you are looking for that old fashioned pub experience, this is the place to go. Many thanks to the management and staff.
Chuck T. Webster III – Ohio.
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An oasis of old world charm in the centre of London. The warm greeting by the staff was both genuine and well meant. The range of ales, wines and spirits was excellent as was the menu variety which includes vegetarian options. The premises are under a new management team who have greatly improved the service, food and ambience, providing a very pleasant and relaxing atmosphere in which to dine and drink. Customer comments relating to the standard and measures of drinks, under the previous management, could not, now, be further from the truth.. A thoroughly pleasurable visit for both local patrons and visitors alike.
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The Hoop and Grapes has recently changed from being a managed house to a tenancy. The difference is quite amazing. The friendly staff will do whatever they can to make your stay both pleasurable and enjoyable.
Add to this the uniqueness of a city pub with not only a beer garden, but also a first floor outdoor patio. My visit was complete with a Spitfire ale battered haddock fillet with hand cut chips (skin on, delicious) and mushy peas. I will definitely return !!
anonymous - 2 Sep 2005 13:10 |
As reported by the previous contributor, this pub is now called the Hoop and Grapes once more.
I didnt particularly like it as the Mash Tun and still dont as the Hoop and Grapes, but I do disagree that Sheps beers are inferior to Badgers.
The place lacks atmosphere and there are much better watering holes in nearby Fleet Street, only a short walk away, so I cant envisage coming here again in the near future.
I got served short measure - no excuse for this as the pub wasn't particularly busy.
The Spitfire was in good form but it's £ 2.75 a pint - hence my request for a top up on being short measured
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Now changed back to the Hoop and Grapes having been bought by Shepheard Neame from Hall & Woodhouse. Haven't been in since the changeover but am told it's more expensive, which is a pity. Also, SN ales are considerably inferior to those of H&W.
Grecian - 18 Aug 2004 15:27 |
Hall & Woodhouse pub. Does the usual excellent range of H&W ales and also serves excellent sausages. Nice atmosphere and impressively has two under-used upper floors; the bar will send drinks up by dumbwaiter!
grecian - 7 Jan 2004 11:31 |
