please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
A "real gem", tucked away behind Holborn station.
Good atmosphere and a selection of five real ales on handpump. I had a pint of Robinsons Olympic Gold, as it is currently available (I presume until late August).
Landlord is friendly and a ready conversationalist. He made me welcome, as a chance visitor driven in by a heavy shower of rain, on a dim evening.
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Surprisingly good pub tucked away behind Holborn tube station, good ales and not full of mentalists like many other local pubs.
TheGP - 28 Jun 2008 09:30 |
Cosy little pub round the back from Holborn tube station, not too busy, ploughmans and pork pie and a pint of McMullens, good service, quite what was needed. Most people who use the local pubs like the Square Pig on the square, probably don't know the Ship is there. Worth a visit.
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Lovely pub 5 real ales on offer tried the Theakstons dark mild....good pint....The Deuchers IPA also excellent...good atmosphere
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Popped in yesterday for a swift pint. They currently have a beer festival on: I tried a pint of Merrie Monk and it was very nice indeed. Continues to be a favourite calling point whenever I'm in the area
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Looked very enticing, tucked away in a back alley with outside drinkers enjoying the sun. Beer festival was on, bit unadventurous, but the Theakstons Black Bull was probably just about Beer Guide standards. Lovely interior and decent staff.
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I like this pub. I went in on Wednesday 9th April. A reasonably busy pub, but no problem getting served with good ale by pleasant bar staff.
This pub has a regularly changing range of ales. There is bound to be something worth drinking.
My only complaint is that it sometimes gets extremely busy, but a good quality london centre pub is always going to have that problem!
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Extremely cosy and traditional old pub within a small network of narrow, very picturesque back alleys which, bizarrely, is only about a one-minute walk from the frenetic chaos of Holborn station. I was in there on a Thursday night and the place was absolutely packed out. We managed to find standing room at the back. The upstairs was closed. I considered the people who had found seats to be very fortunate. Despite the crowds, drinks could be had quite quickly, the bar sparsely manned by efficient staff. My friend got a pork pie with a ramekin of Branston pickle as a bar snack, and very nice it was too. This place might have peeped the Princess Louise as my favourite pub in Holborn, so I'll be back.
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Nice pub. Good ales.
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While I can't vouch for what happened to Sonofpubman as I wasn't there at the time, I think he is being a little harsh with his descriptions of the staff - I have never found them to be anything other than polite and friendly and I don't recognise the picture that he paints. I suspect that he may have been put in his place by the barmaid he mentions, although obviously I can't be certain about that either. Maybe I'm biased because I like the place - either way don't let one bad review like that put you off and go and try the place for yourself.
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I haven't reviewed on here for a while, but I was driven to it by a shocking experience in the Ship tonight. The pub is usually a pleasant place to drink, but after I queried a dodgy pint of cider-it looked like a dog had pissed it-I was bluntly told to get lost by a surly little emo wench they have mistakenly employed behind the bar. This pub is ruined by terrible service-all the staff have the grim thousand yard stare of war veterans, forget orders, are habitually rude to customers and generally treat customers like escapees from a leper colony. A decent place to eat, and a nice location for a quiet pint when not to busy, but totally spoilt by the staff at present.
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Popped in for a swifty on Monday lunchtime - nothing changes here: Service is always prompt and friendly and the ale in good nick. Very much one of my favourite pubs in the area.
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Great pub with a friendly atmosphere and good beers. L
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Popped in yesterday for a swift pint at lunchtime - very busy but the beer (Holt's in this instance) was on good form. Nice to see a pub like this making an effort on the real ale front. Couple that with decent staff and it makes it well worth a visit. Keep it up.
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Nice pub but very packed on the evening I was there (Friday 23/11/07).
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Great pub, regretably I only recently ventured into the Ship after many years of walking past. During November they are having a beer festival. The Theakstons Old Perculiar and the Best Bitter were very tasty. Looking forward to going back again soon to take advantage of more guest beers!
BenEd - 13 Nov 2007 16:24 |
One thing you notice about this pub is that they really enter into the spirit of annual festivals / events - When I was in there yesterday they were in the process of decorating the place for Halloween. A couple (well, 3 actually) pints of Bombardier and Toad in the Hole went down very well. Good stuff.
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Lovely old pub with good beer served in pint jugs. Top drawer!
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Nice little pub tucked away off Kingsway. Reasonable beer and nice atmosphere, although not a place to go if you want to sit down.
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Comfortable, old-style surroundings, nice bar staff but not many places to sit during the week as it’s an after work favourite. Great in summer as you can stand outside in the passageway leading to it and also has its own newsletter for regular event and offer updates.
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Popped in with a mate for a pint and some lunch yesterday - beer was good and food (albeit a tad expensive) was good too - especially the pudding! Will continue to be a fan of this place.
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pleased to discover this pub in passing this year and made a return visit a few weeks later. good selection of beers on, had wards on amongst others in april when i was last there.
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We had a great evening here on Friday. The bar staff were good, apparantly the beer's good (according to my beery friends). Food was a liitle limited
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My first experience of this pub was a bit unsatisfactory due to the just about acceptable quality of my pint. Despite the Cask Marque accreditation notices I got the impression from the staff that a request for a replacement wouldn't be welcomed so I drunk up and left after one. However I always like to give pubs a second chance before posting a negative review so I called in again last week. I still got a bit of a suspect feeling about the staff's knowledge of their product but this time the beer was excellent.
One thing that cannot be doubted is the attractiveness of the pub and its décor. As you would expect it has a nautical theme with loads of wrought iron fittings, leaded windows and old naval memorabilia. There's a pleasant snug area to the right of the bar and what looks like an upstairs function room. It's only a small place and is very popular but being tucked down an alleyway away from the main road there's plenty of opportunity to go al fresco. Another thing to note is that they have pint jugs hanging up at the bar, don't see that too often these days.
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Stupid, unnecessary music, but, that apart, this is a great place serving great beers and offering up cumberland sausages to the punters at tables. What could be better!
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Whenever I'm in Holborn I always head to this pub. Decent ales, good atmosphere - recommended.
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good traditional pub.
worth a visit when in the area.
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Thanks for that posting John. I was in here a couple of weeks ago and wracked my brains in a futile attempt to remember which brewery it was tied to when I used to visit it regularly in the 70s (probably drinking keg McEwan's Export!). It looks to be pretty much unchanged over the years, with the furnishings having something of a traditional feel to them. The Bateman's XXXB was off when I was in, but there were a couple of other decent ales on. The Ship is a welcome haven away from the large drinking dens that infest Kingsway round the corner.
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First visit from yours truly yesterday. Old fashioned decor and a nice welcoming atmosphere, music a bit loud though. Formerly a William Younger's pub - note the old frosted leaded windows. Currently having a real ale festival until the end of March. The festival flyer offers you the opportunity to win "a KEG of ale" - I kid you not !
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Great looking pub in a nice location behind Holborn tube station. About four casks. I had Well's Bombadier and a not too common Bateman's XXXB. A little expensive at about 2.95 but nice atmosphere with pints served in dimpled mugs.
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"CLOSED UNTIL 3PM DUE TO POWER CUT" read the sign on the door at the Shakespeare's Head at about 11am. "OPEN AS USUAL JUST WITH LOTS OF CANDLES" read the sign outside the Ship. And open it was, with proper lighting as well and a decent pint of Bombardier to boot. "We never close" said the amiable chap behind the bar. If a mere power cut brings a place like Wetherspoon's to it's knees but a place like the Ship keeps going then bring on the blackout.
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Cracking boozer hidden down an alleway behind the tube station - and away from tourists. 7/10
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A nice little hideaway in Holborn, and quickly becoming a personal favourite. If I remember rightly from my last visit they had Theakston's Old Peculier, Theakston's Best Best and also Bombardier and a couple of guest beers on handpump - I plumped for the Bombardier and it was on good form. Bar staff were also pleasant, which can only be a good sign.
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Went here on the last Friday before Xmas after work and although it was busy we found a little snug corner to stand in - could've got a seat later but we were leaving to meet others.
My husband had a couple of pints of good real ale and the atmosphere in there was that of a proper london pub. Nice interior as well.
The only downside was the loud Christmas music being blasted out of the speakers - what is the need for this in pubs??!! Isn't it nicer just to hear the people you're with when they speak!
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Not bad for a city pub, reasonable beer and friendly staff, can get crowded but what do you expect?
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Nice boozer, good beer and friendly locals. Does get crowded but not so bad as to make it a no go issue.
Heartily recommended
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Nice pub, a proper London pub.A bit crowded, but you cant moan about that.Service was quick.My only complaint was teh Guinness wasn't up to much
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Not been here before but decided to try it after reading these reviews. I visited about 5.00 on a Friday night. It's a lovely little boozer in a quiet alley just off the main road. A 'real pub' feel to it. Only had time for one pint and I had a great pint of Theakston's Paradise. Definitely worth a longer stay next time.
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Have been to this pub twice now, the food is very good and the service very friendly, would recommend it. Looks deceiving from the outside as it doesn't look much but once inside it is quite large, great little restaurant area upstairs.
lubey - 22 Sep 2006 17:50 |
I really like this place , very cosy and friendly . The only pub i visit every time i travel to London . Already looking forward to next visit in April 2007 , bring it on .
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Excellent pub - one of the best in London.
This old style boozer is a hidden gem, off the main road.
Great service, great food and even better beer.
Mainly populated by locals - but no idiots - worth seeking out if you're in the area.
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A hidden gem. One of the best pubs in Holborn and served me the finest pint of Old Hooky I've ever had!
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A fine hideaway, especially on a saturday afternoon, lazing with a pint and a paper. Agree with previous comments : decent laid back punters and plenty of space on my visit but imagine this place is busier on a week night. Theakstons Best, nothing special. Though with 4 real ales on, you shouldnt go far wrong.
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Met a young lay-dee here for a drink last night. Her suggestion, not mine. Damn fine suggestion, it was too!
Lovely ambience, chilled out punters, good beer and cracking tunes (Soul 2 Souls Jazzy B mix D- niiiicccccceeee).....
To qoute the Guvnor of California- 'i'll be back'
anonymous - 31 Mar 2006 15:32 |
Nice pub for a pint in after a bit of culture at the Sir John Soane Museum just around the corner on Lincolns Inn Fields.
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I worked at the Ship Tavern in spring '04 while studying in the city... I loved it there - loved the people, the customers, the atmosphere. I would love to get in contact with people who worked there at the same time and whenever I visit again I'll definitely be stopping by.
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Traditional pub. Used to have clandestine Catholic masses upstairs back in the day.
Was a bit disappointed in my Theakstons Best Bitter during my last visit. It was a rather dull pint. Can't comment on the cellar as do not frequent the place often enough to judge.
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Delightful on a Saturday afternoon. Pop in and you may, if lucky, meet characters who seem like the two Johns of BB&F, John Fortune and John Bird in light hearted banter with the Rumploes of the Bailey of this world. The Ship is now open 11-11 on Saturdays, but still closed on Sundays.
mikem - 15 Oct 2005 18:10 |
went there last night to watch the cricket on my way to Smiths. Easy to get served, friendly staff, and a good view of the television (which is refreshingly not enormous, thus keeping out the All bar None crowds). Only stayed there for a short while but will go back if i am in the area
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Im sure I do not stand alone when I say that I am fed up with big chain pub operators such as wetherspoons and all bar ones saturating the area. I think once in a while they should take a long hard look how the real pubs operate. Remember friendly service? Good QUALITY home cooked food? Well kept real ales? Well look no further as we have found ourselves a perfect little drinking oasis which meets all of the above criterea! A big sigh of relief as we can once again drink real beer in a real pub. Here's to the Ship Tavern!
anonymous - 16 Jul 2005 16:24 |
As a visitor to London, and a member of “The Pipe Club of London” I arrived at “The Ship Tavern” a few hours before the club was due to start their monthly meeting in the upstairs section of the pub. The staff were very friendly to this bloke from “Down Under”. The beer was great as was the food, and the character of the pub both upstairs and in the bar area was a joy to behold.
I hope the wowsers of this world are never able to stop a pub in the UK hosting smokers if they wish, wowsers don’t like alcohol too remember.
Cobber.
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Quite small, very traditional pub. Perfectly ok for a quiet night; usually full of local office workers.
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Greal little pub - good beer, friendly staff and a welcoming ambiance. Am yet to be dissapointed by the lunchtime food; my compliments to the chef.
Jon - 18 Sep 2004 10:55 |
You can tell how much the refit has changed (or at least cleaned) the pub by the fact the number of clientele has doubled. I miss the days when it was filthy and no one wanted to go there as it meant I could always get a seat in one of my favourite pubs in town. Does look a lot nicer now, though. Friendly staff and Speckled Hen; what more could you ask?
piles - 5 Mar 2004 11:23 |
Good boozer, along with the nearby Princess Louise one of the standard bearers for traditional London pubs in the nearer.
Two other observations - they play, surprisingly, some pretty good music, Costes compilations, Jazzanova, that kind of thing, and also do pretty good food, although sometimes not adequately heated up.
Jim W - 11 Dec 2003 14:07 |
still the best pub in the area by far, some people are more facinated by how the alleyway smells, I for one am sticking up for this pub a great find and will definately be returning.
Steve - 29 Sep 2003 23:42 |
Just been closed for about a month for a refit...........funny things is it doesn't look that much different. Alley still smells of piss too.
anonymous - 26 Sep 2003 21:53 |
The alleyway stinks of piss, but the pub's alright. Not that great though. Easy on guys. It's an ok normal boozer.
TheG - 2 Jul 2003 14:36 |
Proper pub in a world full of All Bar Lettuces.
Ed - 9 Jan 2003 09:16 |
Nice to go into a pub with friendly service.
emma - 18 Nov 2002 17:42 |
A good find in this area, go check it out!
Lisa - 6 Nov 2002 13:32 |
Chilled atmosphere and ver friendly. Worth visiting the cosy candelit first floor bar to escape the crowds. 10 out of 10
dave - 25 Oct 2002 16:27 |
Its refreshing to find a central London pub which still offers good quality beer with friendly service. I went there for lunch and even the food was out of this world. Highly recomended.
ros - 4 Oct 2002 17:13 |
A nice pub to unwind in on a friday night (or any other night, come to think of it )
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A proper old fashioned drinking pub, right behind the tube station
Ross Evans - 16 May 2002 10:18 |
Great atmosphere, friendly staff, excellent, cosy lunchtime restaurant upstairs. a real pub!
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