BITE user comments - patrickjsm
Comments by patrickjsm
Now this was a pleasant surprise. Great range of European beers, very knowledgable and friendly landlord. You wouldn't think much of it from the exterior, or its weird location, but this is well worth a visit.
30 May 2011 13:51
Jolly Butchers, Stoke Newington
Not bad. Decent range of beers, well kept - pricey, but just about worth it. Food not really worth the money though.
30 May 2011 13:49
Not impressed. The barman was very unfriendly, bordering on hostile. The 'beer and cider festival' had a decent selection, but the kegs were allowed to become warm in the sunshine. The Sunday lunch was alright, but outragously expensive for �14.50. I expect more than two potatoes for �14.50. Not great, wouldn't bother.
30 May 2011 13:44
I must confess I've only ever been in here for food, which was excellent. Wine was good and the service was charming too.
19 Jun 2009 18:36
Very good pub overall - well kept beer, traditional d�cor, good staff. They recently got a new chef (good riddance to his predecessor!) who has improved the quality of the food a great deal. The Sunday lunch is a little pricey, but worth every penny - I really can't recommend the roast pork high enough.
19 Jun 2009 18:26
If the name alone wasn't enough to put you off, then perhaps you belong here. Avoid - really.
19 Jun 2009 18:21
I work at Guy's and this is probably my favourite post-work pub in the area, it's really rather nice. The pub quiz night is fun and as the only group of non students we win every week (the general knowledge of many scientists is appalling), so it'd be nice to have some competition!
13 Feb 2009 11:08
The Miller of Mansfield, Borough
Re: comment below, I think I was one of those people. Beer is fine, food is good with generous portions and it's nice to sit outside in the summer. Much of the client�le, like me, either work or study at Guy's.
13 Feb 2009 11:03
The Bunch of Grapes, London Bridge
S'alright. I wish they'd learn to pour Guinness properly though.
13 Feb 2009 10:59
The stuff of nightmares. Utterly devoid of any personality, expensive, poor quality service. Not even good by city bar standards. Avoid.
13 Feb 2009 10:58
Pretty good, but the drinks are extortionate. Only go in when I've been working overtime.
13 Feb 2009 10:10
Has this place closed down? Does anyone even care? Don't bother booking a party there by the way, you won't get your deposit back.
13 Feb 2009 10:09
Rather nice actually. Beer is well kept and the staff seem friendly enough.
13 Feb 2009 10:05
The Londesborough, Stoke Newington
A very creditable pub, the garden is very nice in the summer. Drinks are a bit on the pricey side and I felt a bit ripped off paying �12 for an unseasoned steak (!), but that said I'd happily spend all day Sunday here.
13 Feb 2009 10:03
Reopening? Hurrah! Good news for the area. I travel from Stoke Newington to drink this place, because it's pretty much the best pub in north east London.
13 Feb 2009 09:39
The Seven Stars, Chancery Lane
Very, very, very small pub, but also rather lovely. Bar staff are friendly, beer is fine, bar cat is excellent and fat. Only real gripe is the prices. Some pints have now topped �3.50 which is just ludicrous.
12 May 2008 20:09
A genuinely very nice pub indeed. Went on a whim and will definitely be coming back. The atmosphere is really warm, the beer's fairly good and the little garden at the back is cosy.
12 May 2008 20:02
Booth's Cafe Bar, Stoke Newington
The pizza is alright and the lunchtime pizza/beer deal is very good value indeed. But the place has a very pikey feel about it, no doubt enhanced by the fact the last time I was in there, eating my lunch, they put Deal Or No Deal on at top volume right through the (empty) bar, which was just awful.
12 May 2008 19:59
The Rochester Castle, Stoke Newington
I don't know why I like it, but I do. It's where joy lives. Bar staff are variable, however.
12 May 2008 19:57
The Plough and Harrow, Hammersmith
It's alright, I suppose. I've seen better Spoons and worse Spoons, but a Spoons is a Spoons really. Generates feels of ambivalence.
11 Dec 2007 14:16
Surprisingly good for Wanstead! A short walk from Snaresbrook tube, this place feels rather out of the way, which I like. It's very pleasant to sit at one of the tables outside on a warm summer's evening and though I've not frequented the place in the winter yet, I suspect it would be rather cosy. Worth a visit.
10 Dec 2007 16:22
Oh my word, this place is simply shocking. I can't think of a single redeeming feature. The drink, the staff, the customers, the toilets...everything sucks. the fact that it is still open says more about the area than it does about the venue. No no no no no.
10 Dec 2007 16:13
I've been there a few times with a friend when on my lunchbreak as it opens on a Sunday unlike The Knights Templar. Though I've never had a pint there (well, I wouldn't want to fall asleep at my desk would I?) I'm reliably informed the beer is good. One of the barmen has a good selection of one-liners which is obviously welcome but otherwise I feel very neutral - which is, I'm sure, what you're meant to think in a Spoons. 6/10.
10 Dec 2007 16:06
Not bad at all, as you would expect from a Sam Smiths. Can get a bit crowded of an evening though and as seating is at a premium I tend to head for the Cheshire Cheese or the Lycaeum instead.
10 Dec 2007 16:01
Still the best pub in Leicester. Great range of real ales and the best selection of bottled German and Belgian bottled beers I have seen anywhere, period. I'm told the pizzas are something special and there's a great juxebox too, especially if you're a bit of a goth. Which I'm not. Really.
3 Nov 2007 13:17
The Knights Templar, Chancery Lane
Pleasent looking pleasent enough Spoons full of lawyers and Kings College students (their magnificent neo-gothic library is directly opposite). Beer was alright, as you'd expect. Nothing special but solid and with good staff.
3 Nov 2007 12:59
Lovely Sam Smiths pub (i.e. cheap, surprisingly good stout), far enough from the City for the patrons to be alright, good bar staf too.
3 Nov 2007 12:56
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, Fleet Street
I love this place, very regularly go for a drink there after work. It can fill up with City types a bit after 6, but this goes with the territory. Great atmosphere and decor, mind your head, going down the stairs though. Very good value beer too, which in my opinion is unfairly maligned - the stout is actually very nice. My friend bought scampi and chips which looked lush - I'm told the chips were cooked to perfection. Really, really nice.
3 Nov 2007 12:54
Really nice! Great beer (London Pride!), no hassle, good staff, good d�cor too. Wood Street Station directly opposite is handy, you can actually see the departures board from the bar. On the down side it's on Wood Street, arguable the most sinister feeling road in east London.
21 Jan 2007 03:15
The Star and Garter, Manchester
I can see how this place could be quite good, but in my experience, it ain't. The Belle & Sebastian disco has declined in quality significantly (they've started playing chart tripe like OK GO and The Libertines). Downstairs is poorly lit, has little or no music and is cold. The beer is poor and I want to huddle up in my coat and go to sleep whenever I'm there. Poor pub, poor club - pity, it could be so much more.
24 Nov 2006 00:09
Wow...can't believe it's taken me two years in Leicester to find this gem. I'm usually a beer man but that was the best Bloody Mary in the world. Ever.
19 Oct 2006 23:55
The Duke of Edinburgh, Wanstead
New landlady rumours are true...again a bit mad, but I rather like her and her little jog right across the pub to put right my change (she'd left me 50p short) was endearing indeed. Up from 6 to 7.
19 Oct 2006 23:28
The Twelve Pins, Finsbury Park
Is this as good as I remember it being? I had a brilliant time there one evening three years ago...great Guinness, good in house band, super locals...is it still like that? Was it ever? Oh, what the hell, 8 for the memory.
6 Sep 2006 04:56
The Rose and Crown, Walthamstow
Staff are bad, beer is bad and the last time I went the whole place stank of urine. The only redeeming feature were the crossbows on the wall. Pop in for a look by all means, but buy nothing and hold your nose.
6 Sep 2006 04:46
A bit on the pricey side but the bar staff work damned hard, both bars are good, the balcony is heaven, idiosyncratic d�cor (good though) and the Guinness is top knotch. Oh, and it's the biggest pub in the world. Maybe. Awful gents loos though, sort them out and this'd be a 9.
6 Sep 2006 04:44
Legendary, great venue, the king of Camden and long may it reign.
6 Sep 2006 04:42
The home of so many classic gigs. It's not the best pub, but I can't be mean, this place is legendary.
6 Sep 2006 04:40
Feels like it's trading on its history a little too much, but worth popping in nonetheless. Good meeting point and handy for post-shopping Guinness.
6 Sep 2006 04:38
This place has REALLY grown on me. Good beer choices and often some unusual ones. Bishops Farewell is always a safe bet. Great staff too and a handy location. Second only to The Criterion in Leicester I vouch.
6 Sep 2006 04:34
S'alright for a quiet pint between lectures if you don't fancy the union but depressing in the evening (the karaoke is DIRE, last time I watched only three tuneless fat Leicester women sang, the rest were by the Karaoke bloke himself) and the service ain't exactly speedy. Incidentally, there's a large and very lifelike statue of the Blues Brothers near the (pleasent) gents loos. They scare me so very much.
6 Sep 2006 04:32
Yuck. Sorry, unless you're on the tightest of student budgets, avoid. Go over t'road to The Landsdowne.
6 Sep 2006 04:28
Everyone I know but me seems to love this place...am I missing something? It just feels a bit grotty and dark. Guinness is good though.
6 Sep 2006 04:26
I love it. Great range of drinks, the staff are fun (especially the fella who books the gigs) and the venue upstairs is classy indeed - lots of Magic Teapot gigs there which is recommendation in itself. very useful pre-Retribution or post-anywhere else owing to the obscenely late licence.
6 Sep 2006 04:25
Haven't quite figured this one out yet. Good on a Sunday night when you can't be arsed with cooking for a Guinness, sausage and mash and Nationwide League highlights on TV. Actually, now I put it like that, this place deserves a 7.
6 Sep 2006 04:22
Not bad. A touch pretentious but great beer, soft lighting and all positive comments on the food too.
6 Sep 2006 04:20
Last time I went, three of us were threatened by the client�le, one by a bouncer, my friend was electrocuted (no, really) and I read in the paper the following week that someone got stabbed outside shortly after we left. AND it's crap in there!
6 Sep 2006 04:18
Mr/Ms Anonymous - with regards to your comment that your staff have the right to ID whoever they want as many times as they want - this is indeed true, but it also shows a lack of respect and due attention when I get ID'd several times in one night by the same person. Also, funny that I never got ID'd at 16 yet I do so repeatedly at 21. I feel no need to write to head office with a letter of complaint. I merely take my custom to the Walnut Tree where the friendly and polite staff seem to appreciate my custom.
6 Sep 2006 04:06
I like this a lot. My favourite of the (relatively few) Manc pubs I've been too. Novel location and really nice beer on the whole. Great jukebox, too.
24 Mar 2006 23:36
Best pub that I've been to in Sheffield. Great range of beers and ciders, prices aren't bad either.
11 Feb 2006 21:33
More customers of late. Still a great pub, enhanced by the fact that the regulars are quite, quite mad.
11 Feb 2006 21:26
I like this place. Always seem to end up there when I'm meant to be present shopping 2 days from Christmas. Not too many meejas. A little haven.
11 Feb 2006 21:23
The Hamilton Hall, Liverpool Street
Not so bad. Ridiculous d�cor. Good staff. Bad Client�le. Decent, cheap beer.
11 Feb 2006 21:12
No no no no no no. All wrong. Tuesday nights used to be tolerable, now packed out with Topshop-a-like boys. Music has gone downhill. Ok on a Thursday, but Tuesdays are far better at Mosh and Fridays are full of pervy old men.
11 Feb 2006 21:07
An 8 rather than a 9 because it's pricey for the Midlands. Very nice atmosphere, quick service from friendly and knowledgable bar staff. Very good for a date...it worked for me :)
11 Feb 2006 21:03
Vile. Full of aggressive chavs, neon lights, bad and loud music. When I was last obliged to go (a very cold december night) the air con was on full blast and we sat there shivering. There are other late licences in Leicester now, so you have no excuse to go there. Avoid.
11 Feb 2006 21:01
Pleasent...really good for a quiet pint, food is ok too. Unfortunately half the beers are Everards (they own the place) which means they all taste of whippet or whatever they flavour beer with in the North. Good pub though.
11 Feb 2006 20:54
Downgrading for 6 to 4. Really depressing. Looks a bit dirty. One of the managers is very unpleasent. TV screens everywhere are hideous. My first regular pub, now longer worth visiting.
11 Feb 2006 20:47
Surely the best pub in Leicester? Top quality bar staff (you're invariable greeted with a nod and "evening lads"), handy for a pre-gig pint due to proximity to The Princess Charlotte (though mostly frequently by middle-aged men and couples), brilliant beer (try working your way through the wheat beer selection...staff are knowledgable too) and very nice food to boot. If it wasn't for the aesthetic drawback of the location and exterior, this would be a 10. Hell yeah!
29 Dec 2005 18:55
Massive improvement recently. Prices reasonable, bar staff efficient, locals good (very mixed age range), bit too smokey.
29 Dec 2005 18:51
The Rose and Crown, Woodford Green
Quality! A proper East End boozer somehow displaced to the London/Essex border. Bar staff good, Guinness superb, locals friendly and full of banter. Beer garden large and beautiful in summer. Has darkened corners and big heavy tables. We need more pubs like this round here.
29 Dec 2005 18:49
Worst pint of Guinness I've ever had. Tasted of mud and was poured in one go. Bar staff half-dead and miserable. Full of alcoholics with misery-stricken faces. Christmas decorations tacky at best. Locals protective of pool table. Not good, not good at all.
29 Dec 2005 18:46
The Duke of Edinburgh, Wanstead
Beer not fantastic, but a very friendly landlady, a resident pub dog, nice locals and a decent night out overall. Great for football. Too hot in the summer. Toilets a bit scummy.
29 Dec 2005 18:41
Many fond memories of this place, only slightly soured. D�cor is awesome, inside and out - check out the huge dragon protruding from the ceiling. Full of characters during the day. Guinness is good. Kozel the nicest lager (�1.79 500ml) but make sure they've actually chilled it. Avoid the place on friday nights. It was the pub of my youth but Fridays are now even busier and even rowdier than they were back then. Furthermore, the staff are constantly bothering anyone who looks under 45 for ID, which is irritating when it happens three times in a night.
29 Dec 2005 18:39
One of the nicer Wetherspoons, without a doubt. Staff are *very* friendly and efficient. Ideal for a cheap mid-week drink. Never seen any trouble there. Frequented by people of every colour and subculture (seems to have a lot of goths, oddly). Great choice of beer. A good spoons...who'd of thunk it?!
29 Dec 2005 18:35
Really nice pub. Good beer, good staff, friendly to Leyton Orient and visiting football fans. A bit out of the way but well worth looking for.
29 Dec 2005 18:30
This is possibly the chavviest pub in London. Full of lairy Essex boys with mullets. Regularly get bothered by the client�le when walking past. Terrible, absolutely terrible.
29 Dec 2005 18:29
Not a good spoons. Service is painfully slow (though friendly) due to obvious staffing issues. Too small, always crowded. Unbearable in the evening, I got several menacing looks for my failure to dress in Reekbok Classics and addidas trousers. Don't bother.
29 Dec 2005 18:26
Best pub on the high road if on Guinness is good, bar staff friendly, football a bit too loud. Client�le young. If you must drink on Loughton High Road, do it here.
29 Dec 2005 18:23
The Faltering Fullback, Finsbury Park
A decent pub. Only gripe is the lack of real ales, but the Guinness is excellent, the outdoors area is huge and the atmosphere fun.
30 May 2011 16:41