BITE user comments - THE_SWAN
Comments by THE_SWAN
Preserved (to a degree) by virtue of its Grade II listed status; the OB retains some vestige of English character, (a tragically scarce quantity on 2009 vintage Fleet Street). The beer's good but the food's formulaic - bland to the nth degree. Still, you won't go far wrong quaffing 8 pints of Timmy and a (now virtual) pickled egg if you've an hour to spare of a lunch time. The atmosphere�s convivial and the crowd's eclectic � pompous, NPD-racked wine-bores jostle for position at the bar with mortar-caked builders and overpaid primary school teachers. Some queer old buzzards number amongst the regulars; they'll regale you with the local legend of 'monsieur rat lumi�re' in return for a half of Russian. Well worth a visit.
7 Jul 2009 21:06
Good food and beer. Bar billiards. Wooden panels. Open fire. Horse brasses... The Acorn was a great pub. It's all gone now...
1 Nov 2008 23:51
One of St Albans' best; an enchanting pub with true English character.
1 Nov 2008 23:40
Fantastic building; wonderful location. No longer, in any meaningful sense of the word, a "pub". Destroyed by the new owners. Formulaic dross.
1 Nov 2008 23:33
Never better than mediocre post renovation. A pastel hued, sanitised bore-fest: predictable in every particular. Ideal for primary school teachers and interior decorators.
1 Nov 2008 23:24
Disgusting food. RAW chips. High prices; low standards. Devoid of redeeming features.
1 Nov 2008 23:06
An interesting pub with real character. Not one for the "beautiful people". Good food and beer.
1 Nov 2008 22:59
Lots of staff; very little service.
Expect a hefty wait, you'll then spend frustrating minutes trying to impart your order (if speaking English).
A poor selection of beer; reasonable food - heavily marked up.
Expensive, devoid of character and unpleasant.
1 Nov 2008 22:55
High prices, low quality and very, very slow service. The owners clearly think that 1:100 is a good ratio between staff and punters. Dreadful.
1 Nov 2008 22:47
The Artillery Arms, Old Street
Top drawer; just a short walk from The Windmill, but in another universe. Efficiently run, excellent beer and great food.
1 Nov 2008 22:40
Friendly staff; good beer. Bizarre decision to cease serving food!
26 Oct 2008 08:56
Excellent in every particular; an oasis sitting but a few minutes' walk from the town centre abominations.
26 Oct 2008 08:47
Well worth a visit - nice place; good beer, friendly staff - genuine character. Poor quality sausages. Their jar of tartare sauce was 1.5 years past its sell-by-date. Generally speaking, the food's great. Surrounding by rolling fields - let's hope that the local government crazies don't permit it to be ring-fenced by affordable housing.
26 Oct 2008 08:41
A wonderful structure with a great tradition of good food and varied, well kept beer. It's not half the place it used to be - what a terrible shame to see such a venue heading South. Let's hope for a turnaround...
26 Oct 2008 08:24
Another one bites the dust. The Harrow was a decent pub; Mokoko is a failed experiment. "richerthanyou" was right on the money with his chip shop suggestion. I'll stop by for a pickled onion on my way to The Farriers and The Verulam Arms, (the latter illustrating, by contrast, that change can be a positive thing if intelligent and restrained).
26 Oct 2008 08:18
A nice, quiet, well-run, traditional English pub with a loyal, local following. It's more or less unchanged since the 70s; few frills - all the better for it.
26 Oct 2008 08:06
The Printers Devil, Holborn
Permanently closed on the basis of a unanimous panel verdict.
Cited Infractions:
Repeated delivery of Russians chemically comparable to 16 molar sulphuric acid.
Inadequate tooling of the bell.
Non-availability of Reward (Tear Drop Explodes), on the dukey.
Use of Ann O's undercrackers as curtains (thus rendering the pool table unusable - pitch dark conditions).
9 Jul 2009 09:29