Latest reviews from Westminster

“We are tourists and staying in area had plotted out more interesting places to eat but day got away and wanted fish and chips and this fit the bill. We sat in nice little corner upstairs and wife and kids happy with decor and seats. Fish and chips were just what I wanted and a badger ale is fine by me. Overall enjoyable. Slightly slow staff but friendly enough.“

Jow 316 days ago

“Traditional pub with passable ales“

Jerseyislandbeer 936 days ago

“Standard Fuller's owned place with nice cask ales but also (too) many Asahi owned stuff.“

zvsn 1660 days ago

“Close to St James's Park tube station, this traditional pub is one you come for to sample the atmosphere and heritage of drinking in a public house of this ilk - for beer hunters unless you're a visitor to London and have not tried the Youngs main range yet, then it's going to offer little new for the palate.“

ManVsBeer 1905 days ago

“Corner pub and a little old school in design, but with charm for it. It has one of the better cask selections for this area as the sourcing of the ales seems to have a little more thought in them and more freedom than the countless chain or brewery owned pubs in the locale.“

ManVsBeer 1939 days ago

“Smart enough looking Fullers pub despite it's chain pub appearance, serving food and plenty of the brewers own ales, although concentrating on the regular ones you see throughout London all the time! It's close to St James's Park station though so is handy for that or a meeting place from it.“

ManVsBeer 1939 days ago

“Popular enough Nicholson's right by St James's Park station, with the usual current range from this pub group and sporting the usual smart traditional decor associated with their pubs. It had a couple of local suits polluting the air outside the entrance with their cigarette smoke as there's nowhere for them to go in this densely built and busy area of Central London, but it's convivial on the inside.“

ManVsBeer 1939 days ago

“Visited on Monday afternoon, 07/01/19, for the first time in 15 or so years since I worked in the Houses of Parliament. Street corner local 3 minutes walk from Westminster tube. Wooden floors, wood pannelled, high tables with stools in a rectangular room with the bar to the left as you enter. Guessing there's an upstairs but didn't have time to check it out. Carried a few Fullers small batch and craft allied to guests from Beavertown and Siren as well as the usual Fullers cask and bottle offerings. Doing a brisk enough trade for 4pm on a Monday with a good dozen plus punters. Service prompt and friendly. Overall a decent enough Fullers pub.“

Theydon_Bois 1978 days ago

“Visited on a early mid week evening not very busy, has a massive interior, all the beer was Sam Smith.“

joe19612 2029 days ago

“Busy Fullers pub close to Westminster and Downing Street, nevertheless, good service and our London Pride was in good form, great place for a quick one after a guided tour of Churchills war rooms.“

gunnar 2078 days ago

“West of Lambeth Bridge, midway down Horseferry Road, this corner pub has a spacious open plan ground floor area and is chain-like in appearance. Food is served and they were showing news on the big screens when I was in there. I found one new beer from half a dozen cask choices available at the bar and away from the macro brews it was all London microbrewery guests ales.“

ManVsBeer 2234 days ago

“Seemingly a world away from the hustle and bustle of Victoria, which is only a short distance away on the other side of Westminster Cathedral, this Sam Smiths pub is in a quiet urban street. On a corner, it has a fabulous heritage styled interior which makes it a very worthy place to frequent and they serve food here too. The selection is all Sam Smiths as you would expect, but given it's London, visitors to the country who want to sample beers from this Yorkshire brewer can do no wrong here. It was empty on the summertime Tuesday I walked in.“

ManVsBeer 2234 days ago

“Narrow Fullers pub in the middle of all the government buildings on Whitehall. Traditional and appealing in design, despite the fact it's way too small for being in the centre of the tourist trail for London. There's a mix of cask and keg from the brewer, with a couple of guest keg ales also available on the small bar against the side wall towards the back of the room.“

ManVsBeer 2240 days ago

“Opposite Parliament Big Ben side, this pub wasn't as uncomfortable an experience as imagined in the middle of summer in tourist central. It was busy and seating was limited, but service was fast, the beer sufficient and decor and atmosphere very pleasant. I ended up drinking in the small pseudo-courtyard at its side given the weather was good. Regular Badger ales are available at the bar, food is served here and although I didn't go up, I believe the restaurant is upstairs.“

ManVsBeer 2248 days ago

“Probably a nice old style pub building, although location makes it a little too hectic to enjoy the space. Service impressively quick given the crowds. Greene King so a proliferation of rather average casks.“

JorgeLee 2260 days ago

“Nice little pub under a hotel. Fullers through and through. If only they had the resources to fix the acoustics, which are absolutely awful. Ears ringing after 30 minutes...“

Doodliciousness 2502 days ago

“Visited here occasionally when I worked in the area. Far enough off the beaten trap to avoid being mobbed with tourists. A tidy if unremarkable pub that was popular with staff from the nearby Channel 4 television headquarters. They always had a few cask beers but rarely much of note for the beer enthusiast. However, they now seem to be taking more of an interest in the beery side of things with six rotating cask beers alongside the two regulars (Sharps Doom Bar and a Sharps house beer, no doubt a rebadge). And I saw they were advertising a (small) beer festival in the latest edition of the London Drinker. So it might be worth a look if passing.“

chriso 2599 days ago

“Surprised I hadn’t reviewed this before as I’ve visited scores of times because I used to work nearby. This was a frequent venue for after work drinks and, whilst it had a couple of casks, there wasn’t much of interest for the beer enthusiast. More recently I’ve been to a few retirement bashes for former work colleagues here. It’s now a Nicholson’s pub so the range has taken a step up from what it used to be. By no means a beer destination but handy for the area.“

chriso 2599 days ago

“Got taken for lunch here a few times when I was working in the area. The food was undeniably good but whether I’d be prepared to stump up the prices if I was paying myself I’m not so sure - especially when there have for many years been a number of South Indian restaurants, with which I’m pretty familiar, close to my home that are much more modest in every way (not least price) but nonetheless excellent, if more traditional. I recall Quilon making a big song and dance about their beer list when they started taking an interest but, in common with many high end restaurants they didn’t really have a strong knowledge of beer and the has range always looked pretty pedestrian to me, albeit better than most restaurants. Worth a visit for the experience - especially if someone else is paying! But they’d need to put rather more effort into the beer to be taken seriously. My scores takes this into account.“

chriso 2599 days ago

“Nice cosy pub. Friendly service. 5 casls 11 taps. 10 bottles. Olivers Island, London Pride, ESB, Seaferrara, Front row.“

HenrikSoegaard 2637 days ago

“I needed to find a pub nearby the Cinnamon Club where I was meeting out of town guests. This place did the trick. 5 ales on cask (The only two that I recall were DS Hopfest and Pleasure Principle by Adnams) though now they appear to all be rotating as there was no Youngs or Tim Taylor on. The place was heaving on a Friday night but good service and nicely decorated for the Christmas holidays. I’d stop in again if in the area.“

ThirstyBird 2729 days ago

“How do you rate an iconic restaurant just around the corner from Buckingham Palace, which could but does not claim to be the finest Indian restaurant in the UK, and was the first to stride into the world of beer? Well, it’s expensive and the beers are not exactly adventurous but as an experience it is epic.“

Tim Webb 2841 days ago

“We found high stools to sit on and enjoyed a pint of Fuller´s. Really nice atmosphere, a good British pub. Location and decor are perfect!“

Bjarte1 2955 days ago

“Nice pub just by parliament. The selection is somewhat limited with just three different Badgers on cask. We had a decent enough brunch to go with the beers. It was fairly quiet at our visit on a Thursday late morning.“

Rasmus40 2994 days ago

“Taylor and Walker pub on Victoria Street near to my office, decided to pop in (for the first time in a while) as I’m moving office soon so very unlikely to set foot in here again! Visited on Friday 16th January around 4pm. The building itself as kind of L-shaped as is the bar. There is also an upstairs dining room. Decor is samrt enough, wooden floor throughout the pub with carpeted areas to the sides, one of which is raised. 5 cask lines including a Trumans offering, Pride, Adnams Ghost Ship and the Taylor Walker house beer - 1730. Service was prompt and friendly although the place only had 10 or so other drinkers whilst I was there, a mix of office workers and tourists. Cost was Wesminster tourist zone - over £4 for a cask bitter. Ok pub but not real reason to come here in terms of good beer or ambiance, I couldn’t relax in here with 2 entrances on different sides both from busy streets.“

Theydon_Bois 3427 days ago

“Nice exterior, and an invitiing oasis away from all of the construction work they’ve been doing in the area for years. Inside the bar is very much a focal point. Red carpet, brown furniture, decorated glass. The beer selection isn’t great, and the condition didn’t seem amazing either.“

The_Osprey 3577 days ago

“Lovely pub oozing character. The best in the Victoria/Westminster area. Reasonable selection of cask micros - usually 5 or 6 on offer. I had Hogs Back TEA and Mauldon’s Bleckberry Porter (delicious!)“

deerstop 3579 days ago

“Was closed for many years until taken over and nicely refurbished by Hall & Woodhouse (Badger). It’s directly opposite Big Ben so no surprise that tourists often make up much of the clientele. They have the standard Badger beers and this is probably the most convenient of the few London places to get them for visitors.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“Fairly standard Fullers pub with the usual range (including seasonals). Can get packed in the evenings when the office workers arrive. Beers have always been in very good condition when I’ve visited. Not many Fullers pubs in the area so worth a look if you are in the vicinity and looking for Fullers beers.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“I well remember when this was one of the first pubs in London to run its own beer festivals with 50 or so beers in cooling jackets stillaged all around the bar. Nowadays it’s a bog standard Sam Smiths pub with the usual Sam Smiths range. There are much better Sam Smiths pubs around town. Nothing to see here.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“Best pub in the area for beer and ambience in my book (although nothing particularly outstanding in the whole of London scheme of things). Small and quirky with a homely and welcoming atmosphere. Very popular with local workers, particularly Civil Servants, so it fills up quickly for the after work swift drinks. Not many tourists. The landlord does a good job with beer rotation given the limitatons - four handpumps of which two are almost permanently Youngs Bitter and Tim Taylor Landlord. The other two change frequently in what is an almost never-ending small "festival". That is, he’ll have 50 or so beers, all to a particular theme (e.g. 50 beers from the coast), passing through the two rotating taps over the course of a few weeks. Then he’ll move on to the next theme. Quite good sandwiches amongst the limited food range. Definitely worth a look in but not a special trip.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“Long, narrow Victorian boozer. Seems to have been given a bit of a spruce up since Fullers took it over. Beers are the Fullers staples. Chiefly famous for having a division bell so that the MPs that are boozing in there can be summoned back to the House when they are needed to vote. Missable.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“A fine Victorian building with plenty of architectural interest inside and out. But it’s a bit of a tourist trap and has always seemed a bit soulless to me. There’s a restaurant upstairs serving pricey English traditional grub but I’ve never eaten there. There are a few cask beers on offer but rarely anything very unusual or inspiring. However, I’ve just noticed they serve the new (and, for now at least, rare) Tayor Walker 1730 so it may be worth a look in for the scooper. Overall though there are plenty of more genuine and better places in the immediate area.“

chriso 3752 days ago

“Victorian Youngs pub famous for having been in every edition of the Good Beer Guide. You’ll get the usual Youngs beers and, nowadays, a guest or two. Although it’s close to touristy areas, it’s not at all touristy itself. As Colin says, it’s definitely first and foremost a boozer (not in any negative way) and mainly popular with office types. But it’s a good place for visitors who are in the area (and plenty will be) to get their Youngs beers (as many will want to do).“

chriso 3752 days ago

“Wonderfully historic pub and building that is one of the few reminders of low-rise London in an area dominated with tall new office block buildings. The commercial nature of the area means there’s no shortage of suits in here in the daytime, but there’s no reason why not given the fine Victorian period styling inside. I’ve never been above the ground floor of this pub but I believe the restaurant area is also a fine place to eat. There’s a considerable row of cask ales available in the middle of the bar.“

ManVsBeer 3769 days ago

“Samuel Smith pub, massive in size, great selection of own beers. Quiet and empty on weekends.“

MrTipple 3785 days ago

“Nicely restored pub on two levels opposite the Houses of Parliament. I’ve only popped in here late evening and the place hasn’t been too packed but I can imagine it being the proverbial tourist trap during the day due to its location. St Stephens Tavern is a H&W tied house, so the range of real ale does not stray beyond their (IMHO) muted offerings. Service has been Ok here, but as mentioned above I’ve not been here at peak times. If you’re passing by or doing the tourist thing there’s no harm popping in for a pint, but I’d never recommend a visit here as part of a pub crawl, certainly not in the modern day London beer scene in which we imbibe !“

Theydon_Bois 3871 days ago

“Popped in on the way home, Thursday 31st October ’13, having not been here since it’s Cardinal days some 7 or 8 years previously. The large room as you enter from the street is dominated by the central bar from which a number of wooden partitions fan out, some of which contain etched glass. The ceiling is patterned with chandaliers providing the lighting, a right royal Victorian affair ! Seating is in the form of simple tables and chairs scattered around the room outside of the bar. At the rear there is a smaller room, the lounge if you please, lots of comfortable chairs and leather sofas. Beer range is Sam Smiths, Old Brewery Bitter being the cask option at £2.90 a pint, plus various SS keg options. Service was fine although the place was fairly quiet at 4.30pm, perhaps half a dozen locals and half a dozen office workers. Not a go to destination by any means, unless you are a fan of Sam Smiths, but a great looking pub and worth a little diversion for such civic splendour (5 mins walk Victoria station).“

Theydon_Bois 3872 days ago

“This is an Indian restaurant (a Michelin-starred one at that) serving southern Indian food. It also has a fairly long bottled beer list and even does a beer/food tasting menu. The beer list isn’t actually super exciting but as a gastronomic destination with beer it’s worth a try!“

JorgeLee 3895 days ago

“There was a bit of a furore when the Cardinal was taken over by Sam Smith’s and renamed the Windsor Castle. It’s right behind Westminster cathedral and apparently the archbishop wasn’t pleased about the name change, although it turns out that the Windsor Castle had been the original name of the place from when it was built in 1897 until 1963. Sam Smith’s have done a good job of refurbishing it along the lines of the original, replacing the polished wood and etched glass screens around the central bar to divide it into separate areas. There are large windows to two sides so that it’s light and airy as well as rather grand. There’s also a plush room as the back with wood panelling, deep red walls and leather sofas where you can relax and pretend that you’re in a gentleman’s club. There are just two cask beers plus a range of other Sam Smith’s keg taps and bottles. (Last visited 16 July 2013).“

Boudicca 3978 days ago

“Youngs pub so its the usual range of beers and the odd guest. Located a short walk from St James’ Park Tube. Nothing exceptional here but worth a quick pint in passing“

Clembo1957 4007 days ago

“Typical Fullers pub with the usual beers (Pride, Discovery etc) and the usual menu. Nothing exceptional here. Popular with workers and tourists“

Clembo1957 4007 days ago

“5 real ales including Timothy Taylor Landlord and Youngs, selection when I visited fairly uninspiring. Fairly quiet on the lunchtime I visited “

Clembo1957 4007 days ago

“One of those venues I can’t believe I hadn’t rated thus far bearing in mind it’s a stones throw from my office and I first visited this place almost 10 years ago ! Located on Petty France a couple of minutes walk from St James Pk tube (DIS/CIR) - use Palmer Street entrance, or alternatively 7 or 8 minutes from Victoria, the ’Buck’ is one of two pubs (along with the Star Tavern in Belgravia) to have been a London ever present since the inception of CAMRA’s good beer guide. Dating back a good 100 years or so the Buck is a single roomed boozer, wooden floored with a mix of high and low seating - wooden seats/stools and comfy leather armchairs it also contains an internal passageway to the left on entry with further seating. The place was totally refurbished around 2009 and is much the better for it. Clientele is largely an older (30+) office crowd and it will be largely made up from the surrounding ’big 3’ - Home Office (or whatever they call themselves these days), London Underground HQ and New Scotland Yard. A Youngs tied house the range has expanded beyond the home brewer a little in recent years and you can expect to find a few other offerings from the likes of Sam Brooks, Sharps or Charles Wells. Not a place for rare ticks or micros by any means but a trad boozer with a good vibe and friendly service.“

Theydon_Bois 4053 days ago

“Traditional back street boozer. Pretty classic interior. Wooden panelling etc. 4 beers on cask plus the regular unmentionables on keg. There’s a few crafty bottles available too. Beers from Arundel and Hop Back featured on my visit. Somewhat punchy prices for the cask stuff, but not insane. Overall, not a destination pub, but maybe deserving of a look if you’re in Westminster.“

jackl 4062 days ago

“Modest pub near St. James’s Tube. Good places to seat, wide ambient with a discreet choose of tap beer (7/8). When I try it for first time it wasn’t yet a Nicholos Pub. Kindly staff, elevated turist presence.“

Dorqui 4062 days ago

“Small pub beetween Whitehall and Parliament Street. Nice ambiente, a lot small one, discreet places to seat even if everybody must being cornered. 5/6 taps beers, good ales but however usualy common choose. Kindly staff with foreigners. Not it’s became a Fuller’s pub but at my first visit it was much interesting. Nice for a fast stop.“

Dorqui 4074 days ago

“We have been to the pub after a long time walking through the streets of London on a sunny day. It was the first nice pub on the road for quite a long time (talking in London-terms) and we got served immediately. You have the choice of around 15 taps, mostly are mainstream beers but there are also some specialities. Prices are average and when you are lucky to be there on a warm day, like we were, you have the chance of taking your pint to the patio, which is onlooking the quite quit street.“

Reminyze 4128 days ago

“Have been there a couple of times, also once during the London riots in 2010 where the pub was just crowded. It is a really lively and comfy pub with big leder sofas and a nice atmosphere. Normally you get served quite quick and the selection is good. Prices are just average, maybe little bit higher. Nice pub for a quick visit or a longer stay in the evening.“

Reminyze 4129 days ago