6.30pm - 7.00pm

The Castle
54 Pentonville Rd, N1 9HF

- There's nothing to stop people turning up a bit earlier, if they wish.

(All reviews preceded by * are from fancyapint.com)

*Not immediately the best looking pub from outside, right on the noisy Pentonville Road, The Castle is, in fact, rather good. Inside the décor is more pub than bar, with some original features still intact, complimented by cushions and couches giving it a more modern feeling. The atmosphere was trendy but not pretentious and the customers reflected this, along with the staff who were more friendly and efficient than average. On top of this food looked well priced and interesting. The main draw, however, is clearly the large roof terrace, understandably busy on our warm weekday evening visit. Better than most this close to Angel tube, The Castle receives a strong three-pint rating.

#2

7.05pm - 7.40pm

Old Red Lion Theatre
418 St John Street, EC1V 4NJ

*The ideal spot to sink your life savings in producing and premiering the play wot you wrote - and then drown your sorrows on the proceeds of the handful of tickets you actually managed to sell. The little theatre upstairs probably seats no more than 50 but is a lively, vibrant venue. The whole place has a theatrical, arty air but it is also a first-class local boozer. So you'll find the bottle-nosed middle managers from the big BT offices across the road necking it down at one end of the bar while actor wannabes giggle and shrill down the other - all interspersed with locals of all types enjoying the draft Pride, Broadside, Abbot, Leffe and Staropramen. The décor could come from a set-designer's template - that heavy old embossed wallpaper with generations of dull-red (for the walls) and essence of nicotine (for the ceiling) paint layers, comfortable benches running round, a scattering of tables and chairs and plenty of space for those who prefer to stand and bray at one another. Our fear is one day they'll probably gentrify this place - and the world will be poorer for it.

#3

7.50pm - 8.25pm

Offside
271-273 City Road, EC1V 1LA

[Apologies for the slightly long walk to this establishment - it's a couple of bus stops if you'd rather get one of the buses that run along City Road]

*You can see the game no matter where you are looking. There's even speakers above the urinals so you don't miss out whilst in the toilet. Don't worry if the phrase "football fan" conjures up the image of hooligans smashing up Belgium in your mind -- this place is definitely for the middle class, 30 something Fever Pitch reading fan. Good beer (including London Pride) on tap, friendly staff, good looking food and a changing art exhibition (on our last visit, arty photos of Highbury stadium) add to the appeal even for those left cold by the beautiful game.

#4

8.30pm - 9.10pm

The Narrowboat
119 St Peter's Street, N1 8PZ

*After a refit a while back, it wasn't exactly surprising to discover that the Narrowboat featured stripped floorboards and leather sofas. Still, its not overdone and large windows give an airy feel to the place, as well as offering views straight from an estate agent's brochure of the canal. On tap are up to four real ales (with our last visit featuring two interesting examples from the Purity Brewing Company) and emerging from the kitchen is a plentiful supply of tasty and reasonably priced modern pub grub. Two plasma screens at the front and back of the pub mean the sport is never far away, though on the evidence of our last visit not too many punters involve themselves with the efforts of the Premiership's finest. The one final bonus is that on a warm summers day you can go and relax outside on the canal path - just watch out for the kamikaze cyclists. A consistently solid effort in a pub crawl-able stretch of N1 that we've yet to have a bad time in.

#5

9.10pm - 9.50pm

Island Queen
87 Noel Road, N1 8HD

*Hoegaarden, Staropramen and de Konninck all on draft. The wine list is small but perfectly formed, while the food is good, standard upmarket pub fare. Architecturally, it's fantastic here - high ceilings, etched glass, and dark, worn wood are the hallmarks of this quality establishment. The pub's popularity makes it tricky to find a seat at the usual times - Friday after work is particularly bad - but upstairs hosts extra seating to take the strain. It's in need of a lick of paint now, though; were not sure why they changed the previous exterior of black and gilding to an odd shade of badly sun-faded red instead, but they did. Still, this is certainly a grand pub we at Fancyapint? can heartily recommend.

#6

9.50pm - 10.20pm

Earl Of Essex
25 Danbury Street, N1 8LE

- An earthy alternative to the nearby gastro Duke of Cambridge is this time-warped place. Given the friendliness of the manager on the research visit, that there will be plenty of space, and that it's relatively inexpensive, this is the one I chose for the crawl, especially as this sort of pub is quite a rarity now.
[In comparison, the Duke of Cambridge has more of a restaurant feel and refused to allow me to take photos of it without paying a fee to the owner!].

Fancyapint, said this:

*Despite it's resolutely upmarket location, surrounded by good-looking Victorian townhouses, this is a resolutely local's local. It's not uninviting, but you're better off if you're known in here (and support Arsenal). Still, not a bad place to have a pint and the decor is classic 1970's - a central bar with the pub's name illuminated above is accompanied by Watney's Red Barrel signs (for those who remember it). While other nearby pubs have tweaked themselves to appeal to a younger, affluent crowd, the Earl of Essex stands firm and our visit found it very quiet compared to other nearby places - we just hope when the time inevitably comes that they refurbish with a modicum of restraint.

#8

10.25pm - closing

Mucky Pup
39 Queen's Head Street, N1 8NQ

- Saving the best until last, it will be slightly risky coming here because it can get quite busy (though it wasn't on the research trip). It is worth it though; a pub with genuine warmth to it and slightly quirky decorations that give the impression of affection and attention to detail from the owners, rather than the contrived eccentricity known at some other establishments.
Has a late licence as well.

Apologies for not ending nearer the tube station but the pubs in close vicinity to it are usually jam packed.

To get to the tube station from this pub, turn left onto ???????, follow it to the main road (Essex Road) and then turn right. You will come to Angel tube eventually.

Fancyapint:

*The Mucky Pup was a lovely surprise when it opened a few years back and after a change of ownership last year we can happily report that the factors that made this pub stand out from its local competition remain. Along with beers kept in good nick and a free jukebox, the pool table and dart board in the back room provide good distractions. As the jukebox hints, the pub has moved in a somewhat alternative direction and Sunday's post-rock, post-punk and psyche music night provides a wonderfully esoteric foray into the outer reaches of music. With a late licence, mixed crowd and a bijou back garden, what we said of the old pub still applies: it's the sort of boozer you want to keep just for you and your mates.