Yes, there is real ale in tourist central! Join us for a tour of the best real ale pubs around Covent Garden. Lager-louts and cider-heads are welcome to join us, as they are usually satisfied with less tasty bevvies. Mostly old Victorian pubs with some interesting architectural features. We'll start near Tottenham Court Road tube station (Central and the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line) and then it's all downhill towards Charing Cross.
From the tube, go along New Oxford Street with Centrepoint tower on the right. Note the Bloomsbury Tavern on the right as you veer left at Bloomsbury Way, then turn left on Museum Street. The Museum Tavern is on the right just before the British Museum. Can't find it? Just ask any tourist for the way to the British Museum.
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#1
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6.00pm - 6.45pm |
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Museum Tavern
49 Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3BA
- Pub grub available.
An historic tavern that now has a much better selection and quality of real ale than at times in the past. If you were here in this pub's earlier days you might have chatted with Karl Marx after a day's writing in the Reading Room. Up to seven real ales on offer, usually including two or three great choices, all the more remarkable given the über-touristy location. Nice pint of Sharp's Doombar on a recent visit. Also available at that time were Coach House Brewing's Blueberry, Tetley's Dark Mild, Theakston's Old Peculier, Well's Bombardier, and Caldedonian's Golden Promise Organic.
Go back down Museum Street away from the British Museum. Turn right on Bloomsbury Way and it's just one street to Shaftesbury Avenue and the Bloomsbury Tavern across the way. |
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#2
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6.50pm - 7.35pm |
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Bloomsbury Tavern
236 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8EG
- Pub grub available.
Quintessential late Victorian over-the-top English pub architecture outside with the usual selection inside of very nice ales typical of a Shepherd Neame tied house. Too crowded to get in the corner door? Try the one further down on the left. There's more room upstairs after you get your bevvy. Master Brew is recommended. Red Ale might be available. Bishop's Finger in the bottle.
Turn left out of the Bloomsbury Tavern and go down Shaftesbury Avenue, taking note of the location of the Grape Street Wine Bar famous for decades for Jules' popular Last Wednesday gathering. Go past the Oasis Sports Centre and down Endell Street to the Cross Keys (under all the vegetation). |
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#3
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7.40pm - 8.25pm |
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Cross Keys
31 Endell St, London, WC2H 9EB
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No side door nor upstairs room here. Tiny, quaint, and wildly popular, this one might be tough to squeeze into on a Friday night. It's well worth it for a taste of Brodie's IPA (Czech hops - yummm!), brewed by the publican's son at The Sweet William Brewery in Leyton E10 (yes, it started up again in August). Otherwise, there's usually Harvey's Sussex Best Bitter, winner of the Champion Best Bitter of Britain title at CAMRA's Great British Beers Festival in 2005 and 2006. Interesting bit of Beatles memorabilia on the walls. If the crowd's too much just move on to the next pub.
Turn right out of the pub, first right onto Shelton Street, walk right past the Crown and Anchor (worth the Harvey's but little else). Veer to the right down Shelton Street ignoring The Bünker Bierhall + Kitchen on the right (even though the Organic Lager brewed on the premises is the best lager brewed in London) and completely ignoring Belgo's Centraaal on the left (despite buckets of steamed mussels and seemingly every Belgian beer available in England). Hang a left at the Seven Dials Roundabout just before Caffè Nero and go down Monmouth Street to the Two Brewers. |
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#4
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8.30pm - 9.15pm |
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Two Brewers
40 Monmouth St, WC2H 9EP
- Pub grub.
A thoroughly traditional English pub with traditional décor, traditional pub grub and traditional real ales, there's usually at least one worthy pint to be quaffed here, typically a choice between Sharp's Doombar, Fuller's London Pride, and Adnam's Broadside.
The pub crawl continues downhill as Monmouth Street joins Upper St. Martin's Lane which becomes St. Martin's Lane. At the intersection with St. Martin's Court (could we be close to St. Martin's now?), you'll find The Salisbury on the right. |
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#5
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9.20pm - 10.05pm |
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The Salisbury
90 St. Martins Lane, Covent Garden, London, WC2N 4AP
- Full menu (kitchen closes at 9:30 PM - LAST CHANCE for real food)
A Grade II listed building in CAMRA’s National Inventory of historic pubs, originally licensed in 1694, featuring extravagantly etched late Victorian glasswork, polished woodwork, huge mirrors, art nouveau light fittings, genuine tourists, and a decent selection of Casque Marque certified real ales. This is considered to be one of London's two best-preserved examples of late Victorian gin palace excess (Princess Louise is the other one). Usual real ale on offer is Young’s Bitter, Charles Wells’ Bombardier, Caledonian’s Deuchars IPA, Sharp's Doombar, and a couple of guest ales (likely the best choice). Sandwiches, pies, sausages, starters, and main meals available. Although it's heaving on a Friday night, the bar service is usually good and with a little patience you can get a seat in the room at the back for a meal.
From The Salisbury, continue going downhill past The Coliseum (ENO) to the end of St. Martin's Lane. Just before the just lavishly renovated Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, turn left around the Chandos and veer left onto Chandos Place to The Harp across from the Post Office. |
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#6
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10.10pm - 10.55pm |
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The Harp
47 Chandos Place, covent garden, London, WC2N 4HS
- This is consistently the best real ale pub for miles around. CAMRA just declared it West London Pub of the Year yet again. Usually available are Black Sheep Bitter, Timothy Taylor Landlord, and Harvey's Sussex Best Bitter, plus three guest ales. Recent guest ales were Jenning's Cocker Hoop, St. Austell's Tribute, and Moorhouse's Pendle Witches Brew, but they change frequently. All are superbly well-kept and worthy of a taste. Wend your way past the musicians to the bar to order a pint and check out the paintings. If you go to the back of the pub and carefully up the wonky stairs there's usually room to sit.
Continue on Chandos Place (walking a straight line past the police station) as it becomes Maiden Lane and find the Porterhouse on the right. |
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#7
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11.00pm - midnight |
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Porterhouse
21-22 Maiden Lane, London, WC2E 7NA
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A quick trip to Dublin was planned, but the transmat is unavailable due to late-running engineering works. Instead, this pub and it's beers have been transported from Dublin. All 9 house beers are brewed in Dublin to their own recipes - 3 stouts, 3 real ales and 3 lagers. The adventurous might be tempted with the Oyster Stout, but the Ordinary Stout is the best example of the Irish tradition. Many other interesting options. It's worth a wander around the pub to take in the architecture and decor typical of this five-pub chain (this is the only one outside the Dublin area). Punters could be a bit rowdy but are mostly harmless. A few of them might have been drinking all evening.
Booted out of the pub and desperate for a pint? Allegedly the Roundhouse serves latest. Backtrack down Maiden Lane and turn right up Bedford Street. Left at Tesco's and you're there. |
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#7a
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?? - ?? |
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Roundhouse
1 Garrick Street, WC2E 9AR
Umm, if it's still open it has a singular redeeming feature. Actually, there's a tolerable pint of Guinness. A T&J Bernard pub. |
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Going home: The Harp and The Porterhouse are right by The Strand and Charing Cross Station (Northern and Bakerloo lines plus mainline rail). You passed Leicester Square tube station (Northern and Piccadilly lines) on the way to The Salisbury. Needs must there are heaps of night buses very nearby around Trafalgar Square.
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