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The Blackbird, Earls Court, SW5
SW5
SW5 9AN
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6 of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Blackbird
With the look of a traditional London corner pub, but as mentioned below actually a far more recent conversion from another use, this is a single room boozer that seems to be popular with quite a young crowd. It's well placed just across the road from the tube station in this busy high street. The bar has six hand pumps and 12 keg taps, but the pump clips showed Fullers London Pride and ESB doubled, Dark Star Hophead and one with a label saying "waiting". I went for the Hophead and found it rather sharp and perfumey, then I thought I'd try the ESB, but this was rather flat and malty. To be fair, it was quite late and I'd been on an extensive crawl (10 pubs), but I'd been able to discern normal flavours in my last beer at the Express in Brentford, so I'm inclined to think there was something not quite right with at least one of these beers.
Date of visit: 9th February 2022
On 9th August 2022
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3740 recommendations about 3477 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Blackbird
The interior of this pub would appear to be Victorian, but in keeping with other Fuller’s Ale & Pie dispensaries, this is a bank conversion dating from 1993, with an interior that’s best experienced on the pub’s website gallery, if you can navigate all the photos of burgers, children dining or businessmen chatting up their secretaries.
The usual Fuller’s suspects were on display in the form of Pride, Jack Frost, ESB and Hophead at £2.85 a half and good though very pricey.
This is quite an attractive pub, making for a good triple with the Bolton and Kings Head; certainly better than the Courtfield next door.
On 2nd December 2021
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Blackbird
A decent, dependable Fuller's Ale & Pie house. Features an imposing a 'U'-shaped bar which dominates the main room, with further seating on one side at the back. Main drawback is that it is rather cramped, but the place has a calm and pleasant atmosphere when less busy. Excellent beer quality in my experience, with Seafarers, Oliver's Island, Pride and ESB plus Butcombe Haka and Long Arm Birdie Flipper (£5.10) as guests on this visit. If you can stand the prices, probably the best bet if looking for a quick pint if using the nearby Earls Court station.
On 25th June 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Blackbird
A slightly better pub than the nearby Courtfield. Five different ales on handpump on this visit, with a decent tasting golden ale, Fullers Oliver's Island and a Windsor and Eaton Parklife. Prices in here are just as steep as up the road.
On 28th July 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Blackbird
This is an unusually compact Fullers Pie and Ale house just over the road from Earls Court tube station. Like most pubs in this particular chain, it is a bank conversion but sadly it doesn't have the grand interior associated with the chain's higher profile pubs. The pub is laid out as a large single room with a mix of tiles and wooden flooring around a centrally positioned servery with a dark wood bar back which incorporates some nice intricate carving, a selection of beer related quotes on a blackboard and some integral clocks. A large marble pillar stands on the corner of the bar counter and similar columns can be found partly recessed into the front and rear walls. Most of the room is painted a deep shade of red with a few old pictures and mirrors dotted around, whilst the front and side windows boast a limited amount of stained glass in the arched top section of each window. A series of high table booths have been set up along the front wall, whilst similar seating options can be found in the open spaces elsewhere around the bar. To the rear is a fairly small, carpeted dining space with standard tables and chairs and a lot of old photos on the walls, denoted by a sign hung from the high ceiling. I made the fatal error of failing to spot this sign as I wandered into the area to find a seat, at which point I was rather rudely ushered out by one of the waiting staff who berated me for not spotting the sign. Suitably chastised, I fortunately found a recently vacated table elsewhere, allowing me to peruse the pie based menu and listen to the soundtrack which was getting lost under the hubbub created by Chelsea fans enjoying a quick pint before heading to nearby Stamford Bridge.
There are quite a lot of handpulls on the bar, but most were doubled up, so the range was actually pretty limited for what I would have thought is a high profile location. Options on this visit were London Pride, Chiswick and ESB (£3.99) plus a guest of Castle Rock Harvest Pale. The ESB was okay but not exactly in great shape.
I was really disappointed with this place - the promise of a grand interior was never realised, the beer range was limited and quality decidedly average whilst the service was rude and quite frankly, off-putting. I imagine this place gets enough passing trade that it can get by on the bare minimum. I doubt I'll return - if you want to see how a pub should be run, I suggest making the five minute detour to the excellent Finborough Arms.
On 19th October 2014
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Blackbird
Another busy and decent Fullers pub.My Bengal Lancer was in good nick. Usual beers from Fullers but no guest ale.
On 13th March 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve of N21 left this review about The Blackbird
Decent enough standard London Fullers Pie & Ale pub out of a former bank conversion, with a wooden floored area around the central horseshoe bar and then a carpeted dining area beyond.
It is ideally situated when exiting Earls Court underground station and I wonder if the food pricing menu is adjusted to suit, as we were looking for somewhere to eat and it may have been an incorrect perception, but everything seemed a bit above the standard menu rate. For example the lowest cost option on the pie menu was £11.95 and I don’t remember forking out that much for Fullers pies before. Anyway my pint of Bengal Lancer was well kept as was the wife’s half of Pride, but these also seemed to be on the pricey side . So the beers were up to nick , but cannot comment on the food on this occasion as we moved on for that.
On 27th February 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2110 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
hondo . left this review about The Blackbird
Fullers pub close to earls court underground station. A horseshoe bar with a dining area at the back.
On 4th June 2012
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blackthorn _ left this review about The Blackbird
Large single room pub with a smaller area at the rear popular with diners. Can get quite busy and the tables can soon go. Not a problem if you're drinking, but we would have eaten there if we could have got a table.
Bar staff were pretty clueless with no idea that I was waiting even though they were not serving anyone else. To be fair though, the manager clocked what was happening, apologised, said they were new, and got one of them on to me ASAP.
Beers were London Pride, Chiswick, ESB and Discovery. It looks as though they also do Lancer although this was off when we visited. The only cider was Strongbow unfortunately.
On 27th February 2010
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1948 recommendations about 1861 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Blackbird
Close to Earls Ct tube, this is a Fuller's Ale and Pie conversion from a former bank premises. The interior is quite impressive and belies it's recent change of use. One large area winds around a central horseshoe bar. There are some rather perfunctory screens marked "Pies" and "Beers", but the high ceiling has a preserved cornice, an elaborate column by the bar provides support, and old cast iron radiators keep the place warm. Flooring is a mix, with wood and tiles in the main area, and a rear dining section has carpet. A mix of seating includes some high tables with stools.
All Fuller's current range on, I tried the new Bengal Lancer IPA which was pleasant but at the seemingly local going rate of £3.55 far too expensive (see my review of the nearby Courtfield).
On 16th February 2010
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1708 recommendations about 1681 pubs]