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The Sutton Arms, EC1
EC1
EC1M 6EB
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6 of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Sutton Arms
A smartly appointed Fullers pub, in fact a little too smart for my liking, it has a bit of the company corparate feel about it. My half an ESB was fine and theres nothing overly wrong about the pub but just not really my cup of tea.
On 5th February 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1872 recommendations about 1845 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Sutton Arms
I liked this Fullers pub that I have always walked passed while in the area.Warm and friendly pub.Lots of original tiling and mirrors and there is a wine room upstairs.Lovely frontage with a barrel shaped window.Excellent pint of Castle Rock -Crafty Flanker.
On 26th April 2020
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Sutton Arms
Side-street Fuller's pub close by Barbican underground station and not to be confused with the nearby establishment just in Clerkenwell with the same name. Anyway, this one has an appealing façade with a bow window separating two glazed entrance doors (although only one of these is used nowadays). The main bar fills a good part of the front room so seating is at something of a premium. The smaller an quieter Wine Room can also be found upstairs. Three of four handpumps in use when I visited, offering Pride (£4.85) and two Dark Star beers: Hophead and Creme Brulee (5.9%, and warned off as being very sweet).
On 27th January 2019
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Sutton Arms
Just four months after my last review, Fuller's has stamped its mark on this pub by ripping out the lovely Charrington's bar back and the little snug. Thankfully they've spared the lovely tiles but the pub is still thin on décor. Where once there was the little snug, there's now a perch to the wall, above which is a selection of pewter platters. Beneath are three pressed steel bar stools; thankfully the little curved bench around the window remains. Remaining furniture is basic and there's a taupe-coloured studded banquette to the rear, behind which is a full-height panelled mirror and on the side wall is a solitary enamelled Friary Meux sign, presumably to appease those saddened at the loss of the bar back; it doesn't wash.
The floor appears to be original but has been sanded; the bar is new, with vertical t 'n' g panelling, painted dark grey with a pale wood counter top, looking like something from a kitchen. Above, there's one of these new-fangled square section tubular steel modern gantries. Kitchenesque too are the glass-fronted grey kitchen cabinets where once was the aforementioned bar back. There's extra lighting in the form of hipster filament bulbs. In short, it's more contemporary and has lost a lot of its character. The upstairs now appears to be a saloon bar.
Music was muted and on the plus front, there's no TV!
There are now certainly more people in here than before and it's a younger more local crowd.
Ales: Oliver's Island Golden Ale, Fuller's London Pride, East London Brewery's Pale Ale and Portobello's American Pale Ale. I can't remember what I ordered, though it must have been one from ELB or Portobello and I recall it as being good and far more expensive than before.
This pub is worth a visit, but what a shame it couldn't have been revamped more sensitively - I'd be less inclined to come here again than before.
On 13th July 2016
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Sutton Arms
With a history dating back in some form to 1611, this pub is well described below; something of a more traditional boozer amidst trendy wine bars and gastrofied pubs, which was a pleasant surprise for us on our early week mid-evening crawl.
There's a nice little old wood nook to the front, attractive Charrington's bar back, some screens and glazed tilework. Muted mood music played and thankfully there were no sport TVs.
The barman was friendly enough and I opted for the Fuller's London Pride at £4.10 - not at all bad for the area. The Pride pump was double clipped with another ale, not noted.
This is well worth a visit but there's a distinct lack of décor which makes the place a bit stark. Something a little more homely with a better choice of ale would result in a higher mark.
On 21st March 2016
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Sutton Arms
I called in here on the off chance as I was walking by,It looked a decent boozer from the exterior and once inside found this to be the case, a basic but honest old style pub, as you walk in there are a couple of rows of tables and chairs, it has a pub grub menu of all the old classics at a reasonable price, I don't recall seeing much priced above a tenner.When I got to the there were three pumps ,a standard offering of Pride but was surprised and pleased to find a little adventure in the other two selections, Otley 01 and Crate Gold.Better than I was expecting, I quite liked this place.
On 1st April 2015
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1872 recommendations about 1845 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Sutton Arms
A former Charrington's house,as evidenced by the carved traditional bar back,this is an open plan unspoiled pub among the trendy bars off Chaterhouse Square.The seating is traditional wooden,with a bench fitted below the bay window.There is the usual pub ephemera but the three busts mounted on wall plinths are a feature ,although you may pause to consider the robustness of the construction if seated directly below !There is a small amount of glazed tiling to one side,but generally the interior is functional and unremarkable.On entering it is worth seeing whats on the second rank of handpumps the otherside of the dumb waiter column,I nearly missed a jolly good Bengal Lancer at £4.The other handpumped ales were London Pride and Adnams Southwold Bitter.There is a wide and interesting choice of keg lagers,Litorel,Leffe,Paulander etc and no sign of Carling,Stella,and other multinational crap.
Food is served 12-3 and 5-9 Monday to Friday from a short menu of pub staples.My prawn sandwich and salad was decent at £6,which wouldn't please Roy Keane.Muzak consisted of jazz on random play from the juke box,fitting for a quiet afternoon visit .
Solid if unspectacular with a friendly welcome from behind the bar,and a lot better than many establishments nearby.
On 29th January 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2727 recommendations about 2727 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
John Bonser left this review about The Sutton Arms
Close to Barbican Tube Station and the leafy Charterhouse Square, The Sutton Arms is an externally attractive looking pub featuring a bowed frontage, leaded windows and some fine wall tiling in the entranceway.
Formerly a Charrington's pub - as evidenced by the bar back - the longish single room features a number of wooden settles and chairs, providing a traditional, if not particularly comfortable, environment. Pleasingly there's an absence of those horrible tall long perches and tables, and sofas. There's an upstairs lounge / restaurant.
At the far end of the room is a large framed aperitif poster - " bitter secrestat" - and an attractive skylight. On the wall opposite the bar are, most notably, three plaster busts of what are presumably famous people, although I didn't recognise any of them. Typically for London, and presumably to appease the PC lobby, one of the three busts features a black man, although there is nothing to indicate whether any of the three are gays or have special needs.
On the beer front, there's a clear emphasis on foreign lagers and bottled beers and, notably, the blackboard menu above the bar lists these drinks, but not the real ales, which, on my recent early evening visit, were limited to London Pride and Chiswick. The Chiswick, at a rather pricey £ 3.25p - was moderate, but, with only 2 real ales on from the 5 available pumps and no sign of any other pump clips anywhere, the lack of interest in promoting real ale seems all too evident.
Pleasingly - and I do wish more pubs would follow suit - opening hours are prominently displayed by the entrance. Somewhat surprisingly, we see that the pub closes between 2.30pm and 5pm between Mondays and Fridays. Rather less surprisingly, it doesn't do weekends.
On my recent early evening visit, it was disappointingly noticeable how relatively empty the pub was in comparison to nearby more modern establishments, such as a rather atrocious looking " Indulgence Bar and Grill" a few doors down.
This is a fine proper pub, if somewhat lacking in comfort, but the lack of interest and emphasis on the real ale front means that an early return visit is not planned.
On 7th October 2010
- rating: 6
[User has posted 560 recommendations about 560 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Sutton Arms
Fuller's London Pride and Chiswick on. The Chiswick was excellent, as was the BLT sandwich I had for lunch. The menu is limited – it is what is written on the blackboard on the right as you enter the pub. So, no sign of gastrofication, which is a plus in my book. Seating is mainly dark wooden settles along the walls, with no sign of tall stools/tables or sofas ruining the place. Behind the bar is what looks like an original Charrington's bar back, and in the porch what appears to be some original Charrington's tiling. All in all, the Sutton Arms is a pretty decent real pub, and I would recommend a visit – as long as you appreciate a “real” pub.
On 30th August 2008
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Philip Carter left this review about The Sutton Arms
Not a very big pub, but popular. Has an upstairs dining room, which I didn't visit. Sells real ale, according to the chalk board, mostly Fullers, though al I saw was Pride and a guest ale Adnams Best. Serves food all day, nice place to visit.
On 13th July 2007
- rating: 6
[User has posted 757 recommendations about 720 pubs]