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Detail Pages
The Lamb Tavern, Leadenhall, EC3
City of London
EC3
EC3V 1LR
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Brainy Pool left this review about The Lamb Tavern
basic but iconic pub, in the stunning architectural surroundings of Leadenhall. inside the main bar is suitably traditional and historic feeling, but it is rather sparse and set up for vertical drinkers, with almost no comfortable seating. That said, I didn’t check out the dining room or basement. Proper Job plus Youngs Special and Original on, over £5 a pint for the latter. Sign of the times (and the location) I guess. It was a very mundane pint too.
On 15th July 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1058 recommendations about 1023 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Lamb Tavern
Dating from 1780, but rebuilt 101 years later for Charrington’s as part of Leadenhall Market by Sir Horace Jones, architect behind Smithfield Market and Tower Bridge. As with all shops in the Market, the colour scheme must be strictly obeyed: classic Victorian, with prominent names written in the same typeface. The pub is also on CAMRA’s heritage list, as being of Regional Importance, also nationally Grade II* listed and a far cry from the New Moon over the way.
As usual, CAMRA’s site doesn’t do the interior justice, but there’s plenty of etched and cut glass, as well as some fine polychromatic tiling and rich, brown wood. A further novelty is that there’s a mezzanine, accessed by a cast iron helical staircase, then up to the restaurant; the basement is home to Old Tom’s Bar.
The standard Young’s array was on, along with new partner for life, Proper Job (£5.45), which, as the ground floor was without seating and a huge crowd was outside, I decided to sup my fine pint in the mezzanine, as the only occupant. I soon found out why, as you get the full inescapable funk from the lavs every time the door was opened; not pleasant; the music too was rather loud (Queen).
There’s an interesting heritage level here, which makes the place worth a visit, but just like probably every other City pub, I’d prefer to drink elsewhere.
On 17th September 2021
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Lamb Tavern
ORIGINAL REVIEW June 2011
Well reviewed by others ,on my trip there was Wells and Youngs Ordinary ,Special and Waggledance so nothing to get the pulse racing.At least the bar service was efficient in the early evening crush.A large flat screen was propped up outside to screen Mr Murray's latest match at Wimbledon.I swiftly moved on.
UPDATE
A visit at a less busy time allowed appreciation of both a fine glazed tiled side entrance and the charming gallery reached via either the staircase to the dining room or a metal circular stairsway from the tap room.It's ornate up here and worth bagging a table if you want to stay a while.There is also a daily carvery in the tap room for a quick bite meat snack with the meat choice changing daily.The ale line up is still poor with Youngs Bitter and Special with a gust beer which was reversed on my visit.Leadenhall Market is terrific,so it's worth popping in,but that's about it.
On 13th January 2019
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2727 recommendations about 2727 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
hondo . left this review about The Lamb Tavern
A Youngs pub with an impressive exterior in Leadenhall market but inside it's very basic with next to no seats and a few tables outside. You can get waitress service to your standing location outside but it can get draughty.
On 24th November 2016
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Lamb Tavern
Very much a 'vertical drinking' establishment for City types, but this Youngs pub is undoubtedly an interesting building in a historic location. Some nice engraved glass panels too. Most of the customers are usually to be found 'outdoors' under the former market roof, so it is not always as crowded inside as it first appears. There is also a mezzanine floor and an upstairs restaurant (in the 'Private Bar'). Ordinary, Special, London Gold and the seasonal Wooden Spoon available from the total of seven handpumps on this visit.
On 20th September 2015
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Lamb Tavern
This pub is in a stunning location and looks very inviting from the exterior. Once through the doors, the main bar was so basic and drab looking, maybe I was expecting too much. Nevertheless the upstairs dining area was a step up and a lot more comfortable looking. My Youngs bitter was boring and tasteless, so didn't hang round.
On 10th February 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Lamb Tavern
This is a nice old pub and being under the covered market roof it has a certain ambiance.Nice interior.Three Youngs beers on but also Sambrookes -Wandle which was very drinkable.
On 18th July 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about Lamb Tavern
If you've never been to Leadenhall Market before, then this pub is worth a look, just so you can admire the fine surroundings it finds itself in. The pub itself, doesn't quite match up to the setting, with the dark wood interior creating a rather gloomy feel. There are one or two features of interest, such as the fine tiled mural in the right hand entrance, depicting Christopher Wren discussing his plans for the nearby Monument, or the attractive glasswork of the front windows. There is a smattering of seating downstairs, whilst a spiral staircase in the middle of the room leads to a gallery area which has quite a few more tables. However, on my Friday evening visit there was a band playing outside, which meant that there was about five times as many people outside the pub than in it, and yet there was still no chance of getting a seat. The upstairs area can also be reached by a conventional staircase to the right hand side of the building and I believe there is also a basement bar, although I didn't explore it myself.
This is a Young’s house and they had Ordinary (£3.35), Special and Waggledance available. My pint of Ordinary wasn't really up to much and there were fairly lengthy waiting times at the bar which convinced me to move on, even though I was quite enjoying the live music.
I think this place is worth a quick look and I'm glad I finally got round to visiting, but there was nothing to make me want to return and I'm a little baffled as to why the place seems to be so popular with the after office hours crowd.
On 10th September 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about The Lamb Tavern
Situated in the picturesque and atmospheric Leadenhall Market we have the Lamb Tavern, well-known amongst the local office workers. Run by Youngs, I was pretty disappointed to find only their Special and Ordinary available on my visit and my Ordinary lived well and truly up to its name. The pub is situated over three levels – a basement ‘dive’ bar, ground floor bar and a wrought iron spiral staircase to a mezzanine level. Even so, it’s still pretty small capacity-wise and the majority of punters tend to spill outside and dink in the covered Victorian marketplace. The interior is mainly dark wood with a bit of tiling thrown in.
After my visit I can only concur with a comment found elsewhere on the interweb; “you are not so much rating the boozer but rating the experience of standing on the pavement outside”. For that I will give the place a point more than it would get if it were sat on Old Kent Road.
On 10th June 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5072 recommendations about 5055 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Lamb Tavern
A curious pub this, situated within the splendid environs of Leadenhall Market. One entrance to the ground floor bar has on a side wall a splendid tiled mural depicting Sir Christopher Wren discussing his plans for The Monument in the area, which for any non London folk celebrates the extent of the Great Fire, being as high as the distance the fire travelled from it's origin in Pudding Lane. It's a long breathless climb as an aside, but worth it if you get a chance, with great views.
Internally the pub is small, with the ground floor bar area having virtually no seating apart from a few window ledges and hence has a spartan feel. An enormous TV was set here, I assume for the heavily advertised World Cup, but there is not much room for even vertical drinkers. A large part of the bar is taken up by a cast iron spiral stair, leading to a sort of gallery/mezzanine space, again small with just a handful of tables. The main stair rises again to a restaurant area. Young's beers but just Ordinary Bitter and Special. My pint came out very murky but was changed immediately without fuss, which was a good pointer.
It's a pub with historic interest so an essential visit for some but I really didn't take to it, poor layout and badly altered in my opinion.
On 3rd June 2010
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1707 recommendations about 1681 pubs]