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Detail Pages
The Horseshoe Inn, SE1
SE1
SE1 3QP
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
. Wittenden left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
A pleasantly airy pub on a springlike mid May Saturday afternoon:busy, with a youngish clientele.We sat on the roof terrace, enjoying a satisfactorily old school pint of Brakspear's Gravity. Yes,I'd agree that it was pricey:our mixed round equated to £3 per half. That apart, a pleasant interlude.
On 21st May 2022
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 283 recommendations about 282 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
Tucked away,the exterior is traditional with some Brakspear signage but the interior is tardis like.The whole external space is filled with benches wrapping around the building,leading to a beer garden at the rear.The internal tap room has an unusable darts board to the right leg,lots of traditional furniture and large plate glass windows giving natural light.To the left is a large area with the feel of a dining space and french windows to the said beer garden.
Explore upstairs to find a charming club room with sofas,chesterfields and a plush feel ,again with french windows over firstly a narrow balcony ,then a roof terrace to the right with views over the young and hip in Vinegar Yard,no doubt adept at vinegar strokes.
The pub grub food menu looked a bit pricey with a median main £13,while the ale selection drawn from the Marston's portfolio was Brakspear Gravity,Hobgoblin Gold and Marston's 61 Deep at the unforgiveable £3.15 for a half (NBSS 2.5).
There is an element of chain pub vibe here,the pricing is daft ,yet it's very popular.Not one on my list for a revisit despite some internal interest.
On 8th May 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2728 recommendations about 2728 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
Dating from the late 18th century as the Horseshoe & Wheatsheaf, the current incarnation and name date from 1897.
This is quite a simple, cosy traditional boozer, hard to find down one of Southwark’s Dickensian back streets. The interior seems unchanged since the previous reviews: traditional and characterful, with a 360º tour on the pub’s website. However, the lighting in here is low – making it cosy – but there is an ugly, brightly lit Clear Channel advertising board, with a rolling display. There’s also a very bright TV showing all the CCTV output, added to which, there was a tall chiller cabinet behind the bar, with blindingly bright internal illumination; if I hadn’t been on a mini-crawl, I would have had to relocate to another part of the pub. Customers were on the younger side, even though they seemed better fitted to the Rose down the road.
Three ales were on: Brakspear’s Gravity, Hobgoblin and 61 Deep at an insulting £2.95 a half, served by a friendly barmaid and in good condition (both beer and barmaid).
This is a nice pub, but the prices are extortionate and the lighting requires removal and toning down; address these and the score would go up one or two points, but it’s certainly one to aim for if in SE1 and a lot better than the Rose next door.
On 1st April 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
custodian 42 left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
Tucked away down a side street, this wasn't a bad place. Couple of hand pumps, the rest keg. Outside seating to the right side.
On 5th October 2019
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1693 recommendations about 1691 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
Traditional pub dating from 1897, hidden away in a side street at the back of Guys Hospital, with some fine decorative features on the exterior. Sparsely and plainly furnished bar area, with a dartboard at one end. Also has more seating in a side room, out the back in a smallish patio area and on the front and side pavements. Just far enough away from London Bridge station to retain a proper community feel. The bar staff generally seem efficient here, also actively clearing tables, etc. As a Brakspear pub, I found Bitter and Hobgoblin (£4.70) available from two of the three handpumps on this visit, with a reversed clip for Honey Bee also noted.
On 3rd June 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
An attractive looking pub with good floral displays situated in a bit of a hidden away location. The main room is staple shaped with the bar along part of the back wall, a return one side has a dartboard with a shelf of trophies nearby, the other side leads to a separate side room which then leads on to a pleasant sunny garden. There are two full sized carved wooden brown bears out here standing guard.
Mixed seating, boarded flooring, a fireplace down one end, all sorts on the walls including boxing prints, cases of bits and bobs. A sign above the bar helpfully declares that the pub is in the GBG 2010! The wall mounted TV was off on Sunday so unsure if sport friendly, music played but not too loud.
Three pulls, Brakspear Bitter and Hobgoblin, the other unclipped. Food served.
I liked it in here, why I can't exactly put my finger on but it just felt the part really. Perhaps because I visited after the fairly disappointing Rose up the road.
On 12th September 2016
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1708 recommendations about 1681 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
I was led to the Horseshoe Inn by a friend who knew its location, which was handy as I would never have found it. The bar stretches along the rear wall of this narrow pub and to the right of the bar is a dartboard. Standard draught was available alongside Ringwood Best, Hobgoblin and Marstons. Standard pub fare was available from around £10 for a main and a member of my group stumped up for a more expensive meat platter that went down quite well, although I ended up with a little more garlic bread than I would have liked. To the left of the pub is a separate seating area with another dartboard and a piano. Access from here can be gained to a beer garden full of picnic tables that stretches around to the rear of the pub. There was some background music emanating from the jukebox and the barmaid was cold and distant, even though we spent over £100 between us.
I enjoyed the darts and the company, but not the hospitality… This pub is not on my list of revisits.
On 6th June 2014
- rating: 5
[User has posted 5254 recommendations about 5222 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve of N21 left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
I searched this one out whilst in the area yesterday primarily to have a look at the pub that was used as The Railway Arms or “Heaven” in the last episode of the 3rd series of ‘Ashes to Ashes’.
The Horseshoe Inn is an old style corner boozer tucked away in the backstreets behind London Bridge stations and Guy’s Hospital and can be problematical to find especially with the on-going disruptive Cross rail building work. .
Decent enough looking from the outside with some attractive moldings above eye level as others have mentioned. Not in the best of areas though, especially as there is a drop in center for the homeless almost opposite, who were out in force on one of the first sunny days of spring, and having a local hobo try to ponce some money off you isn’t ideal on your way for a beer. Can’t blame the pub for that though.
The interior is one main fairly minimal room, but there is a newer extension room behind the main bar and then a small patio garden area at the back primarily for use by the smokers, unless you like to stare at the London Bridge Station signal box whilst enjoying a pint.
There are three real ale pumps on the bar and two Brakspear bears were on, (Oxford Gold and Bitter). The third pump was reversed but looked like it could have been Hobgoblin
There was a Mongolian food menu available, which you don’t see often in a London pub but we didn’t eat here.
Found this a largely inoffensive pub, but with no real redeeming features that would drag me back here if I don’t have to.
On 16th April 2013
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2111 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
The Horseshoe is a reasonably large Brakspear pub located behind Guys Hospital, a short walk from London Bridge train station. Entrance takes you into an opened out main room with the bar counter opposite the front door. The room has bare floorboards and large windows along two sides which give plenty of light and emphasise the open space within. The right hand side of the room has a good range of seating, mainly from benches and standard tables and chairs. A TV screen was on showing muted 24 hour news coverage and there is an alcove at this end of the room, which houses a dartboard - the game seemingly being very popular in this pub. Opposite and to the right of the servery there are a limited number of tables and chairs and beyond them there is a second room with plenty of seating, which looks like it might be used as a dining area, but had been hired out by a darts team when I visited.
There were three handpumps, but no Brakspear ales available. The choice was between Fullers London Pride, Ringwood Best and Harvey’s Best. I tried the Ringwood, which was well kept and served by a friendly barman. The pub offers a typical 'pub grub' menu but I also spotted a list of five or six Mongolian dishes which were reasonably priced and, if the curry I saw being taken out of the kitchen is anything to go by, look very tasty.
There are, of course, some excellent pubs in this part of town which means that the Horseshoe wouldn't be an obvious destination, but I thought it was a welcoming enough place with more of a community feel to it than some of the more famous ale houses nearby and I wouldn't mind popping in again on occasion.
On 20th November 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Danny O'Revey left this review about The Horseshoe Inn
Old wood floored traditional boozer, quite large and all together pleasant
On 8th June 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1456 recommendations about 1434 pubs]