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Picture of The Wenlock Arms
Image posted by Tris C
Submitted on Wednesday, 14th June 2023
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The Wenlock Arms, Hoxton, N1

26 Wenlock Road
N1
N1 7TA
Phone: 02076083406
Correct details

Served areas

Tweets by The Wenlock Arms
The Wenlock Arms The Wenlock Arms is that because you're all waiting for us to go out of business so you won't have to pay up? 5:12 PM Jan 28th 2022 from Twitter for iPhone
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Reviews of The Wenlock Arms (Average Rating: of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Quinno _ left this review about The Wenlock Arms

Having trudged over to find the place firmly closed and shuttered 15 minutes after its supposed opening time, we wandered back at 2pm to find the place open. Been many a year since I last visited and to be honest it’s not the place it was. A bit monoculture now. Plenty of beers and a good range but the prices...basically 6 quid or above. The quality wasn’t all that either - Titanic Mild (NBSS 3) was slightly warm whilst the Five Points Derailed lived-up to its name (2.5). All served-up by a mute barman (he literally said nothing throughout two transactions) in his 50s but dressed like he was in his 20s. One upside was the presence of gratis roasties at the bar. When compared to the Old Fountain, the gulf is wide. 6.5

June 2013
First visit to the revamped Wenlock which was still shrouded in scaffolding as work continues upstairs. The bar itself is seemingly unaltered whilst the room has had a deep clean, lick of paint, seats have been re-upholstered and there’s new downstairs loos (the gents is ridiculously tight though). 10 ales on with an impressive selection alongside some craft kegs and real cider. Beer-wise, my Clarence & Fredericks Strong Mild was in decent nick with the Tiny Rebel IPA perhaps a little under-par. Enjoyably eclectic music (Swing and Big Bands through to Simon & Garfunkel and Cure in 30 minutes). If there was a 10% CAMRA discount, no mention of it was made to me and I didn’t see it advertised. Maybe the staff should be a bit more pro-active pushing it. Note to the blackboard scribe: it’s “Sambrooks” not “Sam Brooks”…anyway a decent start. Rated 8

March 2012
Bade this place a farewell last night. The Brewers Gold, Acorn Porter and St Peters Mild were on great form. We are assured that the pub will re-open imminently with the same ethos but with a general clean-up and upgrades. We shall see. Rating 8

November 2010
A renowned ale pub in a frankly odd location (must've been the only bit the Luftwaffe didn't hit judging by the less-than-salubrious surroundings you need to trudge through to get here), this a classic Victorian corner local standing proud in a sea of redevelopment and poorly-constructed 1960’s flats. A large selection (9, is it?) of well-kept ales from a variety of microbreweries are on offer, along with a real cider. The quality is usually pretty good, though they have been known serve the odd poor one and been less than helpful when you politely tell them. The range of previously served ales is evident by the collection old pump clips festooned around the bar. Prices are very competitive given the postcode. Basic pub grub is available - the doorstep wedge sarnies are very good. Music is quietly piped and there’s live Jazz on a Friday evening.

The interior is the weak point – it’s small and cramped (OK, not much you can do there) and often feels quite grubby and dingy; indeed the gents loos are little more than a smelly wall to go against. The brewery mirrors add a little extra light, but frankly higher wattage light bulbs would be just as useful. Service too can sometimes be rather brusque. The pub’s clientèle is generally quite mixed; students, office workers, posties and CAMRA stereotypes all mingle at the bar, generating a good atmosphere inside. Beware that the regulars can be very vociferous at times.

As stated elsewhere, this place is under threat of closure and demolition in the very near future, so get down there while you can. Overall, a classic ale pub that demands a visit but it’s not without fault. Rating 8

On 20th February 2024 - rating: 7
[User has posted 5030 recommendations about 5013 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Wenlock Arms

Having been coming here for many years, the Wenlock always used to be known as the best real ale pub in central London. Along with the area itself, it has been gentrified a little these days. It feels a little more like a hipster hangout now.

There is still a half decent range of 6 real ales. These were Five Points Pale & Railway Porter, Mighty Oak Saxon Strong, Redemption Hopspur, Gun Project Bablylon & Purity Jimbo. But there was no sign of the Mighty Oak Oscar Wilde this time and the huge range of decent ciders they used to stock is also gone. Instead I was offered a Cidre Breton in a bottle from the fridge. I stuck to the cask ales!

The bar sits in the middle of the pub. You used to be able to walk right around, but an extra gents toilets with urinals only has been built on one side of the room to block the corridor.

Still well worthy of a visit, but has lost the slightly edgy side it once had, attracts a slightly different clientele and the lack of real cider is a definite shortfall in my book.

On 3rd March 2023 - rating: 7
[User has posted 2442 recommendations about 2441 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Tris C left this review about The Wenlock Arms

Taking its name from the adjacent Wenlock Basin, this was the tap for the eponymous brewery, long closed and demolished. CAMRA's North London Pub of the Year 2017, my first visit to this Georgian - just - pub was made about eight years ago when it was inexplicably out of the GBG from 2010 until 2015, though in my opinion the beer was great. What wasn't so great was the appalling grot: a pot shelf where glasses hadn't been cleaned since the pub was built and the terrible lavatories; the barmaid, who I think was a co-landlord, wasn't the most welcoming of people either; the old custodians having long moved on.
A third return visit and of course there's more real ale, real cider and perry and keg options than you can shake a stick at, which of course is what makes this pub so well-known in what is an otherwise rather dreary N1 Hackney/Islington hinterland. This is still a place that attracts an extremely mixed and at some times boisterous crowd presided over by friendly staff. What baffles the most is the ultra-modern men's lavatories. As mentioned below, two urinals and a basin in what is in effect a cupboard under the stairs; where is the gent's cubicle?
Music played at a sensible level and a dartboard was on display; hot bar snacks though not conventional food was available. My half of Purity's Longhorn IPA was naturally on excellent form and at £2.10 a half, good value for the area.
This is of course a drinker's Mecca (forgive the obvious contradiction), and is worth a substantial detour to get here.

On 17th August 2018 - rating: 8
[User has posted 1943 recommendations about 1910 pubs]


View more reviews of The Wenlock Arms (26)
This pub features in the following crawls:
London crawl - March 2010 by Gill Smith
External web links for The Wenlock Arms

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Pub location see interactive map of local area
Map location corrected by Steve C
Old Street, 0.58 miles, 11 min walk (show)
Essex Road, 0.83 miles, 15 min walk (show)
Hoxton, 0.94 miles, 18 min walk (show)
Latest updates View all updates for The Wenlock Arms, N1
20th Feb 2024, 11:03
Review submitted by Quinno _ amended by Quinno _
 
20th Feb 2024, 11:02
Review submitted by Quinno _ amended by Quinno _

Pub Details

Pub details supplied by members of this site to the best of their knowledge. Please check with pub directly before making a special trip.

  • Accommodation : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Bar Billiards : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Beer Festivals : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Beer Garden : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • CAMRA Discount : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Car Park : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Child Friendly : Yes - No under 21s after 7.00 pm. - last updated 12 March 2023 by Tris C
  • Darts : Yes last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Dog Friendly : Yes last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Function Room : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Hot Food : Yes - Hot bar snacks/sandwiches. - last updated 12 March 2023 by Tris C
  • Jukebox : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Karaoke : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Live Music : Yes last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Live TV Sports : No last updated 12 March 2023 by Tris C
  • Micropub : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Pinball : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Pool Table : No last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Real Ale : Yes last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
  • Real Cider : No last updated 03 March 2023 by Blue Scrumpy
  • Wheelchair Access : Yes last updated 06 February 2017 by ROB Camra
  • WiFi : Yes last updated 20 February 2024 by Quinno _
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