The Ship, Soho, W1

Fuller's pub with engraved glass windows and an ornate bar gantry. 5 real ales served.

In many ways this historic Fullers house is a typical Soho boozer, as reflected by its single room, bare boarded interior with the servery running down one side. However, this place has retained a lot of original Victorian features missing from many of its peers, making it stand out from the crowd. It is the ornate glasswork that really captures your attention, including numerous windows, mirrored panels and a beautiful bar back with some wonderful etched glass panes depicting various plants and birds set into the dark wood frame, which is very ornate in itself and has a nice patterned frieze running along the top. The pub provides the usual straightforward seating options you'd expect in a place with limited floor space - chunky looking benches to the front, low stools in the narrow space opposite the bar (some in spaces separated by partitioning screens) and a mix of the two along with a button backed banquette to the rear. The pub has some smart looking light fittings, a sparsely filled set of bookshelves at the back of the room and lots of photos on the walls showing the building throughout the years. Music played throughout my stay at a volume that was still loud enough to allow conversation and I found the place had a good, friendly vibe. Perhaps the only exception to this rule was the barman who seemed to be a pretty surly chap, although he did manage to serve me a very tasty pint of Fullers Oliver's Island, which was available alongside Fullers London Pride and ESB and Adnams Ghost Ship. I can't say I had particularly high expectations for this place, but this ended up being a pretty successful visit. I found the beer to be in fine shape and the décor very pleasing on the eye. Soho may have a few pubs that can trump this place on either of these fronts, but it remains a solid option in an area where pubs can be very hit or miss.