The Old Coffee House, Soho, W1

I really enjoyed my visit to this traditional soho pub,which has been well reviewed below.My trip was on a busy Friday evening,and it was disappointing to see a lot of reversed pump clips with only Brodies Amarilla and 7 Hop Session available.However ale quality was terrific,and on a warm evening the hoppy citrus Amarilla flew down in a good session,solid value at £3. At peak times the pub is rightly popular and the upstairs bar was reserved for a function.The bar service was crisp,efficient and friendly despite the throng,and folk spill out to drink on the pavement.There is a good mix of customers from young to old,and this place is most definitely on the list for a revisit.

This is easily one of the best pubs in this area. It’s a Brodie’s house, so you can expect the ale quality to be good – on Friday they had on Brodie’s Red: English Best; California; and Special, as well as Redemption Hopspur. I went for the Special, a 4.6% rich brown ale at a reasonable price (for this part of the world) of £3.00 a pint. I didn’t get to look at a menu but they clearly do food as I spotted menus on other tables, and all the tables had bottles and sachets of sauces, as well as condiments, on them. The pub itself hasn’t changed since my previous visit a year or so ago, which is a definite plus. It’s furnished only with normal tables and chairs and some upholstered benches, and still has the appeal (to me at least) of a real and fairly traditional pub. The walls and ceiling are choc-a-bloc with all manner of bric-a-brac – hunting prints, copper cooking utensils, brewery mirrors, WWI recruitment posters, and even a couple of antelope heads. Unfortunately I missed the signed David Beckham letter mentioned by John Bonser. The pub is somewhat off the beaten track so it doesn’t get many tourists, although it does get busy with regulars. However there were a couple of American tourists in on Friday lunchtime who perhaps did not understand the pub drill, but the barman brought their drinks over to their table and assisted with the menu. I like to see people being helpful in this way. This is definitely a pub worth visiting if you’re in the area.

This is a pub that has been on my radar for a visit for some time, but it was not till early June that I actually got round to getting here for the first time. It's a fine traditional street corner pub situated on the fringes of Soho. Externally, we learn that the pub offers "real ales from our own micro brewery", although this strikes me as being somewhat slightly misleading as the range of beer pumps on the bar indicate that the micro brewery in question is Brodies, which, if we didn't already know, is actually in Leyton. The interior is bigger than it looks from the outside, but is well decorated with plenty of pots and pans hanging down from the ceiling, some boxing memorabilia, guitars, stuffed birds, First World War posters, enamel signs and several old Truman Hanbury and Buxton mirrors. I did also notice that framed letter from David Beckham that I recollect seeing in the Cross Keys in Covent Garden some while ago. The pub was originally a Coffee Public House run by the Temperance movement. On the afternoon on my visit, a large drop down screen was showing the Australia v Ghana game, but it didn't dominate or detract from the friendly welcoming atmosphere. Notably, it was clear from the interaction between bar staff and customers that there were a good number of customers who were regulars and on first name terms with the staff. Tourists were relatively few and far between, although those that did venture in were cordially welcomed. There were approx half a dozen Brodies beers on. All beers appeared to be priced at £ 3.00p. Both the Special and the Pride of St George were on good form. On the basis of my visit, I would expect the pub, which advertises regularly in London Drinker, to make next year's 2011 CAMRA Good Beer Guide ( stop press - it has !) I quite liked this one and it's going on my list for an early re-visit.

Randomness Guide to London - Old Coffee House entry

Randomness Guide to London - Old Coffee House entry