The Old Eagle, NW1

Camra historic pub interior - www1.camra.org.uk

Camra historic pub interior - www1.camra.org.uk

The heart always sinks when you see Greene King external signage,but be brave as it's worth popping in.On a street corner,the interior is L shaped with a wooden clad bar on both arms and traditional furniture.Wooden floor and open plan,there is a small conservatory roof at the far end with an impressive stained glass Eagle motif and a hanging collection of shoe lasts.The french windows here lead to a patio garden. However the finer collection is of hanging musical instruments in the large plate glass picture windows to the front,there is an Irish feel to the pub and the welcomw was friendly.Thai food is also available and adds to the attraction. Just two handpumps offering the dreaded GK IPA and a very decent St Austell Tribute (NBSS 3.5,£5).If only the ale range was more exciting,higher marks would have been awarded to this decent local.

It's still much as described by the previous reviewer, and although the Gaelic script is still present, I detected no Irish lilt in the accents of the staff. Anyway, it's furnished with settles, large chunky tables and normal chairs - that's all fine by me. There are still plenty of knick-knacks around the place, being predominently musical instruments and shoes, or clogs maybe, hanging from the ceiling at the back. It's sort of L-shaped, with the servery facing you as you enter, and with the room continuing beyond the servery on the right, leading to a small conservatory area with decorated glazed roof featuring an eagle obviously, and leaf-themed glazing in the upper windows. This leads to an outside seating area. Some of the bar back is very old - Victorian possibly, as one of the staff claimed the pub was built in the 1860s - but some of the other fittings, such as the bar counter, look inter-war. Two entrances have mosaic flooring; one just saying "The Old Eagle", and the other a depiction of the eponymous bird, which is replicated in the pub sign. There are three handpumps on the counter facing you as you enter, and two more on the counter around to the right. Unfortunately only one was in operation, dispensing the 4% Morlands Original at £4.10 a pint. It was in good shape though. There's a sign outside saying that they serve authentic Thai food, but I didn't see any sign of it when I visited at early doors on a Monday. I found this a friendly and welcoming little pub when I visited. But it was very quiet, with only me and a chum, plus another old boy, in there so the landlady had time to chat to us. I would be very happy to visit again, although a better ale selection would be a massive improvement. But as this is a Greene King house I wouldn't hold out much hope of an interesting ale selection.