The Three Kings, Clerkenwell, EC1

Remember that old Eiffel Tower in a snowstorm that Aunt Agnes brought back from Paris when you were a kid. Well give it to the Three Kings. They will find a loving home for it alongside all the other weird, quirky, tacky, unusual and downright eccentric bric-a-brac that can be found lining the shelves and windowsills. A plastic rhino head casts its eye in a watchful gaze over the candlelit bar. A plastic Chinese lion waves gleefully underneath it. Pictures, posters, mirrors, and flyers advertising anything and everything fill in any space on the walls that are left. Anything that looks out of place is well suited to this pub. I would not like to be the cleaner who has to dust everything but I am quite happy to be a customer, sampling any of the 3 well kept beers. The rest of the single room main bar is quite basic with bare floorboards and plain décor and it is fair to say that the interior is, in its own way, pleasantly grim. There is an upstairs but but I didn't have time to sample it. Full of character and set in a village type area of London, this is one of the more unusual pubs in London and well worth tracking down.

This is a quirky little pub just off Clerkenwall Green. Apparently the Three Kings in question are Elvis; Henry VIII; and King Kong. There’s nothing unusual in the way of real ales on offer (I think we may have been drinking Bombardier or Pride) but I felt it to be a really welcoming little pub. I would be very happy to drop in again for a pint when I’m in the area.

Normally I would refuse to drink in a pub that displayed a signed photograph of Dennis Bergkamp in his Arse.. kit , but I made an exception for this one as I quite liked the Three Kings and the framed photo fitted in quite well with the rest of the tat hanging from the pub walls. I will also make an exception, as I'm led to believe a previous landlord's (or could even be the present one's) old man used to run The Hope and Anchor in Islington in its punk heyday. On this balmy summers evening with all four doors open , The Three Kings was a really good place for a few beers. Lots of people drinking outside and the steps and the St James church steps were fully utilised. And even inside it was airy enough to for a decent al fresco feeling. The three handpumps this evening were TT Landlord, Pride and Deuchars IPA. Unfortunately the Deuchars was off but the Landlord and the pride were in good nick. Yes the décor is quirky and it does have the feeling of being a themed student bar, and if you venture up the stairs to the two rooms and associated small kitchen you could well be forgiven in thinking you'd stepped into an 80's student bedsit.. But in conclusion, a pub with a bit of character and I enjoyed my evening at The Three Kings