Dirty Dicks, Bishopsgate, EC2

Was looking forward to finally getting a Youngs ale but was sorely disappointed in pub. Staff was indifferent as I ordered the Special and it went dry as she poured. She replaced it with the original and didn't give me back any change for the difference I had paid. The ale was not what I remembered Youngs to be 15 years ago when I was last in London.

My visit was soon after opening time, and I caught them on the hop preparing for an influx of visitors on St Patrick's Day. The server was having trouble getting the Youngs Ordinary to pour, and on investigation it turned out to be right at the end of the barrel, so I went for the Special instead. (Other beers on at the time were Twickenham Naked Ladies and St Austell Proper Job.) The manager let me have the beer gratis to compensate for the long wait, but in fact this beer wasn't in very good condition (from being in the pipes overnight) and probably should have been thrown away anyway. I had plenty of time to look around and found the place not only gloomy but more like a stage set than a real pub. I don't know how much of this building is original, but the fact that it is not on Camra's inventory of heritage interiors suggests that a lot of it is just made up. Date of visit: 17th March 2022