The Shipwrights Arms, London Bridge, SE1

Close to the station entrance, circular room, bit scruffy and very busy due to the location

Have used this one a couple of times over the last few months primarily due to its proximity to the new Tooley Street exit of the expanded London Bridge train station. As Mr Fastard mentions below its striking blue traditional pub exterior now stands out against all the modernisation of the area and is inviting from the outside. Inside, although the single room space that wraps around the central island bar is not the most exciting of experiences, I’ve always found it comfortable with good service levels and the permanent Southwark Brewing London Pale Ale is usually reliably good, as it was again last week,which is a fortunate thing as the two other available ales tend to be from Sharps ( Doombar and Solar Wave as they were last week). Yes it can be noisy when full but the converse is that it doesn’t take many in to give the place some atmosphere and as my visits have tended to be during lunchtime the noise levels have been warming rather than obtrusive. It’s not a bad option, especially if you are travelling via London Bridge station.

Rather better than I had expected from previous write-ups, the interior is well described by others. It was certainly busy when we visited, a pleasant and convivial buzz about the place. This meant it took a long time to get served, but the beer was OK and it was an enjoyable session, if a little pricey. Several pints of London Pale and Ghost Ship were consumed and these were in decent condition. Happy to pop in here again, and it’s a good place to meet up prior to an evening’s libation.

Dating from 1792 but rebuilt in 1894, this is much as described below. I agree with John in that the interior is rather bland, despite being on CAMRA’s heritage list of having an interior of Some Regional Importance, the item here being the fantastic polychromatic tiled mural of shipwrights at work on the Thames to a former lobby. Quite traditional, the interior is carpeted, which is unusual for the area. There’s an old-school landlady, with little communication possible due to the insistence on Perspex plague screens, with drinking not permitted at the bar; all a bit impersonal. Ales: Doom, Bermondsey’s London Pale ale and Best at a very reasonable £2.25 a half and nice. This place is ok, but the Perpetual Perspex over vaccination choice is a bit of a deterrent to returning.