The Coborn, E3

A smart Youngs food focussed pub a surprisingly short walk from the Mile End Road. Largely one open room around the main L-shaped bar to the left as you enter, but with a separate side room to the right and then a smaller snug section to the left. The front section as you enter is more lounge bar with some very comfortable leather seating and then the back section nearer the kitchen is more aligned to dining. Despite a couple of flat screens (one clearly temporary erected on a makeshift stand for the current World cup) this is a comfortable pub aligned to eating, drinking and conversation. The bar supports two sets of four handpumps, which were doubled up with the increasingly common Youngs Pubs arrangement of one Ordinary, two Special and St Austell Proper job on the fourth and the Propper Job was on fine form. Did not try the food, but plenty were on this lunchtime and the menu looked reasonable enough with Beer Battered Haddock at £18 and Cumberland Sausages at £16, which is the current going rate for a smart food led pub in these inflationary food prices time. What I was impressed with was the available While you Wait snacks of Pie Crust & liquor at £3 and Pickled Mussels and cockles for a fiver, which I thought was a nice nod to the pub’s location, despite its gentrification away from a working class clientele. Personally, I found this one more homely than the opened out Morgan Arms, but agree that the Lord Tredegar is probably the best of the trilogy this close to the Mile End Tube Station. The problem is that the Lord Tredegar doesn’t open till 4.00PM most days, so if you are looking for a spot of lunch and a decent pint, this one fulfils the brief for me.

Official site of The Coborn - www.thecoborn.co.uk

Official site of The Coborn - www.thecoborn.co.uk

A surprisingly plush pub for a side street off the Mile End Road, although the whole area seems to be getting a bit gentrified. In typical Young's Pub Co fashion, it has been thoroughly modernised in a posh drawing room style, with lots of leather settees and armchairs. The rear part is tabled with one side being a restaurant. To the side is a 'snug' room with a screen for major sports events and there are some roadside tables outside at the front. Draught beers were Young's Special and Ordinary, with Redemption Pale as a very drinkable guest. A shade upmarket but pleasant enough.

Large Young's pub where food seems to dominate, it did on a Sunday afternoon anyway. However there were four ales on along with a mix of ordinary and corporate craft keg, the real ales were Youngs ordinary and Special(of course) and guests of Sambrooks Wandle and Purity Mad Goose,the Wandle being in decent nick. Far from first on the visit list but fine for a pint.