The Widows Son, E3

Established in 1848, the history and name of the pub are documented on one of the photos from August 2009. Situated in a rather unprepossessing location, this is a grade II*-listed former Taylor Walker house, as evinced by the arch over the hanging sign frame. A first in here a few nights ago and it's clear that the place has changed much since my photo of June 2014. Indeed it would seem that the reviews below no longer apply; gone is the Tetley’s, pool table and naval-themed décor. So then: welcome to the house of bun! There's a slate grey and dark grey all-over colour scheme, field panelled to the dado rail. The dark grey field panelled bar has a wooden top and may be modern; above, hangs a net brim full of the historic buns. I was expecting a slightly bready smell, such is the nature of the yeast, but no. To the rear is a dark sea green glazed tiled bar back; the ceiling is t 'n' g. The floor is darkish bare boarded except for a raised stage area with DJ paraphernalia and upright piano. Lighting is eclectic, as is the largely conventional furniture. There are some structural columns, one partly wound with rope - perhaps a nod to the naval link. Lighting is also rather mixed and pleasantly soothing with decent music playing at an agreeable level. Overall, it's a bit spartan with tables spaced fairly far apart, probably due to social engineering requirements. However, you can't fail to miss the beautiful Widow's Son polychromatic painted mirror proudly displayed on a wall but sadly cracked. What's also very attractive are the etched mirrors with red and black lettering to the top of a wall, with very lovely etched mirrors below - my guess is that this was the original bar back, with the current bar shifted towards the main window. Customers seemed to be young professionals, probably recent incomers living in the rather fancy flats that have gone up in recent years, in relatively close proximity to Canary Wharf. The pub was far from full, so perhaps there were more drinkers in the rear garden. Ales: none, just Eurofizz as far as I could make out with the very friendly and chatty barman serving me a good pint of Guinness at the 'new normal' price of £5.10. This was an unexpectedly good pub and is well worth the 10-minute walk from Bow Road tube - a couple of decent real ales would certainly get the score up by at least one point.

Basic boozer, with an irregular-shaped interior. Small raised seating area, otherwise limited furniture. Main feature is the pool table holding pride of place in the centre of the bar floor. Music channel on TV. Naval-themed decor, with details of the interesting 'Bun House' story on a small display. No real ale on tap, so opted for a quick pint of Tetley Smooth (£3.20) before moving on.