Doyles Tavern, N7

A big corner pub on the Caledonian Road at the junction of Frederica Street, a fairly short walk from the Kings Cross end. According to WhatPub it is a former Charrington pub run by a Tim Doyle since 1997, hence the current name, and the still remaining reference to Charringtons above the bar top. In the aid of research I popped in here on my stroll up the Caledonian Road and was greeted by a plain bright interior dominated by the sports screens. No real ales here, just the usual run of the mill standard keg offerings but my half of Guinness was passable enough. Live music advertised for Friday and Saturdays and I could imagine with a band on and a decent crowd in it could be a good experience, but on an early week day evening with only half a dozen punters in it was all a bit flat. Friendly service from the bar keep though.

Official site of Doyles Tavern - www.doylestavern.co.uk

Official site of Doyles Tavern - www.doylestavern.co.uk

This is a fairly large open plan L-shaped sports pub with at least three plasma screens for showing Sky Sports and I imagine GAA. There are also three dartboards and two pool tables and I spotted a few advertisements for live music every Saturday night, which I imagine being of Irish origin. I did visit on Saturday evening at around 21:30 and there were no signs of any band setting up and there were only about ten locals in attendance, five of whom were sitting playing cards. Unsurprisingly there are no real ales, but the service was friendly and the Guinness was very good. I still don’t plan to visit here again though as it is very forgettable and there are better pubs in the area.