Lord Aberconway, Liverpool Street, EC2

Sadly scaffolded over on visit, Nicholson's pub with smart interior, nice booths on one side. Very pricey and feels a bit pretentious

Nicholson outlet close to Liverpool St BR. Quite an ornate bar with mirrors and clocks whilst the two-level interior (humid upstairs balcony if you want to sweat) is dark green and burgundy with dark varnished wood but sadly there’s a shabby feel to it all. Some booths are off to the left. Five cask and a cider. I went for the Adnams Ghost Ship (NBSS 2) and St Austell Nicholson Pale (2.5). Needs a kick up the arse – it feels a bit sad and in need of a bit of investment. 5.5

This is a Nicholson's pub, so will obviously sell real ale. When I was in the other day they had on London Pride - and Betty Stogs which came up undrinkable but readily exchanged for an excellent pint of Dark Star Partridge. They do food of course, but I didn't scrutinise a menu though reckon it must be the usual Nicholson's stuff. But this must be the only pub where they won't sell you a bag of crisps. Oh no, in here they are homemade crisps sold to you in a brown paper bag. The were £1.75 a portion, but you got a lot of them and they were really good as well. Most unusual, but gets the nod from me. As is usual with this chain there's the usual mix of furnishings, including some booths under the balcony on the left. The ceiling's so high in here that they've manage to squeeze in a mezzanine/balcony with more standard seating, and surrounded by an attractive wrought iron balustrade. There are still some original features remaining, such as the bar counter and bar back, but I reckon there's been some mucking about over the years as the bar back doesn't look to be quite right backing onto the toilet corridor. It looks good though. It was busy on a weekday lunchtime, as you would expect just around the corner from Liverpool Street station. But Nicholson pubs are usually OK, and this one was up to standard.

A Nicholson's pub just outside Liverpool Street station with a heavily wooded traditional interior featuring a fair amount of leaded glass. There are a couple of interesting booths, although sadly awaiting repair at time of visit, and an upstairs balcony level open during the week. Half a dozen or so ales with changing guests alongside the Nicholson's regulars- we went for the Cotleigh Tawny Owl which was in good form. One of the better pubs in the area, which has been extensively redeveloped to say the least.