The Edinburgh Pub, Newington Green, N1

This pub has The Edinburgh in large letters on the corner, so maybe that's its original name? It's certainly been called the Edinburgh Cellars in the past. I only made a note of a couple of beers - Twickenham Naked Ladies and Timothy Taylor Landlord, but my recollection - which may be flawed - is that there were more than a couple. I was in late afternoon on a Wednesday and saw no sign of food. This pub does retain some original features, such as the elaborate bar back and (grey painted) curved decorated archway on the left leading to the room at the back. The entranceway on the left still retains some original tiling and mosaic floor that informs us that it leads to the "Billiards and Saloon Bar". So obviously the room at the back used to be the billiards room. Now a thing of the past of course. I tend to share the previous reviewer's opinion of this pub. I found it comfortable enough inside enjoying a quiet pint, and then outside at one of the picnic benches enjoying the late afternoon sunshine. It was pretty quiet when I was in, but had a nice feel to it. I certainly wouldn't mind dropping in for another beer sometime.

This is a nice little corner pub with a cosy feel to it and some interesting heritage elements which made it worth exploring a bit. The pub is a short distance from Newington Green and has an L-shaped interior with modern floorboards and an angular servery down the right hand side. The bar counter has a nice traditional feel to it, although it was unclear if it was the original, whilst the bar back boasted some interesting arches on one side and a less attractive plain wall on the other, adorned apropos of nothing, with a zebra's head. Over to the front right, a few Chesterfields have been set up under some old lamps and clocks to create an old fashioned lounge feel that kind of works, whilst down the left side there is a row of tables and chairs from front to back. Perhaps the most striking feature is the pub's unusual decorative metalwork ceiling which gives way to plaster features further into the room. Beyond the bar, things open out somewhat, allowing space for sofas, armchairs and button backed banquettes, all under a collection of old portraits and some pillars with nice decorative capitals. I couldn't get away form the fact that the pub had a bit of a foodie feeling to it, but there were no menus to be seen and I didn't catch a glimpse of a kitchen either, so maybe that feeling is entirely unjust. There weren't too many customers in, late on a mid-week evening, which was a bit of a shame - perhaps they were put-off by the crappy dance music which was playing away in the background and seemed totally incongruous with this compact, traditionally styled pub. I think there were six handpulls on the bar but half of these were out of service, leaving a choice of Skinners Betty Stogs, Hackney APA and Ringwood Boondoggle. I tried a pint of the APA for £4.40, which was really good and slipped down very quickly, which was handy as I had to scoot off pretty quickly to attend a gig in nearby Dalston. I had no intention of visiting this place, but thought it had a good online write-up and chanced my arm on it. I'm glad I gave it a go, as it's a characterful place with some decent beer and comfy furnishings. It struck me that it makes a good double-header with the nearby Lady Mildmay and is another decent boozer in this part of town.