The Sheaf, SE1

There has been much confusion between the 'old' Wheatsheaf [Stoney Street] and the 'new' Wheatsheaf [Southwark Street]. This has now been resolved as the latter has been re-named 'The Sheaf'. Staff now wear new design blue T-shirts.

Cellar bar under the Hop Exchange building, The arches in the roof provide a fine feature and there are various seating ares. All a bit basic but with great charm. There are various photographic portriats on the walls. Very busy with suited professions on my visit, there are 6 real ales & plenty of wine. A fine characterful place.

In the basement of The Hop Exchange building on Southwark Street and close to Borough Market and London Bridge station, is The Wheatsheaf, which, as we all know by now, has temporarily replaced a much smaller Wheatsheaf pub just around the corner which closed several years ago whilst a new railway bridge is constructed. Much larger than you would expect from the outside as you descend the few steps from street level, the “new” Wheatsheaf is brightly lit and has a number of different areas and alcoves. Arched brick ceilings remind us that we are actually in a basement, with, of course, no natural light. One alcove near the entrance has a darts board. Several alcoves at the rear can cater for small groups and parties. Seating is a mixture of traditional tables and chairs, with one screened off area having several large sofas. For those of us who don’t like standing, you can usually find a seat or table somewhere in the spacious interior. A large number of black and white photos on the walls are of regulars from the “old” Wheatsheaf, but the “new” Wheatsheaf has more of a bar feel to it than a pub and, based on my several recent visits, these regulars have not transferred their allegiance to the new pub. With a wide, but reasonably priced food menu, there’s a definite effort to attract a wider customer base than the previous pub did, with several groups of City workers enjoying post work pints and food. Several screens show televised sport and, on one recent visit, Newcastle v Man Utd was being shown and, unfortunately, this rather dominated and shaped the atmosphere of the whole pub. The Wheatsheaf is part of a small chain of London pubs – The Red Car Pub Co – and, in contrast to the original Wheatsheaf which was a Youngs pub, the new pub offers a good range of between 9-10 real ales. The range includes Red Car Best Bitter, a pleasant bitter with an ABV of 3.8% and which, according to the pump clip, would now appear to be brewed by Itchen Valley Brewery ( and not Nethergate ). Those of us who like to drink in a bit of comfort and space will probably find that The Wheatsheaf is a more than acceptable alternative to the rather frenetic and chaotic Market Porter nearby

Enjoyed our visit to this pub on Friday. The last call at the end of a long day, and we chose Idle Honey Porter from the selection available. Close enough to the busy Borough area, but seemed a calm oasis and very pleasant to drink in. 2011 Good Beer Guide entry.