Singer Tavern, EC1

Fairly typical City drinking barn set up but with more character and style than the All bar one chain bars for example. Internally it’s well described below and can accommodate a fair few being fed on the bench seating during lunchtime and then an even bigger number of vertical drinkers in the central section after work hours. A group of 8 of us met up here for an initial beer before moving over to the Flight Club for an evening of social darts, and as a meeting place for a group of vertical drinkers it was a perfectly fine, except for a weak ale choice, as only one of the four ale pumps was operational. Fortunately there was quite a strong line up of modern craft options on the keg taps with brews from Siren and Four Pure being alongside the usual Camden and Beavertown offerings. And then a couple of fridges with other interesting craft options in cans. I also thought this was a decent pub of its genre and definitely serves a purpose in this part of town. It probably says more about us though that we chose not to return here after the darts but look up the more traditional Red Lion round the corner.

This is a fairly pleasant open-plan pub set on the corner plot at which two roads converge either side, creating a slightly wedge-shaped interior as a result. On entry, you find yourself in a spacious bare boarded area with a large open space directly in front of you. two rows of sanded tables and regular chairs run down either side of the room with a few high tables and stools thrown into the mix here and there. Down two side of the room, there are nice lattice-effect windows with plenty of plants stuffed along their sills whilst some attractive green and white glazed tiling fills in the wall space in between. The same tiling is also evident on two small support pillars in the middle of the aforementioned open space opposite the entrance. A large U-shaped servery dominates the rear part of the pub with its unusual retro counter and minimalist bar back adorned with lots of bare light bulbs. The pub's stand-out feature for me was the low ceiling which has a large repeated octagonal pattern across it, creating a very distinctive and memorable feature that feels fairly unique to this pub. The room's lack of soft furnishings means that it has the effect of echoing any particularly loud noises, but thankfully it was relatively quiet on my visit and this was only an issue once or twice during the course of my stay, leaving me able to enjoy the slightly left-field music that was being piped through the room. A second bar is apparently available downstairs, but it was unclear if this was open on a quiet mid-week evening, so I didn't attempt to explore. I noted four handpulls on the bar, two of which were unclipped, leaving a choice between Thornbridge Lord Marples and Tiny Rebel Citra Milk Shaker IPA. A very friendly barmaid served me a pint of the later for £4.50 and I thought it was a pretty interesting brew that probably deserved a bit more attention and appreciation than I afforded it on this whistle-stop visit. I thought this was a pretty decent pub for the area that seemed like a match for most of the other more traditional venues in this part of town. The place appeared to be well kept with friendly staff and a couple of interesting, well conditioned ales, making it worth knowing about if you happen to be passing through.

Slightly wedge-shaped building with the doors at the 'pointed' end. If it were not for the festive decorations, the interior might look quite plain, with two-tone tiled walls in light cream and Sherwood green. Very busy after work a few days before Christmas, so it was difficult to work out the furniture situation or see the full length of the three-sided bar counter opposite the entrance. Just two of five handpumps in operation, one with a clip I was unable to see but the other was dispensing a decent pint of Thornbridge Crackendale.

Busy smart modern craft beer bar.Green and white tiled intrerior with steel windows and doors.Large metal topped horseshoe bar.Bad acoustics.Noisy.About 12 keg beers and 4 handpumps with only 2 beers on Thornbridge -lord marples and Tiny Rebel-ryu.Not in great condition and expensive.

Official site of Singer Tavern - www.singertavern.com

Official site of Singer Tavern - www.singertavern.com

Large sports bar with plenty of screens. Can get very busy during live sporting events. Clientele mostly from the nearby offices of Moorgate and Liverpool St.