Dylans Kings Arms, St Albans Central, St. Albans

Don't often do reviews close together but thought I should in this circumstance. Different bar person but she was just as friendly, knowledgable and enthusiastic about the beers they had on as the last guy I met. A good place to chat about craft beer. Landlord was the cask beer on this visit

This is a cosy two room pub/restaurant in the historic centre of St Albans, occupying a lovely old timber framed building with striking glazed tile bands either side of the two entrances, one of which is now seemingly blocked. The pub is split into front and back rooms, both of which have a strong emphasis on food, so much so that when I arrived on a Thursday evening, I was forced to sit out on a picnic bench out on the cobbled street in front of the pub, due to every table inside being booked by diners. This denied me the chance to get a proper look inside, but I was allowed in to fill out the various bits of Covid paperwork, so I was able to have a quick look at the front room which has the servery over to the right and some decent seating options to the left. The walls are half panelled and dark wood beams across the ceiling help give the room an authentic traditional pub feel, enhanced further by muted lighting and various paintings, photos and mirrors around the walls. The front windows were liberally filled with generous flower displays, adding some good colour to proceedings and acting as something of a snob-screen to prevent passers-by from peeking in. The bar has a nice dark wood counter although it appears to be fairly modern and seating comes mainly in the form of high tables and stools along the left-hand wall, although more comfortable tables and chairs can be found by moving through into the rear room where things seem to have been set up more explicitly to cater for diners. There was a constant stream of diners coming and going throughout the course of my visit, which suggests the place is very popular but had the downside of keeping the staff within the pub rather than coming outside and taking my order, so I was left in the cold for some time before I was able to order a pint of the sole cask ale – Three Brewers of St Albans Golden (£4.50). Once the beer arrived, I was pleased to find it was in good nick, with a satisfying big foamy head. Eight craft keg beers were also listed on the drinks menu, including brews from the likes of Gypsy Hill, Verdant, Boundary and Tiny Rebel. I’m not sure I can offer a fully formed opinion of this place, having barely made it over the threshold, but I was able to surmise that it lends itself more to the diner than the drinker, but that should you wish to persist, you will at least be rewarded with a good quality pint to sup in a reasonably attractive, albeit food-led environment. I’m pleased I stopped off here but with so many good ale houses around the city, I’m only likely to head back here if I want something to eat.

The Kings Arms is situated in the middle of St Albans. Once inside there is an oblong shaped room which runs to the rear,the bar is on the front right side,there are tall tables and chairs in the front area,the rear area is up three steps and there are normal tables and chairs here. There was one real ale on the bar which was Dark Star Hop Head,this was a very nice drink. The pub was quite busy with drinkers in the front area,there was decent background music playing. I thought this was a decent pub to have a drink in. Pub visited 24/6/2017

A traditional looking town pub from the outside but once inside feels a little more modern,however its still very much a real pub, my ELB Cowcatcher was in good form. A decent pub and enjoyed my drink here.

Enjoyed a couple of decent beers on our visit, which were East London Brewing Cowcatcher and Dark Star Pale Ale. The pub was smart in appearance with some William Morris wallpaper near the entrance. The pub was getting busy on our arrival and getting served at the bar was fast and efficient.

Located just off the Market Place, this is a slightly more contemporary pub than many in the vicinity, and perhaps due to it’s central location there is more of an emphasis on food here although it is also something of a “craft beer” venue and the front bar is still very much for drinkers. The front bar has a sanded wooden floor with traditional black beams on the ceiling, although the paintwork on the walls is more Farrow & Ball. A mousse head was mounted on the end of the bar and there were a range of bottled beers up on a shelf. The larger room at the rear was clearly more geared up for dining with all the tables being laid up. This had a tiled floor and white painted boards on the ceiling. The loos were definitely of the posher variety than your normal pub bogs and included incense diffusers and a stack of thick paper towels in a basket. Cask beers on a recent visit were just Cowcatcher from East London Brewing and Dark Star Pale Ale, whilst a third pump for Timothy Taylor Landlord appeared to have run out. As befits it’s craft ale pretensions though, there were also a number of keg options available which were a trio from Brew Dog with their Jack Hammer, Libertine and Dead Pony along with Union Summer Wheat Ale. Oddly my notes make no mention of any cider – hopefully they had something, but my memory of this pub is a little hazy for some reason.