The Beer House, Charing Cross, WC2

Curiosity finally got the better of me and I visited here last night. I ordered a half of lager and handed over a fiver, “any crisps would you like?” No thanks, just the lager and maybe a smile. Nothing there! I cheered myself up by watching BBC News 24 report on how we are all going to die in poverty. An irate guy behind me that was being ripped off by the fruit machine shouted “You're ‘avin a laugh aint ya” – My sentiments exactly!

This small and rather faceless station bar is situated next to Platform 1 at Charing Cross and has few, if any, redeeming features other than it can bang out a swift pint if you have 10 minutes to wait for a train and you can’t be bothered to walk down the adjacent steps where ther are 3 or 4 pubs within a minute walk. To its credit it does usually have a couple of ales on (Pride & Youngs) although quality can be variable and the prices above what you would expect. The L-shaped interior is tidy enough and functional without being particular attractive or memorable. Service is rather impersonal and most people are treated as though they will never come back. I’m not sure any actually do. A plasma screen is tuned to subtitled news channels and sport is advertised on numerous posters. No bogs – you need to use the pay toilets so add an extra 20p to every other pint if you are here for a long session (the men in white coats will automatically arrive after you have ordered your 3rd pint). One plus point (yes, I’ve found one) is that there is a small tucked away TV screen showing the train departures which is handy on such occasions when there is disruption to services and you need to keep an eye on the indicator boards (particularly useful when 2 snowflaes fall at the same time). It won’t be the worst pub you will ever visit (some would disagree) but its reason for being is quite minimal.