Edgar's, E8

There's now no real ale on in here, but there were a half dozen or so unusual keg offerings. Three were from Hackney Brewery, including something with raspberry in it, but I went for the Session IPA at £2.40 a half. They do food - I saw burgers and the like advertised, but didn't note the prices. When I was in (about noon on a weekday) they were knocking out coffees like nobody's business, but I guess that in the evening this place becomes more of a bar than a cafe. But good luck to them for seizing a business opportunity. This place has been renamed Edgar's since the previous reviewer's visit, and no longer has the hippyish decor described. In fact it's a bit Antic-esque with a concrete floor retaining a few mosaic remnants, cheap old furniture, but including a few leather sofas and armchairs. The walls are all exposed brickwork, but all with bookshelves filled with books on them, and with a sign on one of the pillars saying that all books are for sale. There were also a number of book posters on the walls, including one for Ray Bradbury's classic Fahrenheit 451. But in a literature or library themed bar - bearing in mind that the "Edgar" is in fact Edgar Allan Poe - then that's hardly surprising. Despite the lack of real ale I quite liked this place as it had a laid back feel to it. But it's not really the sort of place to which I'm likely to return.

Long one roomed bar with a hippyish flower painted interior. Jungle creepers I suppose.Seating outside to the front.One handpump with Crate -golden ale also about 10 keg beers.Pleasant.

Stories is situated in the heart of the Broadway market and it is next door to the Dove pub. Once inside there is a single oblong shaped room,the bar is to the rear right,there are two long tables in the middle of the room for communal dining,there are smaller tables and chairs down the right side and to the front,there is an open kitchen to the rear right. There was one real ale on the bar which was Crate Best,this was a decent drink. The pub was packed out on my Saturday dinner visit with most people wanting to dine,i propped the bar up,background music was playing but was hard to hear because of the constant chatter of other customers. This would be quite a pleasant bar if visited at a quieter time. Pub visited 4/10/2014