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Submitted on Tuesday, 2^nd September 2008
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Requested be closed with reason - Other: Passed this afternoon: name fascia removed, windows whitewashed.

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Pub reviews (3)
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The Academy, W11

57 Princedale Road
W11
W11 4NP

Correct details

Served areas

Notting Hill, Holland Park

Reviews of The Academy (Average Rating: 3½ of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Tris C left this review about The Academy

Until 1987 this was a pub called The Crown. This is an absolutely tiny place with a very small central bar. Bare boarded, it's a stark white/ivory colour throughout with people eating food along the right side. I don't know what kind of food this place serves as it doesn't even have a website, but I get the impression that it's trying to be food-led.

Furniture is very eclectic ranging from the traditional and conventional to some bent ply chairs with chrome legs; to the bar are black vinyl-topped bar stools, also with chrome legs. The bar itself is metal topped, presumably in an attempt to create a modern and stylish feel. The pub is wood-panelled to window height with a fireplace to the left rear. Lighting comes from downlighters and chandeliers, whilst the windows are shielded by teak-stained Venetian blinds. In-bar entertainment comprised muted jazz on the stereo. The place is clearly geared towards affluent locals who have no other choice in this street where still standing, there are the former Earl of Zetland, Plasterers Arms, Prince of Wales and the Unicorn. The lavatories were small, quite dated and functional and could do with some work; the trough urinal was partially blocked.

The barmaid was friendly enough and served me with a pint of Pilsener Urquell (£4.80 a pint). All that came close to real beer was Blue Moon craft ale on keg. Thereafter it's something Polish with a name that looked as if it had been plucked from a Scrabble bag, Guinness and the egregious Magner's. All drinks are dispensed from a central chrome tap.

This place seems a little tired and a bit 1980s - as mentioned below, it would take a great leap of the imagination to still describe this place as a pub. I won't be coming here again, not least because vastly superior refreshment can be had from The Castle just at the end of the road.

On 7^th August 2015 - rating: 2
[User has posted 2208 recommendations about 2165 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Academy

Upmarket corner bar / restaurant, with a mix of furniture and sparse but light decor. Compact 'L'-shaped bar, with a dining area beyond and several little patio tables out on the pavement. French background music. No real ale, so opted for an expensive pint of Kozel (£4.50). Odd place.

On 30^th June 2013 - rating: 5
[User has posted 8679 recommendations about 8678 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Roger Button left this review about The Academy

A back street corner pub that is so geared towards diners that describing it as a pub would almost contravene the Trade Descriptions Act. The main body of the pub is quite spartan with bare floors, plain windows with sash blinds and walls that containg modern art. Most of the tables were sporting cutlery, wine glasses and plastic flowers on my vist and it felt quite awkward knowing whether or not to grab a table without the intention of dining. To make things worse, there is actually a separate room to one side that is also predominantly for diners although there wasn’t actually anyone visibly interested in eating during my visit with the only other punters gathered outside on the small strip of Astroturf leaving the inside pretty deserted and souless. Not much on the beer front either with the one Ale on handpump (a very expensive Bass ) and little else out of the ordinary on the keg / lager range. Admittedly it was early evening for my visit and with a few punters inside it might not come across so characterless but if you are just after a pint, there are far better local options.

On 29^th December 2009 - rating: 4
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]

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