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Chat about:
Beer of the Week (w/e 27th April 2025) with Thuck Phat
on the Pub Forum
Detail Pages
The Axe, Stoke Newington, N16
N16
N16 7HJ
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Pub SignMan left this review about The Axe
On approach, this looks like a rough old locals pub judging by the grubby tiled facade, lack of pub name and old Watney's signage, but inside you'll find a modern, trendy pub in a very similar vein to the nearby Jolly Butchers. The interior wraps around a large island servery with a dark wood counter and long missing bar back, which has been partly replaced by a glazed tile pillar in the middle of the serving area, with small shelves for spirit bottles attached to it. The walls are a mix of the same glazed tiles and some half height tongue and groove panels painted in a dark shade, with a lighter colour upper section. Hard benches run around much of the perimeter, with regular chairs elsewhere plus many bar stools around the long counter. Aside from a small fireplace to the far left, there is very little of interest, with the walls mostly left bare except for some beer boards, although there is a heavily stickered beer fridge in one corner that probably provides more colour than everything else in the room combined. A door to the rear leads out to a decent looking beer garden and music was playing in the background, but this got totally lost under the hubbub caused by a full house and complete lack of any soft furnishings.
Just the two cask ales to choose from - Fyne Ales Jarl and Harvey's Sussex Best - both of which were unclipped, so make sure to check the beer board to the right of the bar before ordering. Another board to the rear listed 17 keg beers and a cider option, with the beers coming from the likes of Lost and Grounded, Saint Monday, Kernel, Arbor and Vault City among others. My pint of Jarl was in good order, but I was a bit annoyed to have to drink it at the bar, as no tables were free, with lots of people eating on my Saturday evening visit.
There were quite a few annoying elements to this place, such as the chopped out interior and food focus, but I found myself quite enjoying this visit and thought it was a pretty good place to enjoy a well-kept pint. The ale range isn't the most extensive, but they look after it well and the keg options seemed very comprehensive, making this one of the better pubs in this part of town.
Date of visit - 27th April 2024
On 20th August 2024
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3350 recommendations about 3350 pubs]
Tris C left this review about The Axe
Date visited: 6th May 2018 - rating: 5
I tried visiting here a few times some years ago, but it always seemed closed. On one occasion though, I peered through the window to see a man sitting at a table using a laptop. When he spotted me, he jumped up and went behind the bar; I turned and walked away, which is a shame because I may have seen the original interior as what exists now is certainly part of the transformation from Jan’s, formerly the Cricketers.
It’s a reasonably spacious interior with garden out back, but is fairly swish. Not too minimalist or industrial, but quite pleasant with some pot plants to the interior window sills. A rough bare boarded floor of course, with several fixed slatted pale wood benches to the periphery, thereafter fairly normal tables, chairs and stools. The walls are covered with matchboard to around ½ height and are painted slate grey, along with the walls above. Thankfully, the ceiling’s white. A further smaller section of wall is clad in rectangular glazed white tiles, which are in evidence to the island bar which has a dark grey matchboard front and wooden top. Illumination isn’t that bright and I suspect is poor at night, coming from small spherical lamps fixed to the walls with exposed metal trunking and similar hanging from the ceiling. Customers seemed to include Americans and plenty of beautiful young women in floaty skirts and oversized sunglasses – you can tell you’re in Stoke Newington.
Ales: something Belgian at 6.2%, Harvey’s Best and Redemption’s Trinity at a very reasonable £3.80 a pint and good. I don’t know what a half cost, as the inattentive barman served me with a pint.
This may no longer be a traditional pub, but it’s not half bad. If only they had a wider and better selection of British beers, rather than specialising in Belgian rocket fuel I’d be more inclined to return, but this pub is certainly worth a visit if on a crawl of the area.
Open until 1.00 am on Friday and Saturday.
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This is a sister pub to the Earl of Essex (N1) and far superior Duke of Argyle (NW5). This place is unchanged, but the Belgian slant has been abandoned. Like the sister pubs, there's a beer board but with just two cask offerings at the time of my Saturday 9.50pm visit: Five Points Best and Harvey's Sussex Best, £2.95 a half and fine.
This pub is ok, but the feeble cask choice lets the place down.
Rated: 4.5.
On 4th August 2024
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2208 recommendations about 2165 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Terry Gilley left this review about Jan's
This used to be my local when it was called The Cricketers.
On 26th January 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 28 recommendations about 28 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Strongers . left this review about Jan's
There's a sign outside this pub that says 'come inside for Belgian beers'. I would have loved to but it was closed at 15:30 yesterday (Saturday) afternoon.
On 3rd October 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 5965 recommendations about 5931 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
elizabeth mcgraw left this review about Jan's
Previously called The Cricketers
On 8th August 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 252 recommendations about 249 pubs]