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Detail Pages
The Lady Mildmay, Newington Green, N1
N1
N1 4PR
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Steve of N21 left this review about The Lady Mildmay
This fine Victorian pub sits squarely in the Mildmay estate, landowners since Elizabethan times. Having been called several things it now takes its name from Lady St John Mildmay, who sold large tracts of the estate in the first half of the nineteenth century which were then developed for housing. I’m sure if she, or any of her rellies were to return they would be only too pleased to find that the current Lord Mayor of London has pissed tons of public money up the wall to rename an overground train line after them.
On a very warm Thursday lunch time I found this pub in rude health with several in both for the food and just for drinks. Yes, it is a bit foody and normally I am not a great fan of open kitchens, but this one is tucked away behind the right-hand side of the central U-shaped bar, and you almost don’t know it is there.
As mentioned below it is now one high ceilinged room that wraps around the central bar, but was clearly multiple rooms back in the day, and another one where you can play spotting where the walls would have been from the supporting beams in the ceiling.
The food menu did look good, especially as they had a reduced lunchtime menu for just £9 which were clearly bringing people in. But I was here for the ale and on that front three of the four pumps were in operation with ELB Foundation Best Bitter, Five Points XPA and Howling Hops Tropical Delux Session Pale Ale. On this fine day when they had all the windows wide open to bring the air in I went for the latter and fruity it indeed was.
On 3rd July 2025
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2279 recommendations about 2135 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Lady Mildmay
As you approach this street corner pub the battleship blue/grey gives the impression of gasto makeover.And indeed the high ceiling interior with vast plate glass windows is largely bare but does retain some cornicing.The pub is L shaped with polished floor boards throughout.Chunky wooden tables and chairs can doubled up for dining if necessary,there is an open kitchen to the side while a lower former billiards room has a massive sky light but these days has a mix of furniture .The colour scheme inside is maroon up to the dado rail,there are bar stools but the small woodburner is an electric fake.
The food menu is short but clearly properly cooked,no food service crap here and the chef was setting up for dinner service on my Friday afternoon visit.Median main £17.
When I arrived the handpumps were offering a real cider and 360 Degree ESB (half £2.40 ,the brewer produced a hop light malt monster not to my taste ,NBSS 2).However as I looked like a CAMRA type,after a while the staff started pulling through Five Points Best and ELB Seven Boroughs both of which I would have chosen ahead of the ESB.Shame.
I may have been unlucky and it might be worth popping in as they are not scared to offer some high ABV real ale,but on my visit it was a bit trendy and ho hum.
On 4th June 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2997 recommendations about 2997 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Lady Mildmay
Date of Review: 3rd October 2017.
Situated in leafy Newington Green on the Islington and Hackney border, this is a very high ceilinged mid-Victorian pub - currently named after another Lady Mildmay in the locality which closed around 20 years ago - originally called The Clarendon Hotel then Palms and Liszt, next The Nobody Inn thereafter back to The Clarendon before being named The Dissenting Academy prior to gaining its current name last year.
The interior is L-shaped with a central bar, white walls and dark brown lacquered wood with t 'n' g panelling to around shoulder height and matching brown ceiling with some attractive cornicing and one ornate ceiling rose. The floor is bare boarded and the overall impression is one of being very stripped out - though not industrial - and devoid of décor; there's an open kitchen, all ensuring that acoustics are very poor and none too comfy; a bit soulless. Furniture is generally of the old school style with some Chesterfields to the rear and an upright piano being the only concession to music and there are two unused fireplaces, one attractive and metal and one very beautiful and marble. Customers are solidly middle-class and generally young; some couples dined with babies, the food being more gastro than most with a menu influenced by food from countries such as France, Italy and Spain.
Ales: a milk stout, three pumps not clocked and Meridian Pale Ale at £2.00 a half and utterly bland.
In the main this is a nice pub but could benefit from some décor (not least to soak up the noise) and a more beefy ale. Combined with The Cellars and The Alma, this makes for a nice trio to visit.
Originally Rated: 5.
-------------------
A return last night and this pub has bedded in well, my last visit undertaken just after another refit. I'm not sure if the piano was still there and the poncey prints have gone. The pub is also far less food-orientated than before; there's still food obviously, it just isn't so obvious and for the better.
The interior is still the same (see photo) but it now has a more pubby vibe, with an older crowd and stolid ale drinkers too. There's now a real cider along with four pumps dispensing Hammerton's N7, ELB's Foundation and Pale with Five Points XPA, both charged at a pre-plague price of £4.70 and both on great form.
This is now really something of a must-visit for N1 and I'd have no problem popping in again if passing. Score increased accordingly.
On 16th May 2022
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2266 recommendations about 2218 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Lady Mildmay
This is a large, heavily modernised pub on the South East corner of Newington Green. You're greeted on entering by a huge, open interior with high ceilings and bar floorboards which make it very echoey throughout. Whilst the pub has been opened out as much as is possible, its complex shape means that discernible separate rooms can be identified. The front room for example, is an awkward, irregular shape with an L-shaped bar counter on the back wall and a couple of seating areas off to either side. Large windows dominate the wall space, meaning decor is limited to a few blackboards listing various food and drink options, plus a scattering of somewhat dull photos. Standard tables and chairs line the perimeter each side of the bar and these are, rather uninspiringly, the only seating options in what is a pretty big space all told. The bar has a nice dark wood counter and modern white tile bar back that seems to fit well with the general modern, family-friendly feel the pub is seemingly aiming for. Past the right side of the bar, the pub runs back into a rear room, passing a kitchen serving area and nice stone fireplace on the way before emerging into another large seating area . Here you''ll find lots more standard seating, another nice fireplace, some retro posters and an upright piano, but on a relatively quiet mid-week evening, the room felt a little cut-off from the rest of the pub. There are some attractive ceiling decorations throughout the pub and I can't recall seeing any TV screens or hearing any piped music.
There are five handpulls on the bar, one of which was out of action with a 'Coming Soon' clip for a Hammerton beer on it, leaving a choice of four ales - Twickenham redhead, Animal Gribbit, Redemption Big Chief and XT3. The Big Chief was served to me by a very friendly barmaid who was part of an small efficient team, and set me back £4.20. It was in good shape and I was planning on staying for another before I discovered there was another decent sounding pub nearby which I went to check out instead.
I liked this place and thought that it just about held its own in the face of a pretty heavy handed refurbishment. The service was the stand-out for me, but the four interesting beers in good condition was a big positive and I can imagine with a bit more of a crowd, the pub could generate a pleasant atmosphere.
On 23rd July 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3361 recommendations about 3361 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Lady Mildmay
A nice pub with maybe a slight nod toward the gastro.The wooden floor ,white walls and burgundy ceiling and window frames give a modern feel yet manages to maintain its pubbiness.
There were three beers on,Twickenham Naked Ladies,Sambrook's Junction and Stod Fold Blonde.
I tried the Twickenham beer which turned out to be hazy and not tasting to good,it was changed with good grace and an apology,the clip was immediately turned around which is always good to see, my replacement in the Stod Fold was excellent.Its a pleasant pub.
On 2nd May 2016
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2210 recommendations about 2176 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Dissenting Academy
Decent pub but empty on my Monday night visit.Nice art work on the walls.4 handpumps with Laines -best,kings -northern nights,hackney -red ale and hackney -oatmeal stout.Loungy sort of place with sofa,s etc.
On 16th January 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Dissenting Academy
Angled corner pub, part opened out at some stage to form a 'L'-shape bar with a mix of furniture including standard tables and large sofas. Bohemian decor, with ultra-low illumination (mostly tea lights on the tables). Dining room to the rear, located down a couple of steps. Just two of seven handpumps in operation, with Hackney New Zealand Pale and the 'house' Laines Best (£4.10) available when I visited. Not many customers, but the staff didn't seem particularly attentive; and with the limited beer choice and 'hip' features such as unisex toilets, I found the place rather annoying.
On 22nd November 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8813 recommendations about 8813 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john mcgraw left this review about The Dissenting Academy
Was called The Clarendon
On 8th January 2013
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2044 recommendations about 2025 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Clarendon
This is one of the handful of London pubs recently acquired by InnBrighton, which they have re-named from the Clarendon. The name recognises the non-comformist (i.e. not CofE) educational establishments of the 17th - 19th Centuries, one of which was just down the road at Newington Green.
There were several ales on - Laine's Best (the house beer), Hophead (Darkstar?), Ha'penny Springjack, and Hepworth Pullman (£3.70 a pint), as well as some of the more unusual lagers on tap. All the clips were handwritten with just the name of the ale, and, helpfully, the ABV. There were three handpumps unused. I didn't see any menus, but there were mugs on the bar counter containing cutlery, so I guess they must do food at appropriate times.
The pub itself has a bit of the Antic feel to it. It's been heavily madeover, but the decor's not quite so bizarre. There's a lot of odd artwork around the place - a Warholesque portrait of Hendrix, a massive picture of the face of a man smoking, some African carvings, and a coatstand with an old shirt and cap on it. Not sure if the latter was a decorative featue or not, but my grubby old coat didn't look out of place on it. There's a good mix of sofas, armchairs, and nomal tables and chairs, and thankfully no tall tables/tall stools. There are no fruit or games machines either, and I didn't see any TVs.
I've been to a couple of InnBrighton pubs now, and I have to say that although they are modern in appearance, they are comfortable and perhps even luxurious. I quite like this one. An excellent pint of Hepworth's Pullman is a big help of course, and I'd be very happy to visit again.
On 21st November 2012
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2607 recommendations about 2521 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john mcgraw left this review about The Nobody Inn
Now reverted back to it's original name THE CLARENDON. With varying casks ales (e.g Dark Star, Redemption,St Austell & 3 Ciders)
On 21st January 2012
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2044 recommendations about 2025 pubs]