Pubs Galore - the UK pub guide

The Grace in N5

Just across the road from Highbury and Islington station, this is a conveniently located, if rather underwhelming bar attached to the music venue of the same name, formerly the smaller second room attached to the neighbouring Garage venue. The bar is open to all-comers and access is only restricted to the upstairs gig venue, which requires a ticket to enter. The bar is a very basic affair with scuffed floorboards, two rows of tables and chairs running front to back down the right-hand wall and through the centre of the room and a couple of tiny tables served by Chesterfields to the rear. For the most part, the room has been painted in dark shades, but the back wall has some wood panelling in a lighter tone that stops the interior feeling too dark and oppressive – a situation which is hardly helped by the large, heavy drapes that block out the front windows. The servery is along the left-hand wall and has a counter front covered by a decorative print and a plain bar back with the keg taps hidden away to the right, making it tricky to know what’s on – ask the barman to list the draught options if you’re unsure. The walls have been decorated with a few small portraits and some of those dull, ‘slogan’ framed prints, which are the epitome of ‘bland’ in my book. Some easy-going jazz played in the room, which was quite a concert to the rock concert I’d come here to attend. The venue upstairs is a small room typical of a pub venue with the stage to the rear and a bar at the front which only had two of its six keg fronts working, necessitating a trip back downstairs and a negotiation with the rather dim-witted bouncer in order to find something worthwhile to drink. The venue’s main point of difference is the remarkable number of mirror balls of all sizes that are suspended from the ceiling and no doubt would make a great Instagram selfie opportunity if you were so inclined.
The downstairs bar had three Camden beers on tap plus one from Goose Island and a fifth that I forgot to note. I tried a pint of the Camden Ink Spot Stout, which at £5.50 a pint, was heavily overpriced even given the bar’s prime location. The barman was very friendly and helped me work out what beers were available on the impossible to see taps.
I came here for a gig in the upstairs venue and only stopped in the ground floor bar for a pint because I’d arrived earlier than expected and found nothing of interest on the bar upstairs. These will probably be the only circumstances in which I find myself here again, as I found this a really uninspiring venue with very little going for it, content to charge extortionate prices for mediocre beer.
Reviewed by Pub SignMan