The Plough, Bloomsbury, WC1

Yet another Taylor Walker branded pub that could probably be so much better in different hands. There is nothing intrinsicly wrong with the pub and the potential is certainly there. The interior divided into 2, the right hand side having a more basic approach with bare floors and leather banquette seating. The carpeted left hand side is larger with high tables, paneled walls and a flat screen (Sky & ESPN shown). Some old patterned windows remain although the Taylor Walker name on some of them look a bit cheap. There is additional seating upstairs in a separate room (doesn’t have it’s own bar) that is available for private functions and is an escape for the irritating piped nusic that ranged from Phil Collins to current chart fodder. Where the place really fell flat on my visit was the beers. There are 9 hand pumps (5 in one bar, 4 in the other) but despite all the pumps being clipped (albeit some doubled up), of the 6 different ales advertised (Youngs London Gold, Brains Rev James, Lees The Governer, Old Golden Hen, Abbott and London Pride), only 2 (Pride & the Governer) were actually available. Rattling off a load of requests for beers a la Monty Python’s Cheese Shop sketch doesn’t give me much confidence in the cellar management. Food wise, it’s the usual PubCo menu with main courses around £8-£14. With the Museum Tavern 30 yards away (another Taylor Walker pub) I would have thought that the Plough would need to be more on top of things in order to compete. Maybe it was a one off situation and I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now.

A below average pub, usually packed with tourists. Service leaves a lot to be desired and food is pretty poor. Beers are OK but nothing special. Overall - go elsewhere as you'll undoubtedly do better.

Randomness Guide to London - Plough entry

Randomness Guide to London - Plough entry

The Plough is well described by Rex below. A very welcoming Victorian exterior with lots of Taylor Walker branding and hanging flower baskets in summer, but the regulation interior doesn’t live up to exterior promise. However, it’s still a decent place for a pint if the Museum Tavern up the road is banged out with Tourists as it does benefit from outside seating and a moderately decent ale choice. There are five hand pumps which included Spitfire, Pride, Abbot and Youngs London Gold. But as Rex reported , the saving grace is the Brain’s Reverend James which although expensive, is a very decent pint and not often found in the Capital.

Bog standard Spirit Group offering, could be anywhere really. OK for a quick one, helps if you like GK beers. There are much better places than this around here.