Crown & Sceptre, Fitzrovia, W1

Coming here after the relative comfort of the Fitzroy Tavern and the Yorkshire Grey, I was struck by the off-puttingly stark interior of this, my last pub of a getting-to-know-the-area crawl of Fitzrovia. First impression was of discomfort: visually, aurally and (potentially) posterially. I persevered as far as the point where I could see what beers were available: they turned out to be Sharps Doom Bar and Atlantic, with Marstons 61 Deep (I think it was) "coming soon". I beat a hasty retreat.

Basic one room corner pub with the bar to the rear. Three hand pumps - two weal ale and one reversed. Nothing special.

A stripped out and modernised traditional boozer with lots of varied seating for the affluent pretty young things of Fitzrovia. We called in for a quick drink before proceeding to the Bonnie Gull for seafood. Ordered a couple of pints of Mary Jane and a couple of glasses of fiz and went to stand out on the pavement to get away from the girls at the bar who were talking dolphin at dangerous volumes. The pub has few soft furnishings and being pretty full, the volume was well up on the decibel levels. The beer was OK, if slightly cloudy, but was a better option than the mainstream UBU or Doombar. Sorry, too many rolled up jeans with stripey socks and loafers for me, won't be going back.