The Barrowboy & Banker, SE1

Great interior.Always busy and a good choice of Fullers beer inc bottles rarely available in Fullers pubs.Seems to be one of the first pubs to get the Fullers seasonal beers.Sky football shown.

Another of Fuller’s London bank conversions (this one was a Nat West) that is part of their Ale & Pie genre and situated by London Bridge. There are plenty of eye-catching features on the two floors; ornate dark wood, immense light fittings, intricate pillars, murals, portraits and open staircase. The Charge of the Light Brigade mural was particularly epic. Upstairs is often closed but if you can sneak up there (as I did) then the views of the bar area are quite impressive. The huge curved bar had six pumps dispensing five of the Fullers range with London Porter on keg. As has been mentioned elsewhere, the service level isn’t the best and my uninspiring half of Red Fox came in at £2.03. Having settled down with my Private Eye I noticed that I was sat next to a frieze entitled “The idle Barrow Boy who pay’d through the nofe”. The irony was not lost on me. Pop in for a look at the interior.

This Fullers Ale and Pie House, located opposite London Bridge station and the new Shard development, is a bank conversion typical of this particular chain. Formerly the Nat West bank, the interior retains a number of bold features from the original building. The servery, with a lovely curved bar counter and integral lamps, is positioned in the centre of the right hand wall, creating distinct drinking areas either side. Opposite the bar is a wide sweeping staircase which leads up to a gallery area with additional seating, which is useful during peak times when the ground floor can get extremely crowded. There is a lot of dark wood throughout and there are a few bits of partitioning towards the rear of the room with etched glass panels. Seating is mostly of the standard table and chair variety, although there are banquettes at the front of the room and numerous drinking ledges. Music played in the background during my stay and there was a TV on showing muted French Open tennis. A mural above the bar depicts an epic looking battle scene, the relevance of which was lost on me, but on the left hand side of the pub there are two Hogarth-style murals depicting the ‘Idle Barrowboy’ and ‘Industrious Banker’, which perhaps tells you all you need to know about which of the two the pub is pitched at. Further evidence of the target market came when I ordered a pint of the Fullers Hope and Glory and was charged a whopping £4.10. Other Fullers beers were available including London Pride, ESB, Discovery, Chiswick and Summer Ale. The service, as has always been the case when I’ve previously visited, was rubbish, with long waits at the busy bar whilst the staff chat amongst themselves, fail to keep track of who is next and get confused about what they are supposed to be getting you. For a long time this pub was a bit of an in-joke after several failed attempts to drink here – twice due to private parties, twice due to being ignored by the bar staff and once due to building work – but now that I’ve managed to get a pint in here I’m not all that keen to come back, especially given the better (and cheaper) alternatives nearby.