The Kings Stores, E1

Hidden away in a backstreet, this former Greene King house has now been rebranded as a "Pub & Dining" establishment which will give you a good idea of what to expect. The sparsely decorated interior has been partly opened out, with limited seating in the front part but more tables towards the rear. Five handpumps on the counter, with Truman's Swift, London Fields Hackney Hopster, fff Moondance, Nethergate Night Boat stout (£3.90) and something with dark humour called Ripper's Tipple. Noticeably efficient staff.

Interior as described by Malden man below. 5 real ales and food served.

There's not much to add to the review below. The important thing about this pub is that Greene King have transferred it to its "Real Pubs" subsidiary, resulting in a wider range of ales being avilable. This is obviously a good thing for real ale drinkers, but one does wonder what motivates a large brewer like this one to go down this road. The pub itself is a largely characterless, but functional affair. There are better pubs nearby, but they're not so good when you can't get in them for the crowds. This one met our needs the other evening, and I thought the Truman Runner was in top notch condition. It's a handy bolt hole from the throngs around nearby Liverpool Street.

I think this pub has probably had a makeover since the previous reviews, as the lighting is now subdued, the beer range has changed and there is a definite leaning towards food. The ground floor has an open U-shaped layout around what I believe to be an old party wall between once separate buildings. The rear area looked more suited to dining with smaller tables with candles lit but not exclusively so whereas the varied seating to the front with high tables in the windows as well as standard issue felt more "bar-like". Wooden flooring, some exposed brickwork and a plethora of chalkboards listing this and that. There are a few B&W prints around, a TV was switched off despite Man Utd v Fulham taking place and some indeterminate music was playing competing with the loud noise of conversation in a mainly hard surfaced environment. Service was good and friendly with the barmaid offering tasters to our group as a couple of us dithered in our selections, there has been a move away from exclusively GK beers with Trumans Runner, Trumans No8, GK St Edmunds Ale and Twickenham Summer Down Under on offer with Wadworths Horizon reverse clipped. Numerous clips in four or five rows behind the bar are testimony to a good rotation policy with some interesting beers having passed through. There is a restaurant upstairs which was holding a private function, menus listed around and curiously also in the toilets suggested that this is not a two for £7 type place with such pub staples as Iberian Charcuterie Selection (£16) and Medallion of Rabbit with Smoked Paprika Risotto (£16.50) included. The roast baby chicken comes stuffed with black pudding. It is posh food at posh prices and the extensive wine list competes for attention with one Australian red demanding £73. Don't spill it then! I found the place ok for a pint, I would probably baulk at the food prices regardless of quality but we ended up in here after our Brick Lane curry as other pubs we had planned were too rammed for comfort at 7:30 on Saturday.

I thought that this pub was a little disappointing as it is rather bland and not what one would expect to find down an old London backstreet. Three of the four hand pumps were off leaving only Old Speckled Hen alongside the standard draught selection, Leffe and Peroni. Food is served all day and there is a function room upstairs that is available for hire. I spotted no Sky Sports Advertisements, but there is a projector screen in the front bar area and a plasma screen on the wall by the bar. There is also some more seating at the rear of the pub past the ladies and gents. There are far better pubs in this area.