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Chat about:
Disappointment of the week with Tris39
on the Pub Forum
Detail Pages
Mc & Sons, SE11
SE11
SE11 5QY
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5 of 10) see review guidelines
Tris C left this review about Mc & Sons
Renamed and rebranded in May 2023, this is the second in the Mc & Sons chain, though this features on CAMRA’s list of pubs with notable interiors, this being of Special National Historic Interest.
Aside from the rainbow flag, the first thing you notice on approach are the fine Bass/Worthington windows (see photos), though once inside, the bar back is the star here along with a small eight-person snug to the front, which can be hired. There’s a rough boarded floor, traditional furniture, eclectic framed prints which like the other branch celebrate the life of the McElhinney’s [sic], with a good acoustic band playing. It’s meant to have an Irish flavour, but it’s about as Irish as Joe Biden, likewise the Thai food.
One unused pump meant a half of Hepcat IPA at a price forgotten but no doubt high, served by a jocular barman.
This is a nice pub, but the lack of a quality cask option is a handicap so I can’t recommend it.
On 15th July 2023
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
custodian 42 left this review about The Royal Oak
Longish narrow pub with the bar to the left. Two hand pumps, one reversed, the other Doombore.
On 23rd September 2019
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1693 recommendations about 1691 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Royal Oak
They had a couple of ales on here - Marston's EPA and Doom Bar (£3.50 a pint). The Doom Bar was as good as it usually is. No sign of food or menus on Friday afternoon.
Someone once involved with this pub was a Tudor fan, as the interior has as much Brewer's Tudor as I've seen inside a pub. It all looks very post-war, although the pub itself is obviously much older than that. This is a small corner-site pub which has the look of always having been a basic boozer. It's certainly one now. I guess it's still an "Irish" pub, judging by the barman's and punters' accents, although I'm glad to say that the pseudo Irish theme "decor" is absent.
There were a couple of TVs on, neither muted, with one showing the horse racing and the other the darts. As a disinterested observer, I noted the contrast between the frantic racing commentary and the more mellow darts commentary. A couple of people seemed to be interested in the racing, but no-one was paying any attention to the darts and having the two competing commentaries was a little distracting. Furnishings couldn't be more traditional - soft red upholstered banquettes combined with standard issue tables and chairs, plus some tall stools at the bar of course.
It will be a bit better when the time for flashing fairy lights has passed, but this remains a real pub that seems to rely on a settled customer base. I didn't really mind sitting reading my book with competing sports commentaries in each ear, and although the ale choice is hardly inspiring it is the sort of pub that I might drop into again some time.
On 29th December 2013
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Royal Oak
Old-fashioned pub with a characterful exterior, including the unusual curved sign above the main corner doorway and remnants of old Bass etched glass in some of the windows. The interior is somewhat plainer, with more than a hint of the 1950s. Several Irish influences, ranging from the old barman (in his hat) and proper Tayto crisps. Two handpumps, offering EPA and Pedigree (£3.30).
On 16th April 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]