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Cambridge PuG Crawl, Friday 5th April 2024 with Gann on the Pub Forum

The Old Thameside Inn, Southwark, SE1

Clink Street
SE1
SE1 9DG
Phone: 02074034243

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Pub Type

Nicholsons (Mitchells & Butlers)
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Reviews (Current Rating Average: of 10) Add Review see review guidelines


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Rex Rattus left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

This is an uber touristy place on the river next to the replica of the Golden Hinde. This one's selling point is its riverside location with plenty of outside seating, which works well on a warm summer evening, but perhaps not so well during the winter. As you enter the pub you see a largish area at the back which is for diners, with full table service advertised.

Being a Nicholson's (M&B) ub there is a reasonable selection of real ale on, but of course not cheap in this part of the world. They had on Doom Bar, Proper Job, Tribute, Nicholson's Pale, and my half of Wild Beer Bibble was £2.80 a half. This place is actually rather nice if you can bag a table on the verandah overlooking the river.

On 17th August 2022 - rating: 6
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Brainy Pool left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

marginally better than the Anchor nearby but equally corporate and aimed at trapping those who don’t know better. Inside it largely feels like a McPub Fast Food experience for tourists whereas outside has the added bonus of groups of French schoolkids giving you a headache. The beer is good, though at a hefty price.

On 17th May 2019 - rating: 5
[User has posted 1051 recommendations about 1016 pubs]


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Blackthorn _ left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

A large and expansive Nicholson’s pub on the banks of The Thames, it offers great views of many of the city’s most well-known buildings including the Gherkin and the Cheese Grater as well as being immediately next to the Golden Hinde, the replica of the original ship that circumnavigated the globe captained by Sir Francis Drake. There’s a good sized decking area alongside the ship, as well as further seating on a river side terrace at the front of the pub. All in all, a prime spot.

Internally it’s split over a couple of levels although we did not investigate the downstairs cellar bar on our visit. Décor wise it’s quite traditional with a wood strip floor, some exposed stone walling and a few beams on the ceiling as well as chunky timber supports. Plenty of flower pots on the window sill added a splash of colour. A couple of TV screens were showing a sports channel, but the volume was off so this was not too intrusive. There was some banquet seating around the perimeter, but mostly it was just tables and chairs. Service at the bar was fast and efficient.

Beers on tap were London Pride, Pedigree, Timothy Taylor Landlord, Nicholson’s Pale Ale, Great Heck Christopher and Young’s Hummingbird. Ciders meanwhile were Weston’s Caple which is a new one on me and Mortimer’s Orchard.

On 13th April 2017 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1937 recommendations about 1850 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Pablo Griffiths left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

All the advantages of this pub are in the location. It relies on passing trade. Repeat customers would likely go there because of the location by the river, with balconies overlooking the Thames. If you stick to ordering a drink from a bottle and going back to your table you may never suffer from the poor service on offer. However, if you need anything more you may come a cropper.

On a very busy day like today, you may find that staff mill about behind the bar, taking their time, chatting before getting to the crowds waiting to order, with their manager shouting at them to serve customers. You may find that the 'Mulled Cider' they serve is warm, not hot, and the taste is not unlike dishwater. Sadly when I went back to apologetically let them know that it was pretty poor I was told exactly WHY it was so poor when the manager was trying to justify its quality... in the manager's words: "We get the cider in a bag (!), and in the morning put it on the heat -[raises eyebrows] MULL it, and then dish it out over the day. You can't blame us for it being poor." Well, I would suggest I can blame you for buying cider by the bag. Make the mulled cider OR choose a decent product. For £4.95 a hit it was p*ss poor. I do not use this word lightly, it is an accurate description of the product.

The alcohol had evaporated away a while back (a lesson in making mulled alcoholic drinks: HEAT+ALCOHOL+OPEN LID+ TIME= EVAPORATION OF ALCOHOL). See http://tinyurl.com/gp7qm34: after 2.5 hours of mulling you are left with 5% of the original alcohol content. As the alcohol content was originally 4%, by the time I got there it would have been 0.2%. So it seems I was right. In order to avoid this you need to be making it as you go along, chucking it out if it is not served within the hour, or topping it up with a spirit. Brandy is a popular choice for this purpose.

My gripe is not just with the quality of the drinks, the inadequate expertise of the management, the inattentive staff OR the way he admonished his staff for their inadequacies in front of customers... the worst was making me feel as small as possible for letting him know that he could improve the experience offered. Yes, he replaced it with another (less expensive) drink at my suggestion, but made it abundantly clear that he was doing me a HUGE favour and that he thought I was out of order. "You don't like it, that's why you brought it back. THAT's not a valid complaint." If you don't want to replace it don't do it. I was polite and meek, apologising for bringing it back and suggesting it might help. But don't revel in your own perceived moral superiority for giving in to replacing a poor drink while belittling the request. It defeats the object of offering the replacement drink, which I would have thought would be to leave the customer feeling as though their money was not wasted.

The worst of it was that while leaving I saw (very clearly) the same manager pouring a (returned? abandoned?) glass of wine INTO the mulled cider pot. So glad we returned it. What else might be in there?!

The food (a burger) that one of our party had was enjoyable. As were the rest of the drinks (all from bottles).

On 23rd December 2016 - rating: 2
[User has posted 1 recommendations about 1 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

Touristy Nicholsons in a prime position on the South Bank beside the (fake) Golden Hind. The outside terrace is a fine spot on a sunny day and when not overcrowded (admittedly a rare combination...). Large 'L'-shaped bar plus a cellar bar and dining area downstairs. Quite a few duplicate clips, but still a fair selection of festival ales from two banks of six handpumps on this visit (including the seasonal Cross the Line from Stewart Brewing).

On 11th October 2015 - rating: 6
[User has posted 8061 recommendations about 8061 pubs]


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john gray left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

Nice waterside pub from the Nicolson chain.Loads of tourist but has a nice setting.Outside seating with a pretty view of the ship outside.Good range of beers as usual but expensive.

On 31st December 2013 - rating: 6
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]


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Bucking Fastard left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

A great location with an outside terrace running around the building on the waterfront,with the Golden Hind to one side in a dock this Nicholson's doesn't have to try too hard given the tourist trap nature of the area.The interior is at a lower level and so the windows dont offer the same panoramic views as being outside.There is a lot of exposed brickwork and the pub has a lower cellar bar which I didn't visit.The decor is traditional but looking a little scuffed at the edges.There are two banks of six handpumps but all beers are doubled up.On my visit besides the regular London Pride and Nicholson's Pale Ale there were three guests from obscure microbrewers and my pint was golden, clear yet dull.So unmemorable the name has been erased from the grey stuff.
The overriding impression is of sloppy execution by the team in charge here.This is not one of the better Nicholsons. Sadly there are few better alternatives close by apart from The Rake.

On 28th March 2013 - rating: 6
[User has posted 2709 recommendations about 2709 pubs]


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hondo . left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

Nicholson's pub next to a full sized reconstruction of Sir Francis Drake’s Tudor galleon The Golden Hinde. 2 floor bar (didn't visit the cellar bar) serving real ale and food. The pub has an outside terrace overlooking The Golden Hinde and the Thames.

On 29th October 2012 - no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]


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Pub SignMan left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

This is a pretty big, tourist reliant pub situated, as the name suggests, on the banks of the Thames, not too far from London Bridge Station or Borough Market and a short stroll from the Globe Theatre or Tate Modern. It's easy enough to find as you are greeted by the sight of the Golden Hind, which stands right outside the pub's entrance. Perhaps the biggest draw for this pub is a stretch of wooden walkway between the river and building, which is lined with high tables and stools and affords great views of several riverside landmarks of the capital.
The interior is a different story. As with many pubs of its size, the place feels a little dirty and uncared for, with dull wooden floors and walls, sticky tables and a general feeling that the place needs a bit of sprucing up. It has the feel of a typical town centre drinking barn; a notion that was reinforced when the lady at the table next to us realised that her bag had been stolen from the back of her chair. Later in the evening a drunken bloke started trying to pick fights with whoever stood next to him at the bar whilst the staff turned a blind-eye to the whole thing.
The beer, thankfully, made up for these short-comings. A good selection was available including London Pride, TT Landlord, Sharp's Doom Bar, Hook Norton Old Hooky and Leeds Midnight Bell. I had a very nice pint of the latter and several good pints of the Old Hooky. We also tried some of their food, which was okay, if a little uninspiring.
As a pub it is flawed, but has enough about it to make it worth a look. I've always thought it is a good pub to meet up at, given it's distinctive location, but for a decent session there are a number of pubs in the vicinity that would offer a better experience.

On 2nd September 2010 - rating: 5
[User has posted 3102 recommendations about 3102 pubs]


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Steve of N21 left this review about The Old Thameside Inn

One of my regular stops for a pint when walking the Thames Path, although I can understand some of the comments below.
A former spice warehouse retaining a lot of the original brickwork and beams, it does attract the tourist but that is understandable given its location. And the service and ability to pull a full pint can be a bit iffy, especially at busy periods like early evenings.
But it’s usually bearable, especially compared to the woeful past experiences I’ve had at the Anchor, further along the Path.
And now that Nickolsons have fitted 12 hand pumps along the bar, you can usually find the Timothy Taylor and Fullers house Ales and a good choice of rotating guest beers. In my experience the beers are generally OK and were again last week when I had a good pint of Moorhouse Black Cat.
Plus if you can get a seat on the outside balcony then you are rewarded with iconic views of the north side of the Thames.
I personally wouldn’t eat here as the service can be a bit hit and miss due to the tourist demand, with the possible exception of in summer when they usually have a BBQ on the go on the outside Terrace and the couple of times I’ve tried this it’s been good and decent value considering where you are.

On 5th April 2010 - rating: 6
[User has posted 2094 recommendations about 1985 pubs]

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