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Detail Pages
The Rose, Borough, SE1
SE1
SE1 3ST
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
David Walton left this review about The Rose
Visited 23/01/2018.
OK this is a somewhat belated review but based on my personal notes since I started keeping notes at the start of 2018. Full disclosure, this is my local, 30 seconds from my front door on Weston St. Been here a ridiculously large number of times pre recording of venues and an even more ridiculously large number of times since I started recording venues but this date is the single time I have noted this as a venue since I started counting venues at the start of 2018!
Pretty basic corner st venue, been pretty much in the same format since the date recorded but prior to that and its conversion to a more upmarket venue to catch the multitude of well heeled locals and more blue collar workers on building sites that have dominated the area over the last decade and a half and Guy’s hospital workers it was a more local estate venue showing sports - now showing silent early last century silent movies etc on a loop above the entrance door!
Always have a single beer on hand pump, has been Doom Bar for a while (I hang my head in shame) but generally more interesting than that. I generally tuck into a glass of wine here these days.
I love this place but I can’t rate it more than a mid range 5 on here.
On 16th April 2024
- rating: 5
[User has posted 115 recommendations about 115 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Rose
Dating from the late 18th century, this was rebuilt, probably in the 19th, formerly a Hoare’s house.
The windows are modern leaded with stained glass, but otherwise it would seem that the addiction to the copper theme mentioned in several earlier reviews no longer applies; it also boasts that it’s home to the Bermondsey Parmo, despite the pub not actually being in Bermondsey. There’s still the wood panelling, with studded banquette booths to the rear, beyond which is an ugly games machine, then tall conventional furniture to the front, but then again, the dim lighting (fake Victorian chandeliers and sconces) may have impeded my vision somewhat, but otherwise it’s as described, with trendy framed artistic prints, mocking senior members of the royal family. Customers were youngish with a fairly good buzz for a Tuesday evening, possibly buoyed up by the loud Stevie Wonder playing over the gramophone, so I doubt I’d find it any less busy on a Friday.
Amazingly there was just the one ale, something called Rose – Amber House Ale? at an insulting £2.85 a half and decent, though 10p cheaper than my half at the Horseshoe Inn across the way.
This place isn’t a disaster, but there are plenty of better pubs in the area.
On 31st March 2022
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
custodian 42 left this review about The Rose
Typical corner pub. Bar to the left. One hand pump which I didn't take note of. Rest keg. Room off to the right.
On 23rd September 2019
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1693 recommendations about 1691 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Rose
This pub at the back of Guy's Hospital was still an old fashioned corner local on my previous visit some six years ago, but it has since been partly refurbished to mix the traditional wood panelling and dark wood furniture with shiny hooped craft keg founts and gastro-pub food. Annoyingly, almost all the tables were laid up for non-existent diners, meaning that the compact bar counter area was unnecessarily crowded. Several (rebadged?) Snowsfield-branded keg beers on tap, with a solitary handpump dispensing Banks's Sunbeam (ridiculously expensive at £4.90).
On 15th October 2016
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Rose
A typical street corner Victorian pub, now opened out and taken firmly down the gastro path. Parquet flooring, mostly copper topped tables and a copper topped bar, a reasonably decent carved bar back, wood panelling rather lightly stained and an almost gold effect painted embossed wallpaper on the ceiling as well as the walls. Light blue child or nymph figures over the entrance lobby, a bust of Queen Victoria behind the bar and an old Charrington's sign were of note.
The main space winds around beyond the bar and past an open to view kitchen to a narrow area which eventually leads to a small walled courtyard garden. Stairs lead down to the facilities where the floor in the corridor is surfaced with glued on pennies which I obviously found unusual...how do you properly clean it?
The bar contained various keg offerings of a non-standard nature, one solitary handpump as far as I saw with Banks' Sunbeam, ridiculously priced at £4.90 for a 4.2% beer. Having said that the Sunday menu had a chicken roast for two at £33.
Well if the pricing policy didn't put me off the abundance of young children did, toddlers roaming about and sitting in inconveniently located buggies, not my idea of a relaxing Sunday pint.
A nice building and it could be a nice pub but it isn't one that is aiming in my direction at all.
On 12th September 2016
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1708 recommendations about 1681 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Rose
Located round the back of Guys Hospital and thus handy for London Bridge station (and the Shard), this is a typical back street boozer that has been given a fancy gastro re-fit. It's a simple pub with a single, rectangular room which houses the servery on the rear wall. The pub is bare boarded throughout and has a dark wood servery and bar back adorned with a collection of stuffed birds in display cases. There is plenty of seating in the main bar area and also in the smart, wood panelled dining area which is partly screened from view by a large pillar. A number of salvers and clocks were on show around the room, but the décor still felt a little bland and minimalist, with the wood panelling failing to recapture what was presumably once a smart, traditional interior. A number of plain mirrors can be seen around the walls and some of the windows have nice diamond stained glass inserts. The day's papers were available from a rack and I noticed quite a few old books stacked along the window sills. The clientele seemed relatively upmarket and a good proportion were here to eat from the somewhat pricey menu.
Just the two ales were available on this visit - London Beer Factory Summer Ale and Banks' Sunbeam. The Summer Ale clocked in at a whopping £4.90 for a pint, so suffice to say I only stayed for the one. It wasn't even in particularly good condition and I had the feeling the bar staff weren't impressed with me taking up a table that could otherwise have been used by diners. Keg beers included one more from London Beer Factory (I dread to think how much it cost) and something called Snowfields, which I assume was a rebadge of something else especially for this pub.
I thought this was a reasonable gastro pub that would perhaps be worth a visit if you felt a bit flush. But visiting just for a drink, I was left feeling a bit disappointed by both the choice at the bar and the ridiculous pricing. With so many other fine pubs in this part of town, it really is difficult justifying visiting somewhere that is blatantly ripping you off.
On 20th October 2015
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Rose
An attractive street corner building ,these days an upmarket gastro pub.There is some terrific detailing around,the apex entrance doors are superb,as is the ceiling covering and chandeliers above the bar.Parquet flooring and wood panelling maintain the upmarket vibe .A bust of Queen Victoria sits on the side bar ,with a classy framed print of her further along the interior.Seating is mainly at dining style tables although immediately by the entrance there are three smaller tables along a wall bench seat which feels more like a drinking area.Towards the rear there is an open plan kitchen where you can see the chefs at work while along the corridor to the downstairs loos is a seperate room ,unused on my visit but with a private feel.You must pay a visit to the gents to see a fantasic floor mosaic in 1p pieces and more interesting detail.
There are 6 keg beer taps and two handpumps ,one reversed leaving London Beer Factory Chelsea Blonde which was outstanding,and it needed to be at £2.45 the half.Scotch eggs and Sausage rolls at £4 seemed steep.
Food dominates with mains £13 -£22 and a 5 course tasting menu at £35.I didnt eat but what was coming out of the kitchen did look very good on the plate,stylish presentation.
This isnt a pub to engage in a solid session,it's very hip and I was by far the oldest customer,but it's well worth a look to view the expensive refurb and I may pop back to sample the food offering if I'm feeling flush.
On 20th September 2015
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2728 recommendations about 2728 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Alan Winfield left this review about The Rose
The Rose is a small corner pub that is set in the back streets of Borough.
Once inside there is a smallish single oblong shaped room with the bar facing,the seating is all pew type and chairs,there is an open kitchen to the rear right,so the pub must do quite a bit of food.
There were two real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Banks's Sunbeam which went down well,the other beer was Ringwood Old Thumper.
I thought this was a decent enough pub,but the background music was very old type and would get on my nerves if staying any longer.
Pub visited 26/5/2015
On 26th May 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 6113 recommendations about 6113 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Rose
I paid my first visit since the refurbishment a year or so, and found the prices to be just as expensive as previous reviewers seem to have found. The house ale - Snowfields Pale Ale (the barmaid didn't know who brewed it) - was £4.40 a pint, and the other ale, Banks's Mild Ale, is £2.30 a half and £4.50 a pint. There are also numerous keg offerings not from the usual suspects, including an oyster stout and a rye pale ale. The beers, with prices, are helpfully listed in menus on the tables. The food isn't cheap either. Sarnies are 8 (£ presumably), and the pie of the day is £12.
Inside it's been rather tastefully refurbished. It does have a bit of the 70s retro feel about it with the bar top, and all the tables, copper topped. Rather unusually, the ceiling's also a gold colour. The walls have some nice wood panelling some of which might be original - if not it's an excellent reproduction. Some of the decor is quite attractive including some stuffed birds/animals in glass cases above the bar back; some brass plates on one of the walls; and a portrait of Queen Victoria with the legend "record reign" (but not for much longer) above it. Their are no fruit machines, and I didn't see any TVs, and the music being played was some nice blues tracks at background volume level.
It's quite a nice comfortable pub, but I think the beer prices are a bit over the top even for this area (£4.40 for a 3.7% house ale?). Although I liked this pub, there are better, more reasonably priced, pubs nearby.
On 2nd April 2015
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
paulof horsham left this review about The Rose
Located in the quiet streets south of London Bridge, The Rose is a bright room on a street corner. On the bar, there's 2 handpumps and 6 keg taps, as well as a range of interesting beers in the fridge. All of these come in at the £4 - £5 mark, so it's not cheap. Declining a Great Heck ale at 6.5%, I opted for a 2 chefs Honey Beer which, while in great shape, wasn't really to my taste - should have gone for one of the keg Red Squirrel offerings.
The menu listed the beers as well as the food. The latter was very fashionably priced just by the pound ('9' or '12' for example), and the kitchen's on display.
The pub was quiet on my visit, although the same could not be said for The Miller just down the street - possibly the prices are a little keener there?
On 17th April 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 453 recommendations about 425 pubs]