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Detail Pages
William the Fourth, E10
E10
E10 6AE
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about King William IV
Made a first visit here yesterday,a bit of a trip out of central London ,20 mins from Warren St tube to Walthamstow Central followed by a 15 min walk although buses are available.A fairly large Victorian pub,a large main room and a separate back room with a bar area and a few of the 24 handpumps this pub boasts.Only 9 or 10 of the 24 handpumps on lunchtime, I would imagine more would be available in the evening.Mostly Brodie's beers on but a couple of micro guests on as well,all cask beers are £2.35 ,excellent value,a pub well worth visiting but a bit of a way along the beaten track and not much else around nearby to compliment it as far as I can make out,but it is worth the trek.
On 8th September 2012
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1871 recommendations about 1844 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about King William IV
First visit to the impressive building forming the Brodies brewery tap. It was dark when we arrived so it was hard to see much of the exterior detail, but there is a fair amount to see once inside. Apart from the curiously-shaped bar in the main room, there are plenty of traditional pub features such as darts, bar billards, brewery mirrors, etc. Some 13 of the 20 handpumps scattered around the counter were in operation, with a vast array of beers ranging in strength from Summer Stout (very light at 2.8%) to Romanov Empress Stout (a whopping 12.1%). There are also five more (unused) handpumps in the smaller rear room. My pint was fine, and very cheap at £1.99, but there were issues with some of the beers tried by others - hopefully a one-off experience, or perhaps they are just trying to offer too big a range at any one time?
On 24th October 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
paulof horsham left this review about King William IV
Since we were in the area, I was understandably keen to pop in to the Brodies brewery tap. And with a choice of a dozen or more of their beers at £1.99 a pint, I thought I couldn't go wrong. Oh dear! My pint came out the consistency of mud. On pointing this out, I was advised to 'let it settle'. Further enquiry indicated a replacement would not be available. On returning later, I had a better pint of a wheat beer, but this could itself be described as 'tired'.
Those who have been more often than I say that this sort of quality is unusual. I do hope so: a reputation is far more easily lost than gained and I would like to think that James & Lizzie are on top of quality issues in their flagship pub.
When I next find myself in E10, I will pop in and I really would like to find a few Brodies beers that have travelled from the back of the pub (where the brewery is) to the front (where the bar is) in rather better condition than on this visit.
On 23rd October 2011
- rating: 4
[User has posted 453 recommendations about 425 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about King William IV
I decided to give this place a long overdue look prior to watching a game at Leyton Orient and found my high expectations met, if not exceeded by this excellent pub. It's not the easiest place to get to - I found my plan to get a bus from Leyton tube station scuppered by gridlocked traffic and ended up making the 20 minute walk instead.
The traditional interior comprises of two large rooms, the first of which is dominated by an unusual, curved bar counter. The pub was showing Arsenal vs. Spurs on two plasma TVs and a large screen, so all of the seating was set up to face the screens and the pub was packed as a result. Unfortunately the staffing didn't reflect this, as one lone barman struggled to serve everyone, causing long delays at the bar. This was the only real downside, but even then, the barman remained cheerful and helpful, offering tasters and enjoying banter with his customers.
A wide range of Brodies beers were available, including English Best, Mild, Special, Red, Citra, IPA and Kiwi, with Porter and Kosher Rye clips turned. A fridge clearly displayed the breweries entire range in bottled form as well and I also spotted at least one guest ale on the pumps. All of the Brodies beers are priced at just £1.99 which, judging by my pint of Red, is great value. I also had a well kept pint of the Citra, which wasn't quite to my taste.
There are plenty of things in the pub to keep punters entertained including a dartboard, bar billiards table, beer patio, book swap and lots of interesting items such as a petrol pump, various stuffed animals, some large brewery mirrors and plenty of old paintings. The fireplace in the rear room was lit, which only helped to enhance the warm and comfortable environment and made it more of a wrench to leave.
I found the place to be very welcoming and the sort of pub I could imagine spending the best part of the day in. One local advised me to come back in the week so that they could give me a tour of the brewery, which is in a building out the back. Were the pub somewhat easier for me to get to, I would certainly take this offer up and I hope to make it back here sooner rather than later.
On 28th November 2010
- rating: 9
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john mcgraw left this review about King William IV
A good old fashioned no nonsence East End boozer.A large front bar that reminds me of my good old days in the 60s when most pubs used to be like this.There is also a small back bar with an outside derinking area.The real ales are from the Brodies Brewery which brews on site and the 3 that I tried were excellent and at £1.99 you can't go wrong.
On 26th August 2010
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2044 recommendations about 2025 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
I L left this review about King William IV
Well worth the bus journey to do this large pub. At the time of our visit there were about 10 Brodies ales on including a dark mild, a porter, a stout etc. All ales that we tried were in very good condition. The food is also very good value here. Could have stayed here the rest of the day but we still had quite a few other pubs to visit around London. There were signs around about an upcoming beer festival in this pub. Will definitely be back here again.
On 19th August 2010
- rating: 9
[User has posted 287 recommendations about 284 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Roger Button left this review about William IV
Ever since Brodies Ales starting popping up on my travels I have had the Wiiliam IV as psrt of my “must do” portfolio. It can now, not just be ticked off, but added to the list of “must returns”.
A large traditional style East End boozer, the interior is divided into the main bar and rear bar although the general décor and ambience is the same between the two. The main bar itself is quite eyecatching feature and unusual with its severe curves that make it twice the length it would be it were straight as one would normally expect it to be. There are several artifcats dotted around the walls or hanging from the ceilings including petrol pumps, antique prams, musical instruments, an antique clocking-in machine and a good collection of old pictures, photos and some splendid large brewery mirrors. The rear section has its own bar with an Ind Coope mirror back. A brick fireplace is overlooked by stuffed buffalo and deer heads and note the unusual high barrel ceiling. A piano sits in the corner, at least I assume that's what it was as it was covered up but if any East End pub has a piano (and they all should) it would be this one. A small walled courtyard houses the microbrewery and if you are not lucky enough to be shown around, you can at least peer through the windows at the equipment.
As for the beers, naturally Briodies takes centre stage although with 16 hand pumps there is scope to cater for whatever they fancy. There were 5 Bridies on during my visit, all at £1.99 a pint (Red, Ginger, English Best, Special and Gold) with 2 (IPA and Porter) with reversed clips. No other guest beers on offer but an interesting choice of Dabinetts cider and Ross perry made up 2 of the remaining pumps.
I wouldn't ordinarily go into the food side of things but the English & Thai menu had enough selection to suit even Mrs B' fastidious veggie tastes. Virtually every Thai dish came with a veggie option, prices were very good (most dishes under a fiver) and portions generous.
Although my visit was on a Saturday night, there were plenty of tables available although there was still a healthy crowd of people. It must also be mentioned that, despite some people maybe having reservations about venturing into the area, there was no sign of any unsavoury customers to the extent that I didn't even hear any swearing all night (apart from me). The bar staff were chatty, attentive and very approachable, happy to steer you through what beers may suit your taste if you are new to ales or just Brodies beers. The only gripes are relatively minor; the music / TV balance is never going to keep everyone happy and, although not exactly a fault of the pub, parking in the area is a problem which makes it a bit of a personal issue as we only ever go anywhere Leyton in the car on the way to/from watching Spurs.
All in all, the Bill 4 (as we now refer to it) is a pub that is rapidly becoming an essential part of the London pub scene.
On 15th September 2009
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]