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Detail Pages
The Islington Town House, N1
N1
N1 0RW
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Steve of N21 left this review about The Islington Town House
For reasons that I will not bore the good patrons of Pubs Galore about, last night we needed to visit a pub in London whose name started with the letter I, and it’s not until you do the research that you actually find that there are precious few of these close to the centre of London. Ironically there’s this one and the nearby island Queen, both walking distance from Angel tube station and we plumped for this one due to it being the closer of the two.
This is a much bigger pub than previous reviewers have given it credit for, as it is over three levels. The ground floor main bar and pub area is well described by Pubsignman below so I won’t repeat any of that. However if you were to traverse the large staircase to the right of the bar then initially you find yourself in an additional lounge section with comfortable padded seating and tables around its edges, which then leads down a couple of steps to a separate snug room area at the back. Then another staircase leads up to a further dining room that was roped off and not in use for our visit. The snug area on the second level can also be roped off and used for private functions, as can the top floor room.
We actually camped ourselves in the snug room as the weekly Wednesday pub quiz was taking place in the downstairs bar and they had The Arse* playing in Europe on the couple of muted TV’s (staunch gooner territory around here), neither of which we had any interest in.
Three of the strange garden fork handles had beer clips on them, so easy to spot that St Austell Tribute, Sharps Doombar and Solar wave were available. Unfortunately, the Tribute was flat and vinegary and had to be returned, and as this pub was one of many recently that we have visited where the in situ bar keep was unable to change an ale barrel, meaning we were on the Solar Wave for the rest of the evening. Fortunately, it stayed in good form.
Not one we will be rushing back to, but it serves a purpose and the largely younger demographic in the main bar seemed to be enjoying the pub quiz.
On 23rd February 2024
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2110 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Islington Town House
Just a short walk from Angel tube station, this is a simple pub dressed up as something approaching a trendy bar. The place is fairly compact, operating out of a relatively small ground floor room, which is bare boarded, with large windows down the front and right-hand sides, neutral painted walls and the servery along the rear wall. Nice padded benches stacked with large cushions, run beneath the front windows and are supplemented by some rather strange looking low backed chairs. There’s a row of high tables with bar stools through the centre of the room and a few more to the right, where a couple of comfy banquettes can also be found. The bar has a timber fronted counter with a beautiful varnished top and rather ugly bar back that incorporates a row of taps on a fake brick backing board. Large blackboards above the bar back detail beer, wine and cocktail options and there are some unusual heavy duty lamps above the counter, whilst the ceiling has lots of exposed utilities. Perhaps the room’s most eye-catching feature is a series of striking light shades hung from the ceiling, which are seemingly made from pebbles. A couple of TV screens were showing The One Show, mercifully muted, and elsewhere, the wall space is occupied by modern paintings and portraits that have been liberally dotted around. Stairs to the rear looked like they might possibly lead up to another room, possibly a dining area, but I didn’t explore. Music was playing quietly in the background, but this quickly became lost under waves of Friday night chatter.
Approaching the bar, I noticed a row of fork handles where I would expect the handpulls to be, before noticing that one of them had a Taylors Landlord clip on it and that they were in fact used for dispensing beer - quite why they made this stylistic choice (which I think I’ve only ever seen in pubs called ‘The Four Candles’ previously), I have no idea. My pint of Landlord was actually in very good nick, but was served at a remarkably cold temperature. There were a couple of Camden beers on keg plus one from Beavertown and a slew of continental lagers, but most people seemed to be drinking cocktails, which caused some tailbacks at the bar at times. The barman here was very friendly, stopping for a chat and allowing me to take a reserved table for a group that appeared to have no showed.
This place was a bit too sterile and formulaic for me, despite a couple of quirky stylistic choices, and seemed better suited to couples and young professionals, who made up the bulk of the clientele. Having said all that, the beer was great and the staff were lovely, so you’re unlikely to regret calling in, even if it’s not the pubbiest pub you;ll find in this part of town.
On 26th July 2022
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Graham Coombs left this review about The Islington Town House
My first impression was that the pub seemed smaller inside than expected, which I guess was mainly due to the excessive furnishings, cushions, table decorations etc. Various other bits of kitsch including the fork handle handpumps are still there, as is the appalling industrial ducting on the ceiling. Only TT Landlord on the clips, but yet again this was not on, so fall back to the Camden fizzy stuff. Much better pubs nearby.
On 16th September 2021
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3339 recommendations about 3276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Islington Town House
Corner pub with a single downstairs room and some uninvestigated upstairs seating. I'm not sure of the image they were trying to project with exposed industrial ducting snaking around the ceiling and then an attempt at quirkyness with milk churn stools and fork handle handpumps, the three of these offered up just Doom Bar with the promise of Landlord coming soon. I settled for a half of Camden Hells on keg at pocket teasing £3.00. Not likely to return.
On 26th June 2019
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1872 recommendations about 1845 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
custodian 42 left this review about The Islington Town House
Poor quality real ale - won't be returning.
On 19th January 2017
- rating: 3
[User has posted 1693 recommendations about 1691 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about The Islington Town House
An attractive and prepossessing building on a junction next to the entrance to the marketplace. Inside the interior has inevitably succumbed to modish modernisation but in fairness is pretty tastefully done. Original floorboards have been sanded, stained and varnished, the colour scheme is a muted olive grey colour and there are attractive fabric banquettes spanning one side of the room. Craft beer is the big buzz here, with a wall dispensing six from Goose Island, Beavertown and a couple of lesser lights at hilariously inflated prices (£6.40 for a pint of 4.5% Shoreditch Blonde, anyone?). Three cask pumps (or, more accurately, spade handles) with just a single one on, Truman's Swift. My half was a surprisingly cheap at £1.85 although the barmaid attempted to short change me by the tune of 3 quid from a fiver. When challenged, I was then over-changed by a pound. P45 for her. My eventual half was pretty good. Hipster/Trustafarian/Young professional crowd bar the obviously out of place fearsome-looking local who was snorting away like an aggravated bull, replete with a cuddly staffie. Not too bad, though I suspect its obvious shortcomings would preclude a revisit.
On 25th October 2016
- rating: 5
[User has posted 5089 recommendations about 5072 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Islington Town House
All change, and this is now the Islington Town House, 'Islington' written in substantially larger script, suggesting that this will be part of a chain. This pub is now no longer a jazz and blues venue, but a rather formulaic modern venture which ticks all the modern boxes: boarded floor, spot lights and modern lighting, part bare brick and of course, grey paintwork all designed to attract a fashionable young crowd, though there were few customers. The problem of course is that all the pubs around here pretty much look the same.
Furniture is mixed with some high bench seats and milk churns to the bar converted into stools.
Ales: Truman's Swift, Hammerton's N1 and Purity's Mad Goose at £4.20 a pint which was on good form and reasonably priced given the area.
This new pub is already a bit old hat and though far better than the Joker of Penton Street, it's still no match for the Craft Beer Co.
On 14th September 2016
- rating: 5
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about Round Midnight
The beer range still seems to be Deuchars, Doom Bar and Pride, though only the latter two were available and a "back soon" note adorned the back of the other pump clip. I had a half of London Pride, and was surprised to be charged £2.15 - quite a price hike since the previous review, unless there's a "half surcharge". If I'd bought a pint I can't imagine I'd have finished it, because this was pretty poor stuff, and even allowing for the beer being nothing like as good as it used to be, some blame must attach to the cellarman and bar staff.
As a concept, a jazz and blues bar is something I welcome, as I can enjoy most performers of either genre, and the guy who was noodling away on his National Resonator was OK while performing, less good while talking between tunes. But why spoil the idea with badly designed and uncomfortable seating and bland and poorly presented beers at rip off prices?
Best bit of my visit: Bob Newhart's gag about country music which has been graffito'd in the gents toilet. Good enough to get the rating up from what was looking to be a derisory 4.
On 26th August 2013
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3745 recommendations about 3482 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about Round Midnight
Dark, part-modernised corner pub, part-'rough and ready' live music venue. Uncrowded in the early evening before anybody came on stage, with quite a relaxed feeling and some well-chosen blues in the background. Pleasantly surprised to find three real ales on handpump - Doom Bar, Deuchars IPA and Pride (£3.50).
On 2nd April 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Roger Button left this review about Round Midnight
As the Agricultural, this wasn’t a pub that I used particularly regularly when I workd in the area. Whilst there was never anything particularly wrong with it, it was always a bland and uninteresting pub with better options nearby. I was nevertheless quite shocked when I first noted its new incarnation as a blues and jazz bar.
The bar is still in the same place albeit with a neon strip around the edge giving the place a bit of kitsch value. A couple of acoustic guitars span the wall behind and Jimi Hendrix peers over from one side. There is now a decent size stage at the pointy end of the pub with a good rota of blues and jazz artists on an almost nightly basis with many events being free admission.
The seating is a bit of a problem with the built in leather seating opposite the door being particularly lumpy and even the most hardened posteriors may find an evening’s band watching a bit hard going for the rear end. In front of the stage are some cube pouffes that aren’t exactly built for an evenings comfort either.
On the beer front, the 3 pumps dispensed Deuchars, Pride and Doom Bar, the former at £3.35 is a bit pricey but I suppose if you are getting the entertainment thrown in for nothing, then it works out at good value across the evening if you can catch a decent act. Food seems to be limited to arrange of 12” pizzas priced between £8 and £11.
It isn’t generally my kind of place as far as pubs go but such pub venues are few and far between and it is certainly a more interesting place than it ever was. I certainly wouldn’t mind experiencing a decent music session in here, as long as I can find a comfy seat.
On 22nd December 2010
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]