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Disappointment of the week with Mobyduck
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The Lord Napier & Star, Hackney Wick, E9
E9
E9 5EN
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
I recall having seen this building before in its derelict state, but still standing out due to the colourful graffiti adorning it. Whilst this area still has a bit of a gritty feel to it, it also appears to be up and coming. The pub re-opened after a hiatus of 26 years, with the graffiti sill present.
On a matchday, there was a bouncer on the door and the place was packed. It was difficult to get to the bar on the ground floor. Although I believe there was a further bar upstairs, with a roof terrace for better weather.
With it being so packed, it was difficult to see what beers were available. The solitary cask ale was Cloudwater It's Coming Home. However, I didn't choose that and ended up with a couple of craft beers, namely Verdant Putty & Drop Project Crush.
Bar staff, or at least the guy that served us, were fairly clueless. He kept telling us that each beer we were ordering wasn't on. Given we couldn't get to see the full selection due to the crowds, it was very difficult to select a beer that he agreed was on. The whole process was taking a lot longer than it needed to and wasn't exactly helping reduce the queues of people waiting to get served. For the second round, crowds had thinned a little and I had spotted the beer I wanted. Again, he said it wasn't on, but luckily another barman, possibly the manager/landlord corrected him and pointed him in the right direction.
It's good to see an old pub re-open after many years. However, there are still a few teething issues to resolve here.
On 24th January 2023
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2452 recommendations about 2451 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
This place has been a landmark derelict for as long as I've been coming to Hackney Wick, so I was surprised to see that someone has taken it on and given it an extensive makeover into a smart, multi-faceted venue. Externally, the fine old Truman’s tiling has been scrubbed up, but appears alongside some of the old graffiti which characterised the pub during its fallow period. Inside, there’s a spacious main bar with smart parquet flooring, plenty of smart seating around the perimeter and in an open area opposite the bar. The servery is a rather boxy affair, with additional seating available down either side of it, some of which has been formed into dark, secluded booths with comfy banquettes. Large german-style beer fonts block the front part of the bar from view for the bar staff, but the bar runs a little way back to either side, so service tends to focus in these spaces. The whole place is painted in modern, almost gastro-style shades with food menus on each table offering hipster-friendly takes on the usual pub-grub fayre. A small beer garden can be found to the rear, with decent garden furniture and partial cover, but for a better outdoor experience, head upstairs, past the first-floor bar (packed and very noisy on a Saturday afternoon), to the roof terrace, from where you can enjoy views of the Orbit and surrounding area from beneath hardy looking canvas shelters with comfy banquette seating.
Just the one cask ale on handpull - Howling Hops Tropical Deluxe - although Olivers Fine Cider occupied another of the pumps. There’s also an extensive craft keg range, source mainly from London-based micros. A very friendly barmaid served me a pint of the Tropical Deluxe, which was a nice hoppy number that went down nicely out on the roof on a hot summer’s afternoon.
This is an excellent project which has brought a seemingly condemned pub back into the public realm, mixing a few traditional features with contemporary styling and plenty of craft beer. It’s probably aimed more at the local hipster community, but I can imagine sports and music fans putting the place to good use ahead of events in the Olympic Park and I’d prefer drinking in here than in all of the brewery bars in the vicinity.
On 22nd November 2022
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve of N21 left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
I remember back in the day, whenever there was a news item about the dereliction of Hackney Wick they would always show a picture of this pub boarded up and covered in graffiti. So it was great to find it reopen and functioning as a pub once again.
Hackney Wick Is an area of some impressive street art and it is good and fitting that they have retained the colourful vibrant street art which adorns the top section of the pub. Unfortunately some less sightly graffiti tags have appeared on the lovely Victorian green tiling of the ground floor, but hopefully these will be cleaned off at some point.
The ground floor single room interior well described by previous reviewers is now in the style of a modern craft beer bar and I can imagine the front section is well utilised for vertical drinking, especially on the weekend late night DJ sessions. But there is some nice secluded seating to the back of the bar and then a small external court yard garden area off here. However the better outside space awaits up two flight of stairs in the corner, initially via an additional room on the first floor with its own bar, to a rather nice roof top terrace. This is mainly exposed and populated with solid plastic tables and chairs, but there is a section under a large umbrella with comfortable padded garden furniture type settee’s. On a clear blue sky afternoon this was a fantastic spot to enjoy an ale.
And on that point the hand pumps were not in use for my visit so crafty keg it was then and there were some interesting craft options and a good range of different styles from the main ten tap gantry in the centre of the bar. Over the course of our visit I tried halves of Verdant Brewing People Money Space Time ( decent glass of chicken soup as I heard another Pub Galore member refer to these murky brews ), Five Pints JUPA ( decent Pale but nothing special), and Noeonraptor Brewing Tripple Fruited Raptor ( if you are into alcoholic fruit juice this one will blow your socks off), all of which I took up to the roof top and tried to blend in with the predominantly young crowd, who were arriving for the evening session, by taking an absolute age to sup them.
I have to say I think they have done a truly excellent job bringing this pub back from the dead and with the addition of other craft beer outlets in the area since I last visited I would say the revitalised Lord Napier fits in well and will certainly appeal to the target demographic who visit this area for r&r.
On 28th June 2022
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2110 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
A vibrantly colourful and large corner pub, a very good selection of craft beer on numerous taps but also caters for the more ordinary stuff, just a couple of handpumps as far as I could see with one on, Moor Resonance. I was in early doors, the first punter there but even while quiet the music was being played at insanely loud levels, I don't mind music in a pub but that was stupid. It's a decent pub but not one I'd go too far out of my way to return to.
On 18th June 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1871 recommendations about 1844 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
Reopened after a very long closure,the exterior glazed tiling has all been cleaned of graffiti so you can see the original pub although the upper brickwork still has that urban chic look.Inside it's open plan with a large central bar extending down both sides of the interior.The furniture is largely metal framed,there are some bar stools and the flooring is wooden parquet throughout apart for some modern tiling running around the bar.Rough wood faces the bar ,and at the far end of the room there is exposed brickwork.Lighting comprises hanging white globes.
A staircase leads up to a roof terrace,while the Snug Bar can be hired for events.Food is served,thai and hipster style grub some veggie.There is a quiz night.
The bar supports three keg gantries,the smaller two offering mainstream keg option,while the larger 10 tap dispenser does have more interesting craft keg options from which I chose a very good Moor PMA,proper bitter.The range will rotate and I noted a mix of styles on my trip including a strong Mild.There are also two handpumps ,with just Moor Illusion,a black IPA ,available.
This does have the feel of a proper pub and the barman was very welcoming.There are so many hip bars nearby ,this place does stand out as more traditional yet very contemporary.I will be back and this is certainly worth a visit when in Hipster Central.
On 20th January 2022
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2727 recommendations about 2727 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
I must have been in this pub around the same time as Tris .Same cask beers on.I found this an absolute delight.Loved the way they have kept the outside graffitti.The inside is a vibrant riot of pastel coloured walls with some murals.Upstairs bar then up again to the rooftop garden where i looked out over a sunny Hackney Wicks mixture of derelict and modern buildings.Superb mango ipa on keg helped.Real quality interior as well.Sometimes you visit a pub and it just clicks ,the pub,the weather,the beer and my mate Gary meeting up.
On 15th January 2022
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Tris C left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
Situated in a part of E9 that’s actually in Tower Hamlets rather than Hackney, this closed in 1995, was boarded up and squatted, only to reopen a few weeks ago in an area which is unrecognisable from that which I visited in 2011 to photograph this pub. Then, all there was here were industrial units or tyre and exhaust centres, where once there would have been Victorian housing. Now, it’s home to swanky flats, some with concierges, resulting in the opening of hospitality outlets to take advantage of the incomers.
The pub was known for its frequently changing graffiti schemes. This format has been retained to the upper floors, but the ground floor now has exposed glazed green tiles, which may be original. What is original is the name in raised lettering to the fascia in period Ind Coope typeface, but minus the ‘and Star’ name, for this is part of the ‘Star of…’ or ‘…and Star’ chain.
To say that much has changed from the original is a true understatement and in some respects, this reminds me of the Spitalfields Gun, except that this place hasn’t been demolished; no obvious trace of the original remains though. The interior is very opened out with a broadly central bar, sporting much steampunk copper plumbing work for beer dispensing. The bar is wood field panelled with a thick polished concrete top with a functional structure except at the top, there’s glass infill in faux Victorian script, reading ‘The Lord Napier. From S*ithouse to Public House’; it has a patterned tiled bar apron; the floor is modern herringbone parquet and although the ceiling is white, the walls exhibit a colour scheme best described on the Pantone colour chart as 7736 UP. This contrasts with the semi-freestanding metal orange staircase up to a first-floor room and roof terrace. Furniture is largely contemporary and lighting is adequate, coming mainly from long flexed white opaque spherical lamps. There’s not much in the way of décor, apart from a few pot plants and a weird painting above a pale wood reclaimed fireplace, resulting in very poor acoustics making for noisy surroundings, contributed to by a loudish soundtrack from Ponzu Island. There were no obvious signs of TVs but a projector was noticed, though given that England were playing, there’s clearly no enthusiasm for showing sport; perhaps it’s for PowerPoint presentations, given the nature of the young, fashionable crowd here, who probably work in marketing.
Two real ales were spotted, both reassuringly local with a reversed Five Points clip, then ELB’s Dragon, spotted after I’d ordered my pint of Goose Island IPA (£6.00), served by efficient staff.
This place will probably do very well given the huge changes to the location, especially that it operates a disco until 1.30 am on Friday and Saturday, but it’s an absolute trek to get here (unless by rail to neighbouring Hackney Wick station) and it’s really not my thing, at least not any more, so I doubt I’ll return, but hats off to the operator for reopening it though; I bet the old lavs weren’t this swanky.
On 9th September 2021
- rating: 4
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
paulof horsham left this review about The Lord Napier & Star
Smartened up outside and, quite obviously, internally as well, this newly reborn pub scrubs up well. Not a handpump in sight, so far as I could see, but there seems to have been some imagination put into the keg choices - I went for a hazy New Zealand Pale which was pleasant enough and cost me what seems to be the new London normal of £6.20 the pint. There's an upstairs bar and roof garden which might be worth investigating. It's OK, I suppose, and worth a look-in, but you're hardly stuck for choice in this neighbourhood.
On 28th August 2021
- rating: 6
[User has posted 453 recommendations about 425 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about Lord Napier
Apparently closed for many years this pub is a long established squat and is nowadays covered in graffiti slogans and posters. Adjacent to Hackney Wick station.
On 11th July 2011
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 1707 recommendations about 1681 pubs]