The Best New London Pubs For Winter
The Ox
Clapham
The Rose & Crown in Clapham gets it right with a lively atmosphere, affable landlord and good food. The team has now opened a second site on Clapham High Street. Step inside to be greeted with dark wood panelling and vintage furniture that creates a cosy feel. There’s a mezzanine restaurant, a snug to hunker down in with a pint, and a rooftop terrace for warmer weather. Like at its sister establishment, the menu showcases seasonal British ingredients in inventive dishes like ox cheek toasties and a Japanese smashed burger with bone marrow kewpie. Hitting the retro pudding trend, desserts come from a trolley featuring a sticky toffee pudding topped with stout toffee sauce and clotted-cream ice-cream. Local beers and a tidy list of classic cocktails are further reasons to visit.
50 Clapham High Street, Clapham, SW4 7UL
Visit TheOxClapham.com
William IV
Old Street
This 200-year-old pub recently reopened after a refurb by Lee Godwin and Mike Harrington, the duo behind the Starman in Mayfair and Mare Street Market. The upstairs dining room has a contemporary feel with a regularly changing menu to match – look for dishes like mackerel with ravigote sauce and samphire, whipped smoked cod’s roe with tabasco and crisps, and hogget chops with anchovy sauce. Downstairs, you can order pub classics like hearty pies and steak and chips, as well as bar snacks like rarebit crumpets and fried pork belly. The wraparound bar has a selection of European and British beers, fine organic wines and rare spirits from the landlords’ private collection. There’s also a cracking Sunday roast and – we told you it was a trend – sticky toffee pudding to boot.
7 Shepherdess Walk, Old Street, N1 7QE
Visit William-IV.com
@nancyspains
Nancy Spain’s
Shoreditch
Kerry-born brothers Peter and Nicholas O’Halloran opened this Irish pub back in February, and it’s quickly become a buzzy spot, partly thanks to a cool aesthetic and an endless supply of Murphy's – best enjoyed with bar snacks or a couple of dishes from the downstairs kitchen. There’s a small menu of crowd-pleasers, like burgers and steak sandwiches, with a string of resident chefs lined up for takeovers in the new year. There’s also live music every Wednesday to Sunday evening, from Irish folk bands to local talent. Plus, the team are set to open a second site in Monument on 22nd November, with £3 pints of Murphy’s on 26th November to celebrate.
128-130 Curtain Road, Shoreditch, EC2A 3AQ
Visit NancySpains.co.uk
The Hound
Chiswick
The Hound is the newest pub from restaurant group JKS – the team behind great London restaurants including Bao, Gymkhana and newcomer Ambassador’s Clubhouse. Over in leafy Chiswick, the team have partnered with publican Dominic Jacobs (whose other projects include The George in Fitzrovia and The Cadogan Arms in Chelsea) to bring an elevated pub experience to west London. Kitchen Table's James Knappett has devised a menu of British classics, including lasagne, venison pie, and flat iron steak with fries – all smartly presented and served with seasonal sides. The Sunday roast is as classic as it gets, while the drinks list is loaded with craft beers.
210 Chiswick High Road, Chiswick, W4 1PD
Visit TheHound.London
The Marquee Moon
Dalston
This summer, the team behind east London nightclub The Cause opened an outpost on Stoke Newington Road. Taking over the former Marquis of Lansdowne, the Marquee Moon has the look of a traditional pub and the feel of a Dalston bar. You could spend a while here – eating in the restaurant on the ground floor before moving to the basement with its killer hi-fi system. Here, local DJs and musicians perform until the early hours. Previous selectors have included Mafalda, Floating Points and Giles Smith. Back in the restaurant, there are east Asian-inspired dishes like chicken sandos, and zingy cocktails – try the Pandan Old Fashioned made with bourbon, clarified brown butter, chocolate bitters, and topped with a pandan leaf.
48 Stoke Newington Road, Dalston, N16 7XJ
Visit TheMarqueeMoon.uk
Walmer Castle
Notting Hill
The original Walmer Castle was bought by David Beckham and Guy Ritchie back in 2018 before it was sold on to become a Scottish-themed restaurant and whisky bar. Neither were a success, but husband-and-wife duo Jack and Poppy Greenall (also behind The Surprise in Chelsea) have turned things around with the addition of some smart interiors and a good chef. A top-to-toe refurb also introduced artwork by local up-and-coming artists. Food wise, there are simple but elegantly presented pub classics made with produce from British suppliers like the Ginger Pig and Flying Fish, alongside wines from indie producers. If you don’t fancy a meal, the bar is a great spot for people watching with a pint and glass of prawns – yes, that’s a fancy bar snack.
58 Ledbury Road, Notting Hill, W11 2AJ
The Hero
Maida Vale
The group behind Notting Hill’s The Pelican and The Bull in Charlbury, Oxfordshire, opened a third site earlier this year. The Hero in Maida Vale is a four-storey space that makes the most of the building’s 1870s heritage. The pub itself does traditional British comfort food and cask ales, while the Grill Room specialises in sharing dishes cooked over an open fire. The space features high ceilings and an open kitchen with traditional detailing, returning the room to its original grandeur. On the second floor, the Library is the place to enjoy classic cocktails and vinyl DJ nights. From the current menu, we can recommend the huge scotch egg, cheese and pickle toastie, and reasonably priced steak and chips.
55 Shirland Road, Maida Vale, W9 2JD
Visit TheHeroW9.com
The Devonshire
Soho
Jason Statham is a regular, Ed Sheeran drops by for lock-ins, and landlord Oisín Rogers’ little black book is a who’s who of London’s coolest crowd. Only if you’ve been living under a rock will you have missed the biggest pub opening of recent times, but this one deserves the hype. Rogers (ex-Guinea Grill) has teamed up with Charlie Carroll (founder of Flat Iron) and chef Ashley Palmer-Watts (ex-Fat Duck) to create a classic London pub that’s warm, welcoming and thrillingly hectic. There’s food from the in-house butcher and bakery, and famously perfect pints of Guinness (the team get through around 200 barrels of the good stuff each week). Upstairs is the smart Grill Room, specialising in Scottish beef – dry-aged and butchered on site – creel-caught langoustines from Oban, day-boat fish, lobster and hand-dived scallops from Devon. If you’re struggling to make a reservation, elbow your way to the bar for pints, scotch eggs and toasties.
17 Denman Street, Soho, W1D 7HW
Visit DevonshireSoho.co.uk
The Butcher's Tap & Grill
Chelsea
Rumours swirled for a while about Tom Kerridge opening a second outpost of his popular Marlow pub in London. They were borne out when the celeb chef set up shop in a two-storey Chelsea boozer at the end of last year. Tucked away behind the King’s Road, The Butcher’s Tap & Grill sources its meat from places like Dovecote Farm and HG Walter, before ageing it in-house. Diners can order steaks, as well as other prime cuts of meat, cooked over the grill and served with sauces, seasonal veg and sides like homemade baked beans and chilli beef and cheese fries. There’s a nice selection of beers on tap, as well as wines from small European producers.
27 Tryon Street, Chelsea, SW3 3LG
The Brave
Islington
Just a few months since closing his Islington restaurant 12:51, James Cochran is about to open a new pub around the corner from his original outpost. He’s teamed up with Seven-Eighths Group (the team behind The Hemingway in Victoria Park) to open The Brave, inspired by his mixed Scottish-Caribbean heritage – so expect some decent whiskies and rums behind the bar. The venue will be home to a dining area and various nooks for settling down with beers and pub snacks. The restaurant will showcase top-quality seasonal produce from around the UK. Look out for dishes like jerk-spiced chicken scotch eggs with scotch bonnet jam; crispy beef-fat hash browns with aged beef tartar; roasted and spiced Orkney scallops; and venison pie with neep-and-tattie hash browns.
340-342 Essex Road, Islington, N1 3PB
Follow @TheBraveLondon
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