London - Where best to drink?

[Raleigh Chopper]

The Dog & Duck by Crown & Two worth stopping in too. Tiny, but great beers.

I worked in Greek Street for many years, my 'local' was The Pillars Of Hercules, but I used to frequent many of the Soho pubs.
Not a big fan of the west end but loved Soho especially the transition from work time to evening, some of the characters that drank in those pubs were amazing and they were like a little oasis away from the stuff that was going on outside in the streets.
To be a soho landlord you really had to know your stuff and be constantly alert as there were some seriously dodgy things going on, how they managed to get through the weekends was extraordinary.

 

[West Hoathly Seagull]

If you want traditional pubs close to where you are staying, I would try either the Bricklayers Arms in Putney, very popular with Albion fans before Fulham games, or the Cat's Back in Wandsworth, which is a Harvey's pub. Both are a bit hard to find, so you'd need to look them up before going, but they're both a bit different from the gastropubs that tend to dominate in this part of London.

 

[clapham_gull]

Sounds like Chiswick to me - short taxi ride / bus back to Hammersmith.

Bit off the beaten track (behind Gunnersbury Station) but a favourite of mine

http://www.pilot-chiswick.co.uk/

There are also loads of other options on the High Road.

 

[jimhigham]

Shepherd's Bush is not so far from Hammersmith and can be OK. The Defector's Weld always seems to be fun, has a decent ale selection and a mean pulled pork scotch egg. Also a BrewDog around the corner and a plethora of other options I've not tried.

 

[kevo]

Arranging a stag do for a couple of weeks time, got apartments booked in Hammersmith. We are going to the gee gee's at Sandown on the Friday and looking to find a bit of non league football somewhere on the Saturday.

My question is Friday/Saturday night where is best to drink in the big smoke?? Preferably an area with half a dozen decent boozers in walking distance from each other (old school traditional pubs) and not ridiculously far from Hammersmith?

How many of you are there? One of my favourite places to drink in London is actually Hammersmith riverside. You can do a great pub crawl westwards along the river. Start at the Blue Anchor (lovely cosy pub by Hammersmith Bridge), then go next door to the Rutland, then the Dove (very atmospheric, tiny old riverside pub where 'Rule Britannia was written), and the Ship which is (or at least used to be) a bit more of a party pub with a slightly younger crowd, then the Black Lion, which has bar games such as skittles, etc. Then the Mawson Arms, a traditional boozer which is actually the pub for Fullers brewery, which is next door. So you end up at a brewery! (There is another Fullers pub, the George and Devonshire, just down the road too).

If you wanted to go on somewhere, Chiswick High Road is a few mins walk away and has lots of bars - or you can just jump in a cab.

Highly recommended if it's not a massive crew of you (you might not all fit in the Dove!) and you're more into pubs than clubbing etc.

 

[crodonilson]

How many of you are there? One of my favourite places to drink in London is actually Hammersmith riverside. You can do a great pub crawl westwards along the river. Start at the Blue Anchor (lovely cosy pub by Hammersmith Bridge), then go next door to the Rutland, then the Dove (very atmospheric, tiny old riverside pub where 'Rule Britannia was written), and the Ship which is (or at least used to be) a bit more of a party pub with a slightly younger crowd, then the Black Lion, which has bar games such as skittles, etc. Then the Mawson Arms, a traditional boozer which is actually the pub for Fullers brewery, which is next door. So you end up at a brewery! (There is another Fullers pub, the George and Devonshire, just down the road too).

If you wanted to go on somewhere, Chiswick High Road is a few mins walk away and has lots of bars - or you can just jump in a cab.

Highly recommended if it's not a massive crew of you (you might not all fit in the Dove!) and you're more into pubs than clubbing etc.

There's 27 of us but we're all more beer drinkers and pub goers than clubbers so this sounds like a good recommendation.

 

[essbee]

In terms of the footie - Weladstone FC are at home on the Sat. 4th March vs. Gosport - nice club bar there and you
might meet the Wealdstone Raider if you're unlucky enough. Not too far from Hammersmith.

 

[Mtoto]

I was a waiter in Wardour Street for a few months in the mid-80s. Seriously dodgy is not even the half of it. Kept you on your toes though and a brilliant place/time to be a fresh-faced 21-year-old, but I could have done without the bloke who screeched up in a car late one night when I was waiting for a cab outside the restaurant, fired off a shotgun (into the air) and then sped off again. Didn't get much sleep that night.

On the subject of pubs, I put my head around the door of The Ship a few months ago for the first time since, I'd swear no-one's moved in 30 years.

 

[essbee]

I was in the Ship last week - cracking boozer.

 

[Raleigh Chopper]

I was a waiter in Wardour Street for a few months in the mid-80s. Seriously dodgy is not even the half of it. Kept you on your toes though and a brilliant place/time to be a fresh-faced 21-year-old, but I could have done without the bloke who screeched up in a car late one night when I was waiting for a cab outside the restaurant, fired off a shotgun (into the air) and then sped off again. Didn't get much sleep that night.

On the subject of pubs, I put my head around the door of The Ship a few months ago for the first time since, I'd swear no-one's moved in 30 years.

Was you a waiter at the Won Kei, telling all the customers to fluck off?

 

[knocky1]

If your in Hammersmith you should look at the pubs on the river, The Dove Inn is great and there are a couple more right by it

Got some hazy ESB memories from regular Thursday night sessions in there in 1981. Could never get to 6 pints but 5 created enough collateral damage. Great spot , as you say.

 

[Mtoto]

Was you a waiter at the Won Kei, telling all the customers to fluck off?

No, but was in there all the time because it was so cheap. Was a veggie in those days, and out of the 100s of dishes on the menu, there were just two with no meat. Didn't dare complain tho, for fear of being chased out by a bloke with a cleaver.

Place I worked was one of the first flash joints to move in. Christy's Healthline, a smart vegetarian place with a big bar downstairs and a sandwich shop attached too. Lasted about 3 years, I think, it's now a Cote.

Was a very trendy place its early days, used to get loads of celebs in, the veggies especially. Bobby Moore, Chrissie Hynde, Van Morrison, & Barry Norman used to come in for afternoon tea as all the film companies had preview cinemas around there. Lots of actors too from the shows on Shaftesbury Avenue, but I generally preferred the music types as they were much better tippers. Marc Almond was in two or three times a week, had a starter and a glass of water, and always left £20 on a £5 bill.

 

[smeg]

The Prince of Wales feathers in Warren Street is a good boozer, often went there "for lunch" , maybe a bit far from Hammersmith though, used to work in white City, (not far from QPR) but not much around there in my opinion pub wise, I'd stick to west end if i was you

 

[kevo]

There's 27 of us but we're all more beer drinkers and pub goers than clubbers so this sounds like a good recommendation.

Plenty of space outside the boozers by the river for outside drinking if the weather's all right.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Pelton Arms. Ship and Shovel.

 

[Brightonfan1983]

Arranging a stag do for a couple of weeks time, got apartments booked in Hammersmith. We are going to the gee gee's at Sandown on the Friday and looking to find a bit of non league football somewhere on the Saturday.

My question is Friday/Saturday night where is best to drink in the big smoke?? Preferably an area with half a dozen decent boozers in walking distance from each other (old school traditional pubs) and not ridiculously far from Hammersmith?

The Distillers, 2 mins from the tube, stocks nothing but ales, outdoor area with tables and huts and if memory serves, firepits... Plus, if you go to the website and sign up for their mailing list, they give you a free beer. I've done it, there's no catch. And at London prices, you'll be glad of it!
http://www.distillershammersmith.co.uk/ It's a very nice place I think but is a bit on the small side so get there early.