Latest reviews for Bars & Pubs in Putney, London, United Kingdom

Star & Garter - Best Bar in Putney! by PennyW

PennyW — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:54:37 +0000

Review by PennyW

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 8788 0345

Website: http://www.thestarandgarter.com

Went there for first time this Saturday - place was buzzing, good looking crowd (girls were pretty dressed up) and was impressed by the wine list and of course the famous cheese room - staff so friendly and give you insight into background of wines and offer selection of delicious cheeses and hams to compliment, cheese room is definitely unique and was the perfect snack to kick of my night - people were dancing towards the end of the evening to add to the atmopshere and i felt i was in a funky, unpretenious bar in central london rather than Putney - definitely a must - and get involved with the cheese room!Went there for first time this Saturday - place was buzzing, good looking crowd (girls were pretty dressed up) and was impressed by the wine list and of course the famous cheese room - staff so friendly and give you insight into background of wines and offer selection of delicious cheeses and hams to compliment, cheese room is definitely unique and was the perfect snack to kick of my night - people were dancing towards the end of the evening to add to the atmopshere and i felt i was in a funky, unpretenious bar in central london rather than Putney - definitely a must - and get involved with the cheese room!

The Dukes Head - Stop press! Glass collecting shocker! by Lacrimosa

Lacrimosa — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 19:54:06 +0000

Review by Lacrimosa

Rating: 2.00

Tags: traditional pub, mulled wine, sport pub

An average sort of a pub which benefits from having a riverside location in Putney, just along from Putney Bridge, I found it mighty difficult to get served here. Naturally I don't mind waiting when it's busy, but it would be great if the staff could pay some attention to who's next in line at the bar, since the clientele, while not unfriendly (mainly football fans when I was in there), didn't seem too bothered about that kind of thing either.

Having finally got our drinks, we moved outside to a small paved area of picnic-style tables in view of the river and set back from the noise and bustle of the Lower Richmond Road. However the staff came round collecting glasses some time later - apparently running short back at the bar - and, having not quite finished my drink, I had to stop them from whipping mine away no less than three times! One particularly harassed-looking waitress kindly agreed to take our photo, at least, while trying to snaffle up my glass.

Not somewhere I'd make a beeline for if I were in the area again, certainly.An average sort of a pub which benefits from having a riverside location in Putney, just along from Putney Bridge, I found it mighty difficult to get served here. Naturally I don't mind waiting when it's busy, but it would be great if the staff could pay some attention to who's next in line at the bar, since the clientele, while not unfriendly (mainly football fans when I was in there), didn't seem too bothered about that kind of thing either.

Having finally got our drinks, we moved outside to a small paved area of picnic-style tables in view of the river and set back from the noise and bustle of the Lower Richmond Road. However the staff came round collecting glasses some time later - apparently running short back at the bar - and, having not quite finished my drink, I had to stop them from whipping mine away no less than three times! One particularly harassed-looking waitress kindly agreed to take our photo, at least, while trying to snaffle up my glass.

Not somewhere I'd make a beeline for if I were in the area again, certainly.

Whistle & Flute - by palfrey

palfrey — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:47:28 +0000

Review by palfrey

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 8780 5437

Website: http://www.fullers.co.uk

Tags: relaxed, friendly, food

Good beer, nice atmosphere. Haven't eaten there, but heard good things.Good beer, nice atmosphere. Haven't eaten there, but heard good things.

Prince of Wales - A great little place by chrisp

chrisp — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:32:52 +0000

Review by chrisp

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 8788 1552

Website: http://www.princeofwalesputney.co.uk

Tags: good value, british, cosy

Last night, while tucking into my deep fried pig's head in Putney, I found myself asking myself the question "Why do I eat at restaurants?". Not in a despairing, self-pitying way, although God knows those kind of thoughts have crossed my mind during more than a few meals in the past year. No, this turned out to be a very tasty plate of food and I enjoyed it. But more in a philosophical way - the food at the Prince of Wales makes absolutely no pretentions towards haute cuisine; it's straightforward to the point of basic, albeit comfortably seasonal and with some charmingly eccentric ingredients. But many of the dishes were so basic I could have made them myself, and believe me I am no expert cook. In these days of credit crunches, global uncertainty and looming environmental armageddon, is it wrong to pay to eat food you could have made yourself with very little effort? Should I be aiming to make my meals out more of a special occasion than just something to fill a hole of an evening?

Fortunately this weakness didn't last long. Of course it's not wrong to pay for simple food occasionally. Every mouthful consumed outside my front door doesn't have to be a life-changing gastronomic experience, and I shouldn't have to feel guilty for paying for someone else to cook for me, whether at Gordon Ramsay's or Munchies Kebab shop. And so next time I couldn't be bothered cooking of an evening I will waddle on down to the Fox and Hounds and order their brilliant broad bean risotto with my head held high.

Back to earth and back to the Prince of Wales. The aforementioned pig's head dish was neat little cubes of breaded pig meat, served with a home made tartare sauce (called Gribiche on the menu) and lovely softly picked red cabbage. Pig's head I've had served in a number of different ways and never know what to expect from one restaurant to the next, and I have to admit on being presented with deep-fried goujons I was worried they may be a bit much. However they were moist without being greasy, and the tartare sauce was a great accompaniment.

Next up was a couple of smallish fillets of nice fresh seabass on a huge mound of buttery greens. Probably slightly too many greens if I'm going to be picky, but they were good and I told myself you can never have enough of a good thing. And a friend's cheese and potato pie was as good to eat as it was attractive to look at, before she'd torn it apart with a knife and fork that is.

The room was prettily decorated and lit and service, seeming to consist of only one very attentive young lady albeit with only a loose grasp of the English language, was as good as you could have hoped for with only 3 tables taken on a quiet Tuesday evening. In fact towards the end of the meal I really had to struggle to find anything at all that wasn't good about the Prince of Wales apart from the worryingly empty room. Even the toilets were clean and new.

So, the London gastropub scene rolls on. It's very easy to get blasÃ© about "yet another" good new place but the fact that this opened with such little fanfare shows how mature the restaurant scene is in London. I know I'm only judging from a quiet weekday evening but will even the good places struggle to get bums on seats with so much competition around? Let's hope not. The Prince of Wales deserves to do very well, and I at least will definitely be back. Credit crunch be damned.Last night, while tucking into my deep fried pig's head in Putney, I found myself asking myself the question "Why do I eat at restaurants?". Not in a despairing, self-pitying way, although God knows those kind of thoughts have crossed my mind during more than a few meals in the past year. No, this turned out to be a very tasty plate of food and I enjoyed it. But more in a philosophical way - the food at the Prince of Wales makes absolutely no pretentions towards haute cuisine; it's straightforward to the point of basic, albeit comfortably seasonal and with some charmingly eccentric ingredients. But many of the dishes were so basic I could have made them myself, and believe me I am no expert cook. In these days of credit crunches, global uncertainty and looming environmental armageddon, is it wrong to pay to eat food you could have made yourself with very little effort? Should I be aiming to make my meals out more of a special occasion than just something to fill a hole of an evening?

Fortunately this weakness didn't last long. Of course it's not wrong to pay for simple food occasionally. Every mouthful consumed outside my front door doesn't have to be a life-changing gastronomic experience, and I shouldn't have to feel guilty for paying for someone else to cook for me, whether at Gordon Ramsay's or Munchies Kebab shop. And so next time I couldn't be bothered cooking of an evening I will waddle on down to the Fox and Hounds and order their brilliant broad bean risotto with my head held high.

Back to earth and back to the Prince of Wales. The aforementioned pig's head dish was neat little cubes of breaded pig meat, served with a home made tartare sauce (called Gribiche on the menu) and lovely softly picked red cabbage. Pig's head I've had served in a number of different ways and never know what to expect from one restaurant to the next, and I have to admit on being presented with deep-fried goujons I was worried they may be a bit much. However they were moist without being greasy, and the tartare sauce was a great accompaniment.

Next up was a couple of smallish fillets of nice fresh seabass on a huge mound of buttery greens. Probably slightly too many greens if I'm going to be picky, but they were good and I told myself you can never have enough of a good thing. And a friend's cheese and potato pie was as good to eat as it was attractive to look at, before she'd torn it apart with a knife and fork that is.

The room was prettily decorated and lit and service, seeming to consist of only one very attentive young lady albeit with only a loose grasp of the English language, was as good as you could have hoped for with only 3 tables taken on a quiet Tuesday evening. In fact towards the end of the meal I really had to struggle to find anything at all that wasn't good about the Prince of Wales apart from the worryingly empty room. Even the toilets were clean and new.

So, the London gastropub scene rolls on. It's very easy to get blasÃ© about "yet another" good new place but the fact that this opened with such little fanfare shows how mature the restaurant scene is in London. I know I'm only judging from a quiet weekday evening but will even the good places struggle to get bums on seats with so much competition around? Let's hope not. The Prince of Wales deserves to do very well, and I at least will definitely be back. Credit crunch be damned.

The Normanby - Bad serivce + food = ruined friday night by scootergirl

scootergirl — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 11:42:50 +0000

Review by scootergirl

Rating: 1.00

Phone: 020 8874 1555

Website: http://www.thenormanby.co.uk

Tags: crowded, gastro pub, good value

Truly poor service (exceptionally slow service & argumentative manager) mixed with very average food has thankfully become a bit of a rare thing... but hey, then there's Normandy! I am rather surprised Time Out has given it such raving reviews.

The manager overheard us commenting on how slow the service was and came to apologise as they were extremely busy. They must do take-away as the dining room was mostly empty.

The medium rare steak of one of our party was charred. The manager, straight out of the Faulty Tower School of Catering, cut the steak over our friend's shoulder, thought that it was perfectly cooked and then proceeded to show the meat to other guests to get their opinion. No answers... Awkward... and embarrassing... He was happy to make another one but it would come out exactly the same way. It soon became too tense for comfort and the manager walked away from our table. And so we walked away from his restaurant. Shocked that places like this still exists.Truly poor service (exceptionally slow service & argumentative manager) mixed with very average food has thankfully become a bit of a rare thing... but hey, then there's Normandy! I am rather surprised Time Out has given it such raving reviews.

The manager overheard us commenting on how slow the service was and came to apologise as they were extremely busy. They must do take-away as the dining room was mostly empty.

The medium rare steak of one of our party was charred. The manager, straight out of the Faulty Tower School of Catering, cut the steak over our friend's shoulder, thought that it was perfectly cooked and then proceeded to show the meat to other guests to get their opinion. No answers... Awkward... and embarrassing... He was happy to make another one but it would come out exactly the same way. It soon became too tense for comfort and the manager walked away from our table. And so we walked away from his restaurant. Shocked that places like this still exists.

The Idle Hour - OK but don't go for the food by qwghlm

qwghlm — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 00:15:29 +0000

Review by qwghlm

Rating: 2.00

Phone: 020 8789 5995

Tags: food, modern pub, standard pub food

As slightly soulless modern pubs go, this is alright - fairly comfy, nice staff, amusing urinals, free wi-fi. The food, while very nice, came in grievously small portions - Â£11 for a ridiculously small shepherd's pie and a couple of tablespoons of peas didn't really do it for me. Neither did it live up to the fancy description on the menu (it was a pretty ordinary shepherd's pie to be honest) and my companion's prawn green curry looked like it had been made from a supermarket ready meal. Not great value for moneyAs slightly soulless modern pubs go, this is alright - fairly comfy, nice staff, amusing urinals, free wi-fi. The food, while very nice, came in grievously small portions - Â£11 for a ridiculously small shepherd's pie and a couple of tablespoons of peas didn't really do it for me. Neither did it live up to the fancy description on the menu (it was a pretty ordinary shepherd's pie to be honest) and my companion's prawn green curry looked like it had been made from a supermarket ready meal. Not great value for money

The Bricklayers Arms - Great little pub, especially for Timothy Taylor fans by qwghlm

qwghlm — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 13:37:57 +0000

Review by qwghlm

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 8780 0433

Tags: pub, independent pub, old

Probably the only pub in London to serve the entire range of Timothy Taylor beers, this is a nice little pub with a slightly eclectic decor, interesting pictures up on the walls, and a terrace to boot. The terrace was packed out on the sunny day we visited, but the bar staff were kind enough to help us move a table from the bar out onto the terrace so we could drink outside. As well as TT beers also has a couple of guest ales and food (delicious-smelling Sunday roast when I was last there). CAMRA named it London pub of the year in 2007 and it's well deserved.Probably the only pub in London to serve the entire range of Timothy Taylor beers, this is a nice little pub with a slightly eclectic decor, interesting pictures up on the walls, and a terrace to boot. The terrace was packed out on the sunny day we visited, but the bar staff were kind enough to help us move a table from the bar out onto the terrace so we could drink outside. As well as TT beers also has a couple of guest ales and food (delicious-smelling Sunday roast when I was last there). CAMRA named it London pub of the year in 2007 and it's well deserved.

The Telegraph - by NickRigby

NickRigby — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 13:18:21 +0000

Review by NickRigby

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 8788 2011

Tags: beer garden, live music, traditional pub

An oasis in putney!An oasis in putney!