The Britannia Review: The City Pub With a Fine Patriotic Name | A superb, welcoming pub on Monument Street in the City of London bearing the fine old name of Britannia, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome, a genuine gem of the Square Mile
The Masons Arms Review: The City Pub With a Fine Old Guild Name | A superb, characterful pub on Masons Avenue in the City of London bearing the fine old guild name of the masons, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome, a genuine gem of the Square Mile
The Tokenhouse Review: The City Pub With a Fine Old Coin-Trade Name | A superb, welcoming pub on Moorgate in the City of London bearing the fine old name of the token house, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome, a genuine gem of the Square Mile
The New Moon Review: The Welcoming City Pub of Gracechurch Street | A superb, welcoming pub on Gracechurch Street by Leadenhall Market in the City of London, bearing the fine old name of the new moon, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome
The Arbitrager Review: The City Pub With a Fine Name Fit for the Square Mile | A superb, welcoming pub on Throgmorton Street in the City of London bearing the fine, fitting name of the arbitrager, by the old Stock Exchange, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome
The Phoenix Review: The City Pub With a Fine Name Fit for a Rebuilt City | A superb, hugely popular pub on Throgmorton Street in the City of London bearing the fine old name of the phoenix, fit for a City reborn from the ashes, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome
The Sea Horse Review: The Welcoming City Pub With a Fine Maritime Name | A welcoming, characterful pub on Queen Victoria Street in the City of London bearing the fine old maritime name of the sea horse, with good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome
The Golden Fleece Review: The City Pub With a Fine Old Wool-Trade Name | A characterful, hugely popular City pub on Queen Street bearing the fine old name of the golden fleece, a proper local for good beer, good cheer and a warm welcome
Duke of Clarence Review: The Prince Who Drowned in Wine | A duke, brother to a king, was executed in 1478 by being drowned in a barrel of sweet wine. It may have been his own choice.
The Railway Review: The Invention That Remade Clapham and the World | The railway pub honours the technology that created modern Clapham – and Clapham Junction, one of the busiest stations on earth
Two Brewers Review: They Are Carrying a Barrel Between Them | The sign shows two men and a beam. It is a picture of the job, and the job broke people’s backs.
The Round House Review: It Is Not Round | Garrick Street’s corner pub has a 4.3, a curved frontage, and a name that is doing the absolute minimum
Old Swan Review: The Crown Still Owns Some of the Birds | A surviving royal prerogative, a ceremony on the Thames every July, and a pub that has never mentioned any of it
Joiners Arms Review: The Ancient and Honourable Craft of Wood | Named for the joiners – the skilled woodworkers whose ancient craft built the furniture, doors and fittings of the world
The Victoria Review: The Great Queen Who Named an Age | Named for Queen Victoria, who reigned longer than almost any monarch and gave her name to a whole era of British history
The Alexandra Review: The Beloved Danish Princess Who Became Queen | Named for Queen Alexandra, the elegant Danish princess who married Edward VII and was adored by the Victorian public
Prince of Wales Clapham Old Town Review: The Eccentric Treasure House | A third Prince of Wales – this Clapham pub is famous for its wildly eccentric, cluttered interior stuffed with bizarre curiosities
Trinity Arms Review: The Sacred Number Three | The Trinity is the central Christian mystery of three-in-one – and ‘trinity’ has come to mean any sacred or perfect group of three
Orchard Tavern Review: London Was Covered in Fruit Trees | Before the railways, the city ate from market gardens on its own edge. Notting Hill was one of them.
Elm Park Tavern Review: The Great English Tree and the Honest Local | An honest, location-named local tavern – recalling the elm, the great and tragic English tree lost to Dutch elm disease
Duke of Edinburgh Review: The Prince Consort and His Famous Award | Named for the royal title held by Prince Philip – a figure of remarkable duty, dry wit, and a scheme that shaped millions of young lives
Curtains Up Review: The Pub With a Theatre in the Basement | ‘Curtains up’ is the call that starts a show – and this pub genuinely has a working theatre downstairs
Two Brewers Review: The Ancient Craft and a Clapham Institution | The two brewers of the old sign carried the ale between them – and this Two Brewers is a much-loved Clapham cabaret institution
Bayswater Arms Review: The District Named for a Baron’s Watering Place | Bayswater’s name may come from ‘Bayard’s watering’ – a medieval spot where horses drank – preserved in a busy modern pub
The Horns Tavern Review: The Ancient Sign of the Horn | The horn – drinking vessel, hunting call, and ancient symbol – gives one of the oldest and most evocative of tavern names
The Priory Arms Review: The Monastery That Shaped the Land | A priory was a monastic house – and the monasteries were once among the greatest landowners and institutions in all of England
Sussex Arms Review: The County of Kings and the Sacred Land | Sussex – the land of the South Saxons – is one of England’s ancient kingdoms, home to the last stand of English paganism
The Surprise Review: The Delightful and Unexpected Pub Name | ‘The Surprise’ is a genuinely unusual pub name – possibly from a ship, a racehorse, or simply the pleasure of the unexpected
Fox and Hounds Review: The Old Country Hunt, in the City | The fox and hounds evokes the traditional English hunt – a controversial but deeply rooted image of the rural past
The Green Review: The Green Is Still There, and It Is a Triangle | Shepherd’s Bush Green survived because common land was hard to build on – and because people fought for it
