This is exactly the kind of place that people who hate gastropubs have got in mind: a bit pretentious with a separate dining area where you really oughtn’t just to drink pints. And a maître d’. A maître bloody d’. In a pub. These truly are the End Times.
It has a pretty extensive selection of beer (Sharp’s Cornish Coaster, Adnams Broadside, something from Batemans, Budvar, Bitburger, Duvel, Chimay Red, Meantime Raspberry and Meantime Chocolate, amongst others) none of which is hard to find in London, but which is still not a bad line up compared to your average back street boozer.
We sat outside and drank nice, crisply bitter pints of Budvar under a palm tree, desperately trying to convince ourselves we were warm.
We probably won’t come again — not when there are three or four better la-di-da gastropubs within a 10 minute walk.
5 replies on “The week of new pubs #3 – Duchess of Kent, Islington”
Please tell me you’re joking about the maître d…
It’s up to the owner how he runs his pub. If it works, it works.
PS. I bet it doesn’t work.
The maître d was real. He was very nice, as it happens. There was a slightly tragic moment when I approached and he stepped forward with a menu, looking hopeful, and I just asked: “Where’s the toilet?”
The place was very busy, so I guess it works to a degree.
Out of interest, which pubs are the better ones in the area?
We really like the Charles Lamb, the Duke of Cambridge and (to a lesser extent) the Island Queen. But they’re a little further than 10 minutes walk away, having consulted a map…