The Blue Posts

Easily one of the most popular names for pubs in London, the one sits just behind the Ritz and Green Park Station. The Blue posts is full of after work drinkers come 6pm on a Tuesday which is when I conducted my review and found that there was only one table left to sit at inside. The bar, although busy was serviced very well and I got my beers and bar nuts in within a few minutes. The drinks are quite expensive but don’t break the bank. The venue has wooden flooring and has a good cheerful atmosphere within, that is until we watch one of the suited businessman take a tumble across several tables and the crowd surrounding him uproar in laughter. It quickly becomes clear that the drinking is well funded and as the noise level rises we take our leave.

Overall a popular after work hangout in a well-to-do part of London.The place has a traditional feel to it with beer pumps and bar nuts, almost a little gastro like but I dont think it would suit food or anything less that the binge parade of the surrounding businesses - 5/10

The Diner Restaurant and Bar

Well why did no one tell me about this place before? This bar restaurant combination is how an American Diner should be done out, there are booths, cheesy American music, big cocktails and best of all, proper fat American food. Burgers chips, milkshakes, hot dogs, the works. And yet the prices are not sky high and the venue is just off of the high street. In the summer it is good for a few tables outside and in the winter the place has a queue of any lunchtime on any given day for its sheer popularity. Down side include the fact that this place is not the best kept secret and that the staff are a little on the slow side.

Overall perhaps more of a restaurant than bar but it certaionly up there as one of the best places to stop for drinks or chips on a busy shopping trip around camden - 7/10

Freud’s Cafe Bar Gallery

Freud’s Bar is a basement venue along the end of Shaftesbury Avenue. It is not immediately obvious that it is a bar until you descend the metal staircase out front and make your way down the bar. On the left as the toilets, a large and dirty, smelly room with odd shaped cubicles and wet floors. On the right is the body of the venue and for a Friday night even my jaw drops to look down upon 6 or 7 person deep bar where the grappling of hands of the crowd of many looks like a frantic stock exchange. Knowing I will have little success in this swamp of folk I have a colleague buy a drink for me as I wait by the bar entrance. The place is far too crowded and with little seating available it really is a bare minimum bar. In fact when my drink does arrive half has been lost thanks to stray elbows and I learn that the drink is poor justification for the price.

Overall popular perhaps just because it sits on the feet of covent garden but on a Friday night there is little point in coming, it is a madness that only the most thirsty dare endure - 3/10

The Parlor Room Bar

Vault City is not a welcome place for visitors but convince them that you are a citizen and the quiet town is your playground. Strict are the rules in this outlandish place and to find a bar here is quite a treat. On entry on is greeted by a smartly dressed bar man who is very eager to be as hospitable as possible and offer you a drink. The rest of the bar consists of a few tables and chairs and strangely some private quarters. Unfortunately the bar is a bit of a chatter box and this place has little or no atmosphere compared to many bars in the rest of the game so I poke around a little, take some notes and leave.

Overall a quiet, sad bar where the intentions of the staff are all well and good but a night out would be better served with a post-apocalyptic cider in hand on a park bench down the road - 3/10

Ben’s Coffeeshop

The first coffee shop you ever visit is most memorable and we chose one nearest our hotel - Coffee Shop Ben. Not a wonderful name for a place but we ducked inside. The serving counter sits directly to the left and we make a selection from the menu. The product inside is very highly recommended despite the menu looking worn out with scribbling through many brands. The staff member was very helpful and served us promptly and with a smile at our nubile behavior. We then went deeper into the venue into the smoking are, dark and a little unnerving beside a glowing blue fish-tank. Across from us sat a couple of hooded figures whose outlines were visible in the low lights. The actual smoking room was not very comfortable, the seating was wooden and stiff and the overall presence of menacing characters made us unhappy to be inside.

Overall the product in Ben Coffee Shop had a big thumbs up and we headed back a day later for more but the venue itself is not very warming, is small, claustrophobic and too dark - 5/10

The Bassment Coffeeshop

Between the red lit windows on the main strip of Amsterdam’s Red Light districts sits a coffee shop, down a few steps into the basement of the building. The place is very small, at the front of the shop a gruff owner serves us a few drinks before we head through glass doors into a smoking room beyond. The place feels rather cheap and dirty - lined with booths along all walls we hurry across the only remaining seating and watch as smokers pour vodka shots into their red bulls. The light is ultra violet and the haze in the room is choking and hot. The booths are so small that I can barely move and the heavy bass for which the venue is trying to win a name makes for an uncomfortable environment. We stay a few minutes before a small fly lands on the ash ridden table in front of me and we promptly leave.

Overall one of the worst coffee shops in Amsterdam, perhaps good for the convenience of being one of the few smoker friendly place on the main strip beside the canal but not good enough to keep me inside to finish my drink - 3/10

The Wheatsheaf Pub

In its hey-day this pub looked fabulous from the outside, wisps of Ivy bloomed all over it upon Windmill hill and it was the entry pub to the town of Enfield. There are even now beer garden tables to drink by this busy road but the Ivy has since died back the pub (although sporting several awards for presentation) is now more about local atmosphere. The pub is divided into two which is not apparent on the first visit. The left hand side of the venue is tightly packed with local drinks having a cheer and an assortment of ales. The right side of the venue is more spacious with carpeted floors, a comfortable looking fireplace and several grown-up families enjoying a drink together.

Overall the Wheatsheaf is a friendly place to have a drink but it is a little too close to the main road to enjoy sitting outside in the summer months, and is colourful and cosy over the Christmas period, nothing astounding but quaint and cheery - 6/10

The Parish Pub

Within walking distance of the glorious Wembley stadium sits this timid looking Irish pub. There are frequent signs about the toilets for customer use and just inside the door is a small number of the tables with a compact bar to the right. The bar is serviced by a stern looking middle aged woman and the few punters inside are loud. The venue is serviced by a jukebox which the punters can pay for and at the far end is a dart board in use. Unfortunately the bar selection is not incredible - there is apparently only one type of white wine available, the the ciders and beers are numerous. During the course of the evening we find ourselves waiting at the bar for repeat service as the bar woman order chinese for herself over the phone.

In all, a little unnerving - the mens cubicle seems to have a king of camera or security feature watching its user and the service and atmosphere are not overly friendly - 4/10

Urban Golf Bar

Soho has more to offer than meets the eye, take for instance the Urban Golf venue, a basement affair with virtual golf on large screens to be swung at by real golf enthusiasts - bring you own clubs or borrow their’s. The lessons or open golf is a pretty good price and alongside is a bar serving up a pretty good variety of drinks although no taps to speak of. The place has a very exclusive members only feel but it definitely is a nice change from going bowling in town at the All star Bowling lanes although the Wii has certainly reduced the custom through these doors.

Overall a bit on the pricey side but a basement delight in the heart of London’s Soho - 6/10

Belgo’s Restaurant Bar

Another addition to the belgo’s and bierodrome chain, this little number in Camden is not easy to stumble upon, especially if you are after the food, the entrance is up and over the kitchens of the venue and inside, an art deco hall with small tables is on the cards, the bar sits at the foot of all the tables with long racks for the schnapps shots all lined up. Food here is difficult to turn down the mussels, my personal favourite are on at a good price and do match up well with a fruity beer. Service is not super fast even when the place is almost empty and the toilets are irritatingly positioned behind the kitchen so things can get a little crowded.

Overall a recommended spot for a beer, some shots and a bucket of seafood, a little closer down towards Chalk Farm for those on foot - 7/10