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Irish pubs with Thai food: a combo first trailed by Notting Hill’s Churchill Arms at the tail end of the ’80s. With it being a winning way for pubs with smaller kitchens to diversify beyond pie and mash, the trend spread. But let’s face it: beer and spice just go really well together. That’s definitely proved at Mc & Sons, a new pub and Thai kitchen near London Bridge from the Irish family-operated Windmill Taverns Group (Southwark’s Jack’s Bar, The Ring and The King’s Arms).
It’s a wood-clad space with framed photos and newspaper clippings paying homage to past generations. Keep an eagle eye out for a seat in the snug with its own bar hatch and (apparently) room for ten cosy punters. I imagine the compact smoking terrace at the rear being just as popular in the summer, although many punters choose the pavement at the front to pursue their habit.
Beers from near and far are in regular rotation on tap. Options can include pale ales from Eight Degrees in County Cork, as well as more familiar Beavertown, Belleville and Hammerton brews, while Continental bottles are also in ready supply. All noodle and curry dishes come in under a tenner, and a bartender with a twinkle in his eye advertised the khao soi as the ultimate hangover cure (not that I was suffering). It was a generous noodle dish with an unctuous coconut milk base, chicken that fell off the bone and a nest of crispy noodles and shallots on top. A massaman curry fell flat by comparison.
A less common sight in London’s Irish pubs these days is actual Irish punters, but on a weeknight trip we found the bar swarming with ex-pats who had to squeeze together to let us through to the rear restaurant. I’d previously tried visiting on a Thursday and could barely get through the door while a live folk band played. Yep, the old formulas are still the best.