Islington pubs

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Discover the best pubs in Islington

Although the chains have railroaded some corners of N1, the area still packs plenty of classic boozers. Try Filthy MacNasty's for a raucous night out, or get picky over your pints courtesy of Island Queen's gargantuan range of specials.

Think we've missed a great pub in Islington? Let us know in the comment box below.

  • Lord Clyde

    Rating: 5/5 340-342 Essex Road, London, N1 3PB

    A quality makeover, this, a few bus stops north of the spaghetti junction of bars around the Angel...
    Read Lord Clyde review

  • Railway Tavern

    Rating: 4/5 2 St Jude Street, London, N16 8JT

    The Railway Tavern in Dalston? That one next to Dalston Kingsland Station with the peculiarly segregated front and saloon bars? No, not that one...
    Read Railway Tavern review

  • Island Queen

    Rating: 4/5 87 Noel Road, London, N1 8HD

    This Islington backstreet pub is a notch above most of its N1 competitors. ...
    Read Island Queen review

  • Old Red Lion

    Rating: 4/5 418 St John Street, London, EC1V 4NJ

    The Old Red Lion is most famous for the matchbox-sized fringe theatre that sits above it, staging no-budget productions of plays both old and (mostly) new. But the pub itself...
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  • Filthy MacNasty's

    Rating: 3/5 68 Amwell Street, London, EC1R 1UU

    Though it's been repainted in a fetching red (it's no longer filthy or nasty), this music landmark still pokes its tongue out...
    Read Filthy MacNasty's review

  • Hemingford Arms

    Rating: 3/5 158 Hemingford Road, London, N1 1DF

    Don't be fooled by the all-singing, all-dancing slickness of the Hemingford's website: the pub itself is something of a shambles, and much the better for its...
    Read Hemingford Arms review

  • Compton Arms

    Rating: 3/5 4 Compton Avenue, London, N1 2XD

    This quiet, unassuming local is hidden away behind the Union Chapel and thus mercifully isolated from the chaos of Highbury Corner. It's a cosy place, split between a longish...
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  • Shakespeares Head

    Rating: 3/5 1 Arlington Way, London, EC1R 1XA

    After a decade or so that's seen frosted pub windows across London replaced by clear glass, the Shakespeares Head may look a little daunting from the outside. Don't be shy...
    Read Shakespeares Head review

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  • The Snooty Fox at 75 Grosvenor Avenue N5 2NN is missing from this list. And I think it's one of the top pubs in the area. Always top quality ales, and an interesting range as well, not the usual suspects. Great music generally too. And one of the few seven inch vinyl jukeboxes left in London, let alone Islington. I'm looking forward to the ale festival they have coming up at the beginning of Februrary.

    PJ Thu Jan 19 2012
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