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Charles Lamb
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This is everything that a neighbourhood boozer should be, and much-loved by the lucky locals - a highbrow, high-spirited bunch that tend to come in small groups to enjoy the excellent, reasonably priced grub (from exemplary bar snacks to mains like fish pie) or play board games with resident mutt Mascha at their feet. The lovely mint-green central bar - with coffee machine and continuously refilled plate of sausage rolls (£2 each) - is manned by a young team who seem to know many of the punters. There's a well-chosen variety of wines and real ales like Timothy Taylor Landlord and Chiswick Bitter. The traditional vibe and the decor (cream walls, wood floors, blackboards, black lacquer tables) evoke a country-in-the-city vibe that's appealingly fresh in summer and cosy in winter.
Looking to eat? Check our restaurant review of The Charles Lamb.
Time Out Bars, Pubs & Clubs Guide 2008/9
See also
- London’s top 50 bars and pubs
Time Out reviews restaurants anonymously and pays for meals. Of course, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or independence of user reviews.
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Details
- 16 Elia Street, Islington, N1 8DE
- Area: Islington
- Tel: 7837 5040
- www.thecharleslambpub.com
- Category: Bars & Pubs
- Travel: Angel tube
- Times: Open: 4-11pm Mon, Tue; noon-11pm Wed-Sat; noon-10.30pm-Sun, Food served: 6-9pm Mon, Tue; noon-4pm, 6-9.30pm Wed-Sat; noon-6pm Sun
- Credit cards: MC, V
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juliansl
I run my own small business so meeting new like minded people can be a struggle. I believe in work hard to play hard and experience all you can....
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The best pub in London Town.
I'm off to the Charles Lamb for a first date in 2 hours so fingers crossed. I'll be sure to check for missing celery.
what simon anderson said! magic place, charming men behind the bar, amazing food, always puts me in a good mood. but before you cross london, remember it's titchy tiny so go with a mate or two not a gang ...
This pub is the perfect example of what pubs need to do to survive in the current climate.
What annoys me is British people only use the internet to complain and never praise.
This place has won countless awards and is loved by its locals.
If a place that is never empty has only one negative comment than its doing amazingly well.
Search it out for yourself and be jealous you don't live around the corner.
Karen did write to us at The Charles Lamb to complain about her experience and I hoped I had addressed the incident sufficiently but perhaps publicising her discontentment with the content of a Bloody Mary on the public domain made her feel better!
Our manager is invariably charming and helpful, so I'm afraid his refusal of service was only in response to rudeness.
Our Bloody Mary mix at The Charles Lamb contains our own blend of freshly ground spices (including celery seed) and is made fresh every Sunday morning with love and attention in a large batch for speed of service.
The origin of the Bloody Mary is disputed. It is alleged to have been created by Fernand Petiot at Harry's Bar and to have been a simple half and half mix of tomato juice and vodka. It has since appeared in many incarnations to suit the establishment serving it. As a pub (not a hotel/cocktail bar) we tend to be more concerned with flavour and simplicity than fashionable flourishes.
We wish Karen all the best, and every luck in finding the elusive perfect Bloody Mary!
For a pub that boasts great Bloody Mary's, a premix tomato concoction that the barman adds vodka to and serves WITHOUT celery is a joke. When this drink was rejected due to not meeting the basic criteria a request for a different drink was made, the barman refused to serve myself or my friends. That level of service is poor by anyone's standards. It was a disappointing start to a Sunday lunch, which we undertook at nearby pub. Never to return to the Charles Lamb, shame about the staff, the food menu read well.