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Princess Louise

208-209 High Holborn, WC1V 7BW Full details & map

Pub

Time Out says 5 Users say 5/5 Rate it

By Time Out Editors Posted: Jun 30 2010

With half-a-dozen ornately carved, sumptuously tiled bar areas under one high, stucco ceiling, the Princess Louise is a classic example of the kind of Victorian public house in which drinking was segregated according to social status.

Today, it's an across-the-board Sam Smith's pub, with the mediocre beer priced to fly (a pint of Old Brewery bitter goes for a shade over two quid, almost comical by the standards of the area). The full Smith's range is available by the bottle in the fridges behind the horseshoe island bar; Organic Lager is probably your best bet.

Sandwiches and pub grub satisfy hungrier diners, who are also accommodated in the upstairs bar (mealtimes only). London buses roll past the frosted glass windows as American tourists tentatively sample the strange dark ales at room temperature; across the bar, regulars pass carefully calculated coinage over the counter without looking up from the racing form.

Tags: Historic, Local flavour, Central, Holborn, Pub

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Princess Louise details

Address

Princess Louise

208-209 High Holborn WC1V 7BW

Transport Holborn tube

Telephone

020 7405 8816

Open 11.30am-11pm Mon-Fri; noon-11pm Sat; noon-10.30pm Sun. Food served noon-2.30pm, 6-8.30pm Mon-Thur; noon-2.30pm Fri

Credit cards AmEx, MC, V

Facilities

No piped music or jukebox

Princess Louise map

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Comments & ratings 5/5 (Average of 5 ratings)

By Hannah - Feb 14 2012

4/5

A great pub. Beer is fine, prices are excellent. A word of caution: my bag was stolen from under my feet from this pub three weeks ago. Whoever it was clearly knew what they were doing. Watch your stuff like a hawk!

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By A Liu - Feb 10 2012

Beautiful pub ... shame about the terrible wine!

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By Jana - Dec 9 2011

5/5

Beautiful place and great wheat beer!

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By Tadz - Aug 29 2011

I was there - one of them belched. To be fair she did apologise.

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By Boge - Aug 27 2011

A first for us - bar staff chomping on their McDonald's as they worked their Saturday lunchtime shift! Sort of entertaining but the smell isn't what you want in a prizewinning pub.

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By Alex - Apr 4 2011

5/5

Really unfair to describe Sam Smiths Ale as 'mediocre' their bitter and their best are both superb cask conditioned ales. Sure if you're a larger drinker there isn't going to be your usual selection of homogenised high strength 'imported' (read brewed under licence in the UK) beer ... but then that really is no bad thing. A great pub, with great beer at a sensible price. And no annoying background music either. Could a pub get any better? Oh - i forgot to mention the open fires in the winter... so yes it could. Really one of the finest boozers in London.

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By Jan - Jan 28 2011

The second the manager pushed me with the door with words "you shouldn't drink you beer here" I really start to dislike this pub. Even though it's cheap I don't intent to go to the pub where you're been shoved aside by some maggot who don't know how to treat their customers.