Red Lion

This unashamedly old-fashioned pub attracts an unashamedly old-fashioned clientele made up of neighbourhood gents and well-to-do local workers, although it would also excite overseas tourists looking for a quaintly, quintessentially English inn. With china plates lining the walls and an attractive little bar tucked in one corner, the small ground-floor room offers nowhere to hide, in keeping with the sense that most of the drinkers are on first-name terms.

The musty upstairs room is often empty, but it’s worth a peek for its cluttered and dated decor and gentlemen’s club feel. On Saturdays, when the locals have all retreated to the country, the staff content themselves with pouring pints for the handful of exuberant blokey gangs who show up as part of the fabled Monopoly-board pub crawl: this is the nearest boozer to Pall Mall.