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New pubs don’t open up as much as new restaurants. In fact, it’s likely that more pubs in London are closing down than opening up, which makes the launch of new boozers in the capital something to celebrate.
One pub however stands pump and cask above the rest; The Pocket in Islington, which we have crowned the best new pub in London for 2025.
It was the only new pub to make our recently updated top 50 pubs in London list, and as such was the only real contender for the title. The Pocket opened in March 2025, on the site of a long-shut bar called the Four Sisters pub on Canonbury Lane. Owner Pete Holt also runs the Southampton Arms on Highgate Hill by Hampstead Heath, an old school ale and cider house with an open fire and a piano, which also features in our pubs top 50.
A former carriage house, The Pocket has local ales and ciders, sells scotch eggs and sausage rolls, and like the Southampton Arms, also has a piano, with regular music afternoons and evenings.
Our five star review of the new pub reads: ‘The Pocket’s premise is simple, and, let’s be honest, perfect: “No reservations. No green food. No shit beer. No terrible modern music,” they say. The bar snacks come in various shades of beige (scotch eggs, sausage rolls, pasties, and pork pies), the music comes from either the piano or a vinyl record player which favours vintage jazz and soul, and the crowd is gorgeous. Beer is priced in order of strength, meaning it’s possible to get that rare thing - a London pint for a fiver.’
The Pocket, 25 Canonbury Lane, Islington, N1 2AS
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