The Prince Of Wales, SW1

One room pub with, happily, ESB on draught. Pleasant enough place for a drink.

A single roomed corner pub,seating was in the form of small stools and tables and bar stools,traditionally layed out it felt like a locals pub and indeed the barman was on first name terms with a good few of the punters. The beer choice was a bit more extensive than it was on Johns visit a year ago, all six hand pumps were on the go with a choice from Fullers Pride and ESB,Doom Bar, T.T Landlord, Robinsons Hop Gun and a very nice Adnams Mosaic.I thought it rather pleasant here.

Rough around the edges traditional locals pub.Lots of clutter on the walls.Doombar ,Landlord, Pride and ESB were the beer choices.

As an unapologetic traditional pub hound, this place looked to tick all the boxes, on a recent wander round Pimlico. On entering, I found it to be a small, narrow one roomer, rather dark, but cosy, with wainscoting on the walls, a predominantly maroon colour scheme and a dark green ceiling. Old prints and photos dotted the walls, some featuring the Prince of Wales himself and low tables and chairs were spaced at intervals under the windows. At the bar, five hand pumps were in use dispensing Doombar, Landlord, Fullers Pride & ESB, plus a Prince of Wales house beer that appeared to be brewed by Tetley. Opting for the ESB, it was in good nick, but a slightly eye watering £4.20, for a Yorkshireman used to paying less than three quid a pint. However, I suspect it’s not unreasonable for the area. Service from the young barmaid was rather cool, but there was a good early evening atmosphere when I called, with a healthy mixture of tourists and locals. The only real negative was the intrusively loud music playing over the TV news, on silent. Overall, I thought it was a reasonable little place. Probably not one for an extended session, but worthy of a quick pint if in the area.

This is an attractive looking street corner pub with dutch gables, preserved brown tiling and nice floral displays. Inside it is one long and narrow room which opens out a bit beyond the front side bar. The bar is ornately carved and has a central clock feature but it didn't look original or Victorian to me but at least an attempt has been made to retain a bit of character. Patterned carpet, wainscoted walls and textured patterned ceiling, the pub manages to capture a feel of a traditional local despite not being far from Victoria Station; round beaten copper topped tables reminded me of how old I am now! Décor included a few caricatures, theatre flyers, some old Royal types and a series of chalked quotations on the bar gantry. Six handpumps, Doom Bar, Timothy Taylor Landlord, Pride, ESB, Marston's Single Hop Amarillo and unfortunately reverse clipped, Snaith Old Mill Blonde Bombshell. Food is served, I didn't check menus or prices but a couple of boards advertised burgers and baked potatoes. Not a bad little find for this area, renowned for touristy transient type pubs, one disappointment however when a pair of Americans entered and ordered food then asked for drinks recommendations; the barmaid thoughtfully guided them towards Fosters!

This is a smallish street corner locals pub a shortish stroll away from Victoria Station. Outside, the strapline along the side of the building proclaims “ A Victorian Ale House. Established here circa 1860”. A rather featureless bare boarded interior interior has a small narrow bar area just inside the main door which opens out to a slightly wider seating area. There’s a few pictures of old kings and queens, but no real attempt to develop the theme. A fake ornate bar gantry is an obvious attempt to create a bit of an old world look, but it looks rather contrived and cheap and doesn’t disguise the fact that there’s no original fittings or Victorian features left. Beers on were Doom Bar, London Pride and TT Landlord, which appears to be the regular range. The Landlord - £ 3.30p – was really good and my work colleagues were complementary about the Doom Bar. This pub appears to have a good local customer base and, pleasingly, doesn’t seem to have that typically transient Central London pub feel to it. Worth a look in if passing, but it’s not worth specifically seeking out.

This smallish, single room, corner pub appears to attract a legion of regulars rather than have any great appeal for the wider audience. The carpeted interior is neat and tidy without too much that stands out although the clock centerpiece on the bar canopy does catch the eye. A retro radio/cd player stands on a window sill and the 3 TV’s disperesed throughout the pub screen a regular dosage of Sky Sports.A few old regal pictures (presumably ex-Prince of Wales’) adorn the walls but generally it’s quite a plain unfussy interior. Perhaps its ordinariness (is that a real word?) is its best asset when compared to the numerous touristy, gastro and chain pubs that frequent the area. Of the 6 hand pumps, 3 were unused with Pride and Landlord being the regular choices and Acorn Tangerine Dream the surprisingly unusual guest beer. Prices seem about opar for the area and proababkly a tad less than many of its immediate neighbours. It all seemed friendly enough although there probably isn't enough here to spend an evening here but it is a half decent stop gap whilst on the way to somewhere else or as part of a crawl.