London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
Central London: Bloomsbury, Euston and St Pancras
Lamb, London WC1
Traditional pub (Young’s), Regional Heritage pub
94 Lambs Conduit Street WC1N 3LZ
T (020) 7405 0713 W www.youngs.co.uk
Open 1200-2300 (2400 Thu-Sat, 2230 Sun). Children welcome until 1700.
Cask beers 7 (5 Wells & Young’s, 2 guests), Other beers 1 keg (Meantime), 6 bottles (Wells & Young’s), Also 15 wines
Food Enhanced pub grub, Outdoors Small beer garden, Wifi.
Sat monthly live music, Sun quiz, functions.
A rare original pub dating from the late 18th century development of Bloomsbury, the Lamb is now both a heritage gem and a prime central London showcase for Young’s beers, with numerous Good Beer Guide listings to its credit. Bitter, Special, Gold and Wells Bombardier are the regulars, with a Young’s seasonal (it’s a reliable source of Winter Warmer at the right time of year) and selections from its owner’s typically mainstream but decent guest roster, like St Austell Tribute or Caledonian Deuchars. Meantime London Lager is on keg while Double Chocolate Stout and Special London Ale are among the bottles. A broad menu includes reasonably priced sandwiches at lunchtime, grazing platters, sausages, salads and main course specials like roast dinners, pies or scampi and minted pea risotto that creep over a tenner.
Inside it’s a charming and comfortable little place arranged around a three-sided bar, with wood panelling and engraved glass, plenty of secluded corners and an upstairs room with a theatrical theme. Numerous interesting prints on display include a series of Victorian political caricatures down the stairs. Star heritage features, though, are the surviving twin rows of “snob screens” on each side of the bar — opaque glass panes meant to obscure eye contact between well heeled customers and lowly staff that could be pivoted aside to serve drinks through. There’s no piped music, unless you count the polyphon, a giant Victorian music box that can be set working in exchange for a donation to charity. The pub is near the top of a picturesque street leading to Coram’s Fields, the only London park where adults are allowed only if accompanied by children, and the adjoining Foundling Museum on the site of the Foundling Hospital, a charitable orphanage founded by Thomas Coram in 1739.
National Rail Kings Cross, St Pancras Underground Russell Square, Holborn Cycling LCN+ 0 6 Walking Jubilee Walkway
Leave a Reply