Star & Garter

Hmm... now what can I say about the good old "Star and Garter"? Eh? Or, as me and my old Publishing buddies used to call "The inexorable S & G". Well... all in all, it's a blinder of a traditional Soho Pub. Countless moonlit London nights have I passed within this wood panelled Camelot, this Tintagel of beer. What more can I say? The taps are whistle clean, the clientele are generally a respectful lot, and if you enter with a warm soul and a cupped ear, I guarantee you'll leave with a cheese box loaded with top tier anecdotes. Many an evening I have weaved my entire being around the pie hole of some distinguished ex music mogal, as they pumped my spirit full of tales of old Soho. Oh to have been in this hallowed district in the 50s, 70s or even those naughty 90s! I mean, I remember that cheeky decade well, but tragically only through the undeveloped eyes of a child, filtering its cultural distinctness through the television, interestingly dressed students, or vibrating through the car stereo as I sat flabbergasted, feet still hovering above the foot well, bulging around the belt, in the back seat of a faceless giants Ford Fiesta or suchlike. So my point here is, is that, that the Delectable S & G or the DSG is a blessed relic of a bygone London, when media mogals jostled for steaming pints over wooden bars. The staff were tough cockney foxes back then, faces rearranged by countless bricky interactions with toughys of the preceding decades. The nice thing is that now, the staff here are actually very lovely, and don't even scoff at an order of a moretti Zero, such as the one I gulped down. I even watched as they drank hot shots bought for them by a steaming middle aged man in shorts. They basically made none of us feel silly, neither the sober nor the disgustingly drunk. Stop here for a beer if you want a good anecdote in your ear. Enjoy life.

Everything you'd expect from a traditional pub, this place has lots of charm. Nothing fancy or sophisticated but that's the point - a great place for people from all walks of life to come and socialise. Speedy service. Cask selection could be better but beer was well conditioned. If you're in the area it's well worth a visit!