The Open Guide to London: the free London guide

• Brewery: Scottish & Newcastle
• Nearby Tube Stops: Green Park / Bond Street

The second oldest pub in Mayfair, built in the 1750s, according to pubs.com.

Drinks

Old Speckled Hen �2.50/pint, also Courage Best and Directors. The Speckled Hen at least seems fine. Kronenbourg and Fosters lagers. [Prices as of January 2003]

Food

Only served at lunchtime.

Service and Ambience

Nice, quiet little pub. Bit of a “local”, perhaps. The clientele were mostly on the older side; we were probably among the youngest people there, being in our twenties. We were also two of the only women, although there were three or four others. We came here on a Tuesday evening. It wasn't too crowded when I arrived at around 5:30, and it was even emptier yet still lively when we left at around 9:30. Just before we left, a man sitting at the bar struck up a conversation with a couple of Americans sitting at a nearby table, and by the time we went out they were having a friendly argument and seemed to have made the best of friends.

Barstaff are friendly too.

No music. There is a small television mounted up high opposite the bar, and they advertise “watch Sky Sports here!” but the night we were there the television was turned right down and I forgot it was there until just now.

Layout

We were in the bar at the front, entered from Farm Street; there's another room at the back. The front bar has large and small wooden tables and chairs; seating for maybe 20–30 people. A bit of standing room too and a barstool or two. Toilets and function room are upstairs.

Facilities

There is a “Victorian dining room” upstairs, available for “business lunches and meetings”. I don't know if there's a hire charge. I had a quick squint through the door on my way to the loo and it looks like a fairly standard function room, seating for perhaps 20 or 30 people on four or five individual tables. But the lights were off so that's just a vague impression and a guess. I don't know whether the room is available in the evenings as well as at lunchtimes.

Other Reviews

• FancyAPint review
• Pubs.com review (note that they're incorrect about food being served in the evening; I asked behind the bar (Jan 2003))
• Aidan's Mayfair pub crawl has a couple of amusing paragraphs about the Punch Bowl (scroll almost to the bottom)