Drinking, and partying in central London

You can't sightsee or shop *all* the time, even in London! When you're ready to chill, you are never far from a pub in England, and in London more than most towns. Or maybe you fancy a more happening bar, or a club? All the necessary places and info about the centre of London is within this journal - I hope you find it helps you enjoy my favourite place in the world.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Driving is never a good idea in the centre, especially if you are planning to drop by a pub or two! The tube is great, but bear in mind it stops running at about midnight (varies slightly according to which line you are travelling on.) Night buses in London are great, but a bit harder to work out than the tube if you are a visitor here. Trafalgar Square is the best place to get a night bus from, and as you'd guess from the name, they run all night. London taxis are a great, if pricey, way to get about. The drivers always know every godforsaken alley-way in town, and you may well get a free lecture on politics thrown in! At night, taxis are not always easy to find, but be careful before getting into a minicab on the street. They are not allowed *by law* to pick up passengers by touting for hire, and there aren't therefore checks for criminal convictions on the drivers. Many have a casual attitude to matters such as insurance as well.

The Anchor is hard to get to - follow the narrow paths past Southwark Cathedral, past the ancient Clink prison. It's a great pub in the summer - it has a huge outdoor terrace overlooking the river. You can sip a drink and watch the boats, see St. Paul's and Tower Bridge, and chill out after a long day's activity (or idleness, activity isn't required as door policy). From the terrace of this pub, the famous 17th century diarist Samuel Pepys watched the Great Fire of London race through the north bank in 1666. The pub itself is a 17th century building, as the south bank of the river suffered a serious fire of its own a decade later, and divided into a few, small bars - there's been a pub here for over 800 years. It's a very attractive building, with cosy seats, and low ceilings. The current claim to fame is that Tom Cruise was filmed having a quick pint here in Mission Impossible.

At night, the city is lit up and the vista is stunning - but bear in mind that even in the height of summer, it's a good idea to have a jumper or jacket for late in the evening, especially next to the river. To get here, the nearest stations are London Bridge or Cannon Street (which is the other side of the river, you must cross the Thames to get here.)

This is my local, not far from where I live. I go about 2 or 3 times a week, with my boyfriend or other friends.

It's a small corner pub, at the north end of Red Lion Street, near the junction with the Theobald's Road. It's triangular in shape, and small and cozy. The pub is only big enough for about 30 people at one time, with 4 tables and benches along one side (6 people each), and bar stools. There are 3 tables in the passage-way outside, which are nice in the summer.

They sell the normal variety of pub drinks, and take cards if the bill is more than £10. As in all British pubs, you go to the bar, order and pay for your drinks, and take them away - you'll wait a long time for someone to come to your table and serve you!

After the pub shuts at 11pm, you can roll the 5 yards across Lamb's Conduit passage to the Tandoori King curry house, (reveiwed separately), and carry on drinking during a traditional British after-pub meal (-:

The pub suffered some damage during a Zepplin raid in the First World War, and one wall of the pub has the clock that was in the pub at the time, stopped at 10:50, the time of day the bombs were dropped!

The nearest tube to the pub is Holborn (Piccadilly and Central lines.) The pub's about 5 minutes walk north of here - via Procter Street and Red Lion Square.

The Comedy Store is a cracking good night out. A variety of comics, some very well-known, others newer performers, entertain at this intimate venue. The club isn't large, and so everyone feels drawn in to the perfomances. The standard is usually very high, although there are of course occasional let-downs. I've been there several times, and always come away weak with laughter! A lot of the top comics have, and still do, appear here, so check listings to see who'll be around. They save some tickets for last minute sales, so if you turn up a couple of hours before the show, you can get your tickets and then go for a drink nearby until the fun starts.

There are usually two performances an evening, each lasting a couple of hours. There's a bar inside, where drinks aren't outragously expensive, and food's also available. This isn't a place to go if you're easily offended, the humour can get a little crude. Top tip - DON'T SIT IN THE FRONT ROW. The grief isn't worth it!

The ultimate night out - expensive, but the original and the best supperclub. Dress up big time, or you'll be out-classed. The music is not for wimps, especially the hard-core room! The programme isn't the same all the time - they have some resident DJs, and other guests, but they do play a lot of house and garage music, that's the general theme here. The chill out areas are necessary for this long, great night of dancing. If you're into clubbing, this is the place to be. Tip - do your drinking before you go! The prices would make a grown man cry. The nearest tube to the club in Elephant and Castle. The club has its own website, with details of the "brand". The ministry isn't just one club anymore - it's internet radio, merchandise, and several venues. Details - http://www.ministryofsound.co.uk/

Digress is a bargain - only a fiver to get in, and great inside. There are two floors to the place - the upstairs is mostly a bar, with relaxed armchairs, a long bar, and music. the basement is a dancefloor, with another bar and some chairs and tables. The basement is decorated in the way I want my bedroom when I was 13 - wrought iron, decorated windows, relaxed atmosphere. The music is cheesey, but good - a mixture of old faves such as Madonna, with more modern chart and house stuff. It's a great dance place, and open to 4am.

The drinks are quite expensive, but not by central London club standards. A double plus mixers is about £4.50. There is a wide range of cocktails sold, and you can easily buy a jug of something, and cart it off to your table or ledge with an armful of glasses for your mates. Digress can be a bit of a meat market, it must be said, but not in an aggressive or unpleasant way. This is a great place to pull, but if that's not what you're after, it's still a great evening venue. The nearest tube is Oxford Circus.

This is the ultimate cheese venue. If you want a combination of Madonna, Abba, Take That, Gloria Gaynor,etc, this is the place for you! This isn't a place for your posh, trendy designer gear, the clothing policy here is definitely cheap 'n' cheerful.

It's a fun, cheerful club, decorated to look as if it's on a sea bed, with sand, waves, sea life, etc on the wall. It's pretty cheap to get in, and the drinks aren't too bad either. The slogan the staff t-shirts proclaim is that "No-one's ugly after 2am", which says it all, really!

Nearest tube: Covent Garden.

The club is right in the heart of Covent Garden, on the square, just opposite the main market. It is based underground, arranged over a series of small, linked rooms, each with its own bar.

The place is decorated in a very odd style indeed - the walls and floor are bare concrete, and the ceilings are covered in a mock-Turkish war-tent, Ottoman style, with gathered folds held together by a brass centre piece. There are also paintings of sunset sea-scapes and night scenes on the walls in some of the bars. There are some high tables and stools in the far bars, if you want to sit down for a while.

Drinks here are very expensive - £6 for a spirit and mixer, £2.50 for a half-pint of beer. They also sell a fairly standard range of cocktails.

The music here on most nights is a kind of house style, with lots of re-mixes of recent hits as well. I can't say I really like this place - it's very expenisve, odd to look at, and the music isn't really my favourite kind. It is a good place to go with a group, and it's central, however.

The nearest tube is Covent Garden (Piccadilly line)

This pub, although it has a rather silly name, is actually quite fun. It’s on Fleet Street, almost opposite the Royal Courts of Justice, and not far from St. Clements Dane church and the Aldywch. I quite often pop in to the pub for lunch, as it’s close to my workplace in the Temple. If you’re looking at the wonderful Royal Courts of Justice, or have been taking a look at the cloistered splendour of the Inner and Middle Temples, it is very convenient for a meal or drink.

The pub is long and narrow, and has seating space on two floors. Downstairs is a long bar, a series of booths, and at the back 4 large tables, each with 4 or 6 seats. Upstairs is a smaller bar, with seating for perhaps 30 people altogether and a pool table. The décor is traditional English pub – the seats and tables on the ground floor are made from a rich, polished oak, and the walls are part timber and brick, part pale-green plaster. The first floor upstairs is a little more modern, with more cushioned, informal chairs.

Food can be ordered on both floors of the pub. It’s not a cheap as some pub lunches, but neither is it very expensive – and there’s a good choice of food. They do the usual range of sandwiches, baguettes, soup, jacket potatoes, all-day breakfasts, salads, and English dishes such as bangers and mash.

The bar has a good range of wine, and different beers are promoted each week. The staff are generally pleasant and helpful, although at busy times the food can take a while to arrive, and it’s a pleasant place to be for lunch or a few drinks. Food is served from midday until 8pm. The bar keeps normal pub hours – 11am to 11pm.

The nearest tubes are Blackfriars and Temple (District line).

Can you get a drink after 11pm? Yes and no, is the answer. Almost all pubs are only permitted to open between 11am and 11pm, and some still shut in the afternoon (very few in central London shut, however.) At almost all pubs there will be a call at ten to eleven "last orders", or a bell might be rung. After 11pm, that's it. You get 20 minutes "drinking up time", and then the bar staff will be encouraging you to get lost. "Ain't you lot got homes to go to?" If you want to carry on the party after chucking out time, you'll need to head to a bar, or a club. Most late-night bars congregate in areas which allow late licenses, such as the West End, or Islington. At the weekend, these will mostly be open until at least 3am, many until later. Pubs are generally more informal, and have no cover charge, unless there's a music or quiz night. Bars and clubs usually do have a cover, and the drinks tend to cost more.

Pubs do sometimes have what are known as "lock-ins". These are legal if the punters are friends of the landlord, and aren't paying for their drinks, and not legal otherwise. You are unlikely, as an unknown tourist, to be invited to an illegal lock-in, but you never know your luck!