Fourteen London pubs worth crossing town for a pint

A pint of Timothy Taylor’s Landlord is £6.50 at The Red Lion & Sun in Highgate, a few pence under the London average of £6.55 that The Morning Advertiser’s pint survey found this spring. A half of whatever is on at The French House costs less, because a half is all they will pour. Between those two sit most of the London pubs worth a trip: the old ones on the river, the backstreet locals and a few that ban your phone.

How we chose: Time Out’s 2026 pub and historic-pub lists, CAMRA’s Greater London Pub of the Year, the Top 50 Gastropubs and the pubs’ own sites, ordered from Soho out to the west, north, east and south.

The French House

Beer comes by the half only on Dean Street, and the pub has no music, machines, television or phones. De Gaulle’s Free French used it as a base in the Second World War. Drink downstairs; the dining room upstairs placed 61st at the National Restaurant Awards.

Dean Street, Soho · beer by the half · bar Mon–Fri from 11:30am, Sun from noon · walk-in at the bar

The Lamb & Flag

It has been a pub on Rose Street since at least 1772 and earned the nickname Bucket of Blood for the bare-knuckle fights once staged upstairs. Fuller’s has run it since 2011, so the cask to order is London Pride.

Rose Street, Covent Garden · Mon–Sat 11am–11pm, Sun noon–10:30pm · tables bookable online

The Nags Head

Expect to pay £8 a pint, in cash, and to leave your phone in your pocket: the tiny Kinnerton Street pub has a no-mobiles rule and walls hidden under bric-a-brac. It is the one Belgravia pub on this list, and the most expensive.

Kinnerton Street, Belgravia · pints about £8 · cash · walk-in

The Churchill Arms

You will know it from the flowers covering the front, and at Christmas from the hundred-plus fir trees fixed to it. Go for the Thai kitchen at the back, which has been cooking there for more than 35 years, and drink Fuller’s at the bar. Dogs are welcome.

Kensington Church Street · food Mon–Sat to 9:30pm, Sun to 9pm · book a table online

Angie’s Freehouse

Order the Guinness, which Time Out calls the best in west London; and at under £5 a pint this Maida Hill backstreet local is also one of the cheapest pubs here.

Woodfield Place, Maida Hill · pints under £5 · walk-in

The Southampton Arms

This Highgate Road pub keeps to three things, ale, cider and meat, and every beer comes from a small independent UK brewery. Have a pint with the hot pork bap (£6.95), served Wednesday to Friday evenings and weekend lunchtimes. It opens at midday every day and now takes cards as well as cash.

Highgate Road, Gospel Oak · pork bap £6.95 · walk-in

The Red Lion & Sun

The draught list is printed on the daily menu: Landlord at £6.50, Guinness at £7.20, Beavertown Neck Oil at £8.30. Take the first and sit in one of the two beer gardens. It is third on the Top 50 Gastropubs list, so the food is the other reason to come (see the roast piece).

North Road, Highgate · Landlord £6.50 · daily noon–11pm · book, max 8

The Pocket

New in 2025 on Canonbury Lane, The Pocket prices its pints by strength, at about £5, and takes no bookings. There is no gastropub menu either, which is part of the point.

Canonbury Lane, Islington · pints about £5 · walk-in

The Ten Bells

Now run by London Beer Factory, the Commercial Street pub pours that brewery’s beers alongside guests. Tuesday is the night to go: a burger and a pint for £12, and the quiz at 7:30pm for £2.50 a head. On Fridays fish, chips and a pint is £12.95.

Commercial Street, Spitalfields · burger and a pint £12 on Tue · kitchen closed Mon

The Prospect of Whitby

The pub dates itself to 1520 and calls itself the oldest riverside tavern in the country. Stand at the pewter-topped bar on the 400-year-old stone floor, then take your drink out to the Thames-side garden or up to the roof.

Wapping Wall, Wapping · closed Mon · dogs and families welcome · book a table online

The Grapes

Dickens put this Narrow Street tavern into Our Mutual Friend, and Sir Ian McKellen has been a part-owner since 2012. Order the fish and chips. It takes no table bookings and no under-18s, and bar snacks such as whitebait are £5 each.

Narrow Street, Limehouse · bar snacks £5 · adults only · walk-in

The Victoria

Truman’s tiling and a horseshoe bar survive at this Grade II-listed pub on Page’s Walk, the Evening Standard’s Pub of the Year in 1972. Its cider list is the long one, so drink cider.

Page’s Walk, Bermondsey · walk-in

Big John’s Biltong Bar

Happy hour on Deptford High Street brings the pint down to £5, and the cured meats are made for it. Time Out named it the city’s best dive bar of 2026.

Deptford High Street · £5 pints at happy hour · walk-in

The Cockpit

In Chislehurst, 17 km south-east of the centre, a micropub inside Roses Florist is CAMRA’s Greater London Pub of the Year 2026, picked from 12 regional winners. Adam Miller and Paul Steadman opened it in 2020 to pour cask ale and cider with Neal’s Yard cheese on the side. Using your phone or swearing costs £1.

Royal Parade, Chislehurst · cask ale and cider · walk-in

Checked October 2026.