ck-one's Qype profile

The Griffin is a little baffling to me. The outside looks extremely unappealing, and it was in fact years of working in the city before I ventured inside (and was pulled in by a colleague then).

Inside and outside the place looks a little 'ruffled', but it's appeal is definitely in the down-to-earth attitude of the staff and customers inside.

So why do I give it 4 stars? Well to be honest, it's one of the better in the area if you're not in the city for the money.

It has a pool table (5x4) which adds to it's appeal.

Although this bar is no match for The World's End in Camden, it has it's own appeal. It's a nice bar to pop into after work, and is generally quite buzzing in the evenings.

The bar offers a decent bar menu, and a wide range of beers. They also have bands here on a regular basis.

The customer base tends to be mixed and friendly, and doesn't feel like too much of a locals bar.

The O’Neills chain are a chain of Irish Bars in the UK. Although they claim to have a traditional Irish menu, this isn’t the case, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

This O’Neills is in a converted Church, which gives the venue a unique atmosphere. They have a large screen for Sports, and you can forget about having a drink and a chat once the sport is on. The have a decent selection of beers/wines, and the service isn’t bad.

It’s very easy not to find this little restaurant. It’s hidden away in the back of Soho, and it’s easy to walk past the small entrance. But once you find it, you’ll be glad you did.

It’s an extremely cosy and romantic venue, which is unusual in London, particularly Soho. The food is absolutely fantastic, and not over-priced. The desserts are to die for.

The service is equally fantastic, only downside is that it’s small and gets very busy - so be sure to book at least a week in advance.

If you’re looking for a bar where it takes ages to get served, you feel claustrophobic and you want to get down with the tourists, then this is the place for you. Being a cheap pub in the heart of Leicester Square, you’re guaranteed a bit of a mad rush. It’s a good meeting place, but I wouldn’t advise staying here for more than a drink or two.

They have a standard bar menu, but it gets too crowded to eat comfortably. It’s usually full of toursists though, so its a good place to meet people.

Having walked past this bar/restaurant a few hundred times, I finally decided to bite the bullet and have lunch in there. And I’m very glad I did.

I expected it to be a little too much on the upper side of class for me, but I didn’t get that feeling at all. Although I barely filter out any accent besides the proper queen’s English, I really felt comfortable here.

The service was fantastic, because considering it was completely full, they still managed to serve us almost immediately after sitting down. The waiter was unbelievably patient at our customisation of various meals on the menu, and service with a smile is an understatement.

And to top it all off, the food really was top notch.

This is an American style diner with a touch of Italian thrown in. The restaurant itself is quite big with a bar upstairs and a seating area outside (but within the O2 arena). It tends to get quite busy when there’s a concert on at the O2, so best to check before you go.

The staff are friendly, and the food is OK. The pizza’s are quite good, but the rest of the food I found was quite bland and tasted a bit like it had been left heating in an oven somewhere for ages.

Best thing about Frankie and Benny’s (any of them) is their cocktails! Especially their frozen strawberry daquiri’s! Well that’s the reason I go anyway!

The Royal Standard is the only bar in the small village of Stratheden Parade, Blackheath. It’s nto a bad bar, with a good range of drinks and a decent bar menu.

It’s very much a locals pub, but they’re a friendly lot if you make an effort to talk to them. There are a couple of pool tables if you fancy a game, and they have sports on if you’re a football fan.

The Worlds end is one of the cooler venue’s in Camden. It’s a massive pub, that suits different customers depending on where you are in the pub. The main part of the pub is very rocky/goth, and its dark with very unusual art-work on the walls. The music is quite heavy, but adds to the atmosphere.

They have a main bar if you fancy a bit of a brighter location, and the older folk/locals tend to drink in here.

There’s a wide range of drinks, and they also do food.

This is quite a nice bar if you want to stop off after a hectic shopping trip and have a coctail to de-stress. They regularly have happy hour on cocktails which is always nice. The have an OK menu for nibbles.

On the bad side the music tends to be a little too heavy, and it’s a bit grim and dark inside. The staff are not rude, but not overly friendly either - but thats kind of standard for Camden.