The Coach and Horses, Clerkenwell, London

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The first time I had a scotch egg was at my work canteen. Needless to say, it was cold and tasted like cardboard. It even gave me a tummy ache actually.

Now I love dishes that have eggs in them. Determined to find myself a good scotch egg, I found myself at The Coach and Horses.

Charcuterie Board £10
Spiced potted venison with pickled beetroot, york ham with piccalilli
Bresaola with pickles, scotch quail egg with nettle pesto

My dinner companion and I settled on ordering the charcuterie board where I will still have my egg and he has more options than just eating an egg!

The little scotch egg had a nice crispy batter although it was a tad too salty.

Fish soup with sourdough and aioli £5.5

Gilthead bream with razor clams, sea vegetables, ratte potatoes and crab bisque£12

Buttermilk pudding with damson jam and doughnuts

Salted caramel truffle

What can I say about the rest of the dinner? Other than the salted caramel truffle, everything else was unmemorable. You will still have a nice dinner but don’t expect fireworks.

This pub is very much a gastro pub (they do always have a lovely smell, I will give them that) but at least it does seem to have one saloon bar area where the tables aren't set, so drinking might be allowed, albeit fined heavily with penalties between 3.50 and 3.95 a pint!

I went for the cheapest, the Adnams which was a pretty nice pint all things considered.

The problem with Farringdon (where as you can tell by my reviews, I find myself in at least twice a week), is that everything shuts at the weekend. I've very nearly ended up in the Coach and Horses so many times, but something always gets in the way. These somethings tend to be the Gunmakers around the corner, and it being shut. BUT! We discovered that the opened for lunch on a Sunday and hot-footed it there for my friend's post-birthday party roast dinner.

Well, that was the plan. Because I drank too much bourbon the night before, I changed my food order at the very last minute. No roast dinner for me! Oh no. A salad. A celeriac salad instead of Yorkshire puddings. I suck at Sunday food. Luckily, we also sampled one of the famed Scotch eggs and they were worth all the reviews below. FABULOUS. And my salad was incredibly tasty (despite it only being leaves and Stilton, which was a weird lunch choice, I'll admit). I did sample the roast potatoes from my friend's plate (nay, chopping board) and they were fantastic. Stupid hangover.

I like the pub, the staff are friendly, the bric a brac is fun. The maps of London from the mid-19th century are fantastic (Tower Bridge wasn't even built then, the map looks weird without it). I didn't feel the food was too pricey. I want more Scotch eggs.

The only thing that stops them getting five stars is them charging £3.95 for a pint of Landlord. Really rather unimpressed with that. I'll go back, but I'll go back for the food. I'm not paying £4 for a pint.

The Coach and Horses was, until recently, one of those places that I keep hearing great things about, but had never visited (despite having walked past literally hundreds of times).

Well today I finally made it in, for a spot of Sunday lunch. The Coach and Horses pride themselves on their food, and rightly so. Their famed scotch eggs were the best that I've ever tasted (perfectly runny yolk, crisp and spicy outside), and the roast pork (served on a chopping board, oddly) was flavoursome and well presented.

Food prices are not cheap, but not extortionate for 'gastro-pub' fare. I was mildly shocked to pay £3.95 for a pint of Timothy Taylor Landlord, but it was at least very well kept.

Service was friendly, and the atmosphere was bright and relaxed. Highly recommended.

I love this pub. I have been twice now and both times had great food and great service. The menu changes often and always seems in season. Decor is unpretentious and old fashioned. I also like the fact that it sell Timothy Taylor beer, a favourite of mine. I have not been since the head chef has changed but i'm sure it's just as good. Definitely worth a visit if in Clerkenwell.

Massive 5 stars all around

Now this is a good pub.

Personal service, great real ale, a cracking quiz night and phenomenally good, cheap food. I can highly recommend the Indian style and sausage and beans scotch eggs. They sound strange, but they're absolutely delicious. It's this sort of unusual, but wonderful cuisine which seems to have really triggered The Coach and Horses' popularity beyond EC1 to across the whole of London. It's just a really good pub, and now that i've been, i can see why people are willing to travel great distances to come here.

I'll be back, but i'll be sharpening up my food trivia before i'm back for the quiz!

Great boozer with fabulous food!

The Coach & Horses is one of the most celebrated of gastropubs in the pub and restaurant wonderland of Clerkenwell … and with good reason! From gorgeously scrumptious Scotch eggs to some of the best steaks to be devoured in London, this classic and lovingly restored (without being tarted up) Victorian venue with its modern British menu more than holds its own among the locals … including The Eagle (London's “first gastropub”) and nearby restaurants such as St John.

I've conquered another milestone in my discovery on Englishness. After an ale tasting, a couple of months ago, it was time for my first pub quiz, and I think I've become a fan of this one too (I've become a fan of pretty much everything English I've tried so far, and I don't want to ruin it by trying Marmite).

It's easy to be a fan of The Coach and Horses. The food is as cozy and inviting as the place. I especially loved a veggie fried cake that came on the nibbles plate, and went down perfectly with their killer Bloody Mary.

Now I've been to see what all the fuss is about, I'm miffed I live such an epic distance from this pub. If I lived nearer, I'd be here all the time.

For me, the staff are what really set it apart. They're chatty, friendly, and really know their stuff when it comes real ales and tasty pub grub, which is 50% off if you're entering the quiz, making it a pretty nifty bargain too. £2 half-pint of prawns, anyone?

And despite being shown up good and proper by my lack of foodie knowledge in the quiz, I had so much fun that I'll be swallowing my pride (and scotch eggs aplenty) to come back for more. But I might have to swot up a bit first.

Finally managed to get to the Coach and Horses for their foody pub quiz and now I wish I lived a little bit closer to this brilliant little gastro boozer.

I was ravenous when i got there so ordered the burger and chips to go along with my pint of Timothy Taylor. The selection of ales is great, and the food is brilliant. When they ask you how you want your burger cooked in a pub you know it's got be half decent, and the Coach goes well past half decent.

Great burger, good quality meat, stacked with all the accompaniments , and a big bowl of chips - all served up without any fuss or la-de-da. Just quality grub.

Their regular food quiz is a must visit as well, even if you're not a wannabe Delia, you can still join in with the less 'intellectual' rounds and there's some great prizes to be won - I will treasure the moment we won a loaf of Soreen for a long time to come

Went here last night for a foodie pub quiz. What a cracking pub!

Gastro food done properly - really interesting selection at very good prices. (It's half price food for quiz entrants!) They also have a few decent ales on - I remember two being Landlord and Adnams.

The pub quiz night was well run, with a foodie theme, including some amusing creative rounds and even a ketchup tasting. I was also pleased to walk away at the end of the night with a smoker. Yes, a smoker. But I didn't take her home. I took the smoker home. Woodchip in a pan which goes on your stove to smoke the sh*t out of some meat. Didn't even know one of these existed! But funnily enough just last week I was talking about needing one when I couldn't buy any smoked mackerel in Hamburg. Not a problem anymore.

Entertaining, gastro food, good beer, friendly crowd and solid serve.

Oh and the scotch eggs are the best I've tasted. If you're brave enough to try the whole deep fried pigs head please drop me a Qype message to tell me what it was like!

I'm afraid my review doesn't involve a single scotch egg. But it does include brilliant service, a lovely steak and the finest dauphinoise potatoes I've ever tasted. Located just off Farringdon Road, I have been reliably informed that this pub used to be frequented by hoards of thirsty Guardian hacks after a hard day on the newsdesk. Now the Guardian has moved north to King's Cross, this drinking hole seems to have successfully re-established itself as a gastro-pub, with a separate dining area at the back. The table service was friendly and efficient, the food was scrumptious and I'd definitely go back. And maybe I'd even try one of those legendary scotch eggs!

What a great little gem! I had no idea this pub was lurking just a street over from my bus route. This is why Qype events are so great--they call attention to places that should be on your radar.

From the time I stepped in for a pint and ordered some chips (with some yummy garlic aioli) to the time I met Henry, the world's cutest chef, I was smitten.

The atmosphere is intoxicating (yeah yeah, har har) and the food on the plates that passed me looked delish. And while I cant speak for the things I saw (including some rarely seen cuts of meat, hello HEART?!!), I can say the Scotch eggs are worth a nibble. I'd also pull up a chair to the bar and order one of the charcuterie platters, filled with delicate slices of meats and amazing fresh breads.

Yum-o!!

I went to The Coach and Horses in Clerkenwell ready to discover whether my obsession with Scotch Egg's was justified. I treated the (slightly random) Scotch egg masterclass as 'Scotch Egg Unanimous': an opportunity for me to come clean about my infatuation. I say 'random', that doesn't actually apply to me.

During the demo, Henry raised his disgust of chippy's favourite 'pickled eggs', I was silent as the room agreed with their wrongness, however I need to find a pickled egg masterclass to deal with my cravings.

Qype, can you help?

The scotch egg tasted fabulous, though I still can't work out what it does to my diet! The place, however, felt good for me - a great moderately-priced British gastro-pub, serving a fresh range of daily dishes, such as stuffed heart and home-made casseroles! It's modern-traditional in a Victorian urban setting - busy but still relaxing. I'll go again, and share the scotch egg as a starter!

I attended a Scotch egg making class at The Coach & Horses at Farringdon.

“Scotch egg making class??? What?? That sounds crrrraaazzzy” said my friends. I said “Hooray, I love porky goods”

NB I am physically having to refrain myself from inserting as many egg related puns in this review!

Scotch eggs, a proper British institution – arguably invented by Fortum and Masons in 1851. The scotch name came about because to 'scotch' something means to roll it in sausage meat and breadcrumbs and deep fry it.

Our lovely eggspert (sorry) teacher showed us how to make the Scotchy delights. His measurements were more like conjurer than cooking - ‘a bit of this, a dash of that.’ But this egg man knew his stuff and the mixture was a delicate balance of pork shoulder/belly, mace, sage, cayenne pepper and shallots.

Then ensued Generation Game style copying, peppered with many porky/meat innuendos (I think wearing the gloves made everyone feel a little kinky)

The results were eggscellent (can’t help it, sorry). A whole new eggsperience (I have no self restraint) to try these babies warm! And again with a runny centre!!! Hooray a success (if I do say so myself)!

And as a little post egg bonus – a platter of hand cured charcuterie provided by the venue. Another success!

This is a cracking (last one i promise) venue and so worth a visit. Get yourself an scotch egg and a nice pint, how very lovely and very English.

I'm another of the lucky Scotch Egg posse infiltrating the reviews below. Other than the eggs and excellent home cured charcuterie plate I didn't taste the regular menu, but it looks good and if it lives up to the promise of what I tried then it'll taste good too.

They know how to keep their beer and I had a couple of very good pints of Timothy Taylor. They also have an admirable whisky selection and some nice looking wines, so it's not only about the food.

The bar area is quite small and it looks like booking is a must if you want to eat, although they do try and slot in walk-ups. There's a bit of space for standing around and drinking, but the focus does seem to be towards sitting and enjoying some grub.

Definitely worth a visit, even if just for a swift half or two.

I have to say that my understanding of Scotch Eggs was the definition of limited until I came to the Qype night at the Coach and Horses.

The very jovial chef gave us a lovely introduction to his ideas about Scotch eggs- warm, soft in the middle, never made with anything exotic, he's an egg puritan!

Then we get down to it with a big bucket of eggs and a big bucket of mince! Eggs gently tapped and peeled, wrapped in mince (more tricky than I would have liked) then in and out of flour and crumb and egg mixes... until you have a perfectly round Scotch egg... and discover the others aren't weird OCD people and have actually made theirs into oval egg shapes. Less one star for Rachelle.

They go into the deep fryer and we get more beers, yummy, and then the hot goodness appeared like magic (thanks magic Henry!)

It was that easy, now I'm a convert- to both Scotching Eggs and the friendly folk at the Coach and Horses!

I was one of the lucky Qypers who was invited to attend the Scotch Egg Masterclass last night.

The Coach & Horses is a lovely gastropub with a great, welcoming atmosphere and a reassuringly short menu; you know that the food you order will be fresh.

They also make their own breads, cure their hams and salami on-site, make their own ice cream and oh, did I mention the excellent wine list?

But we Qypers were at the C&H to be taught the secret craft of scotch egg making. The C&H's very talented chef Henry talked us through the process of seasoning the mince, and how to properly wrap our soft-cooked eggs and bread them.

After our (more or less) egg-shaped Scotch eggs were lovingly cooked by Henry and devoured by hungry Qypers, we were treated to a selection of C&H's excellent hams and salami.

Thanks to Neil for organising this evening and thus introducing us to this lovely gastropub; I will certainly go back to the Coach and Horses to try out their menu.