Lamb and Flag, Covent Garden, London

Lovely pub, gets a bit crowded but only ever in a good way. Good location, great beer: ace.

A lovely old traditional pub with good real ales!
A bit of a tourist trap…as it features in most of the overseas travel guides! But do go…it’s tucked away behind Covent Garden and is a good find!

The Lamb and Flag is a charming pub located withing easy walk of Covent Garden Market, Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. Its old world charm has been preserved perfectly by its owners and its a the perfect place to enjoy a pint when shopping or visiting the theatre. It is small though and can get crowded at peak times so make sure you get there early if you want a table. Highly recommended.

The Lamb and the flag is located in a quiet street near to Covent Garden. It is one of these pubs in London with a lot of history and character. Inside the pub, in the ground floor there is a bar and some tables. In the first floor there are more seats and tables and you can order some food. The selection of beers is good (including Ichiban beer in tap!). They serve Sunday roast too.
The pub is a bit old and the toilets are not very nice but considering that is a historical pub this is also part of the ambiance of the place.

Lovely ancient pub hidden down a back alley in Covent Garden.
Narrow, cramped and busy in the way an old pub should be. Good for taking future wives on first dates and after work drinks with colleagues.

Quality, authentic cosy pub.

Claims to be one of the oldest pubs in London, it’s nestled in pleasant surroundings, certainly a venue for the summer, where local drinkers spill out onto the cobbled street in front of the pub.

Serves standard lagers plus a few ales, worth a visit if you’re in the area.

Its a lovely place, really an institution. There is only one problem, to get in. Its rather small and the way in is really narrow and always blocked with people. So, if ever you get hold of a pint, your neighbour will run into you and the first third is gone. Consequently, I only stayed for a drink about once every five times trying. It always so crammed with people.
If you sit in the Roundhouse opposite you can get a seat and still watch the people being pushed around outside the beautiful Lamb & Flag.

When I first moved to London i thought this place was great,but then I realised it was just a tourist trap. The place is a health and safety nightmare - little hidey holes, bits to hit your head off (and im only ickle!) and it could do with a good scrub. Inside can be hellishly hot in the summer so most people sit outside, and thats sit on the ground not in a nice beer garden, in the road!! Usual london pint prices but without the breeze or the posing.

Iconic West End pub with a lovely yard at the front for hot summer evenings.
This pub serves the usual lagers and wines but the beauty of this place is that unlike most central London pubs is full of locals and despite being in the West End there’s hardly a tourist in sight. Despite being often busy it’s easy to find a table and the staff are always friendly and the service is swift.

A bit of a London curio this one - somehow it has managed to build up a reputation as some sort of London legend by nature of it being around for rather a long time. In reality it’s got a good name, its got some friendly staff, and it attracts a nice crowd and it sells good beer. All of these things are valuable in a pub.

However, it could really do with a bit of doing up on the inside as it’s verging on tipping from all over the place shabby chic into tatty rubbish; the outside area is fine in the evening when you cant see the slightly worrying alley - not so good during the day when traffic crawls past and the stench of the bins wafts towards you.

So all in - yeah its fine, but its most definitely over rated.

Nice period building, cute side alleyway, but the main one isn’t that special, as ahunter mentions. The Harvey’s tasted a little past its best to me the other day, and it’s not exactly cheap, so, 3 stars it is. If you’re new to London, you’ll probably love it…

An OK pub, but superlatives aren’t really necessary here. This part of rose street is less of a street and more of a “scag alley” in my opinion. The pubs only outdoor area spills out onto the street which struggles to get any sunlight and is generally pretty manky. I have no idea how the Lamb and Flag attract so many people to the festering cesspit (ok, maybe i’m being a little harsh now).

So what has the pub got going for it?

- Lots of ale on tap
- A nice upstairs bit with great floor to ceiling windows
- friendly staff and friendly punters

Decent enough, but shouldn’t every pub have this? I must admit, i’m not itching to go back.

This pub has a lot of character and on a Friday evening, you can hear it before you see it. Rounding the corner people are spilled into the street like jelly beans, er with beers. Working your way through the outdoor crowd, it’s surprisingly empty inside - perhaps owing to the clingy heat and peculiar odour. Once our pints were pulled we joined the masses outside and I quite like that - standing outside with a drink after work, toasting a sunny evening. Not bad if you’re a local but nothing too special either, although I didn’t check out the upper floor.

Very old pub smack in the middle of Covent Garden. It’s a fun place to meet people because it’s genuine and it’s busy: you’re as likely to have to have your pint standing outside on the pavement with your glass perched on a ledge.

It’s small and low and unrenovated. There are a couple of TVs that will show whatever big sporting event England might happen to be losing at the moment. The ales and lagers on offer are typical.

Gets very busy right after work, as people stop in for one on the way home.