The Horatia — Restaurant in London

🚇Highbury & Islington 🍺 £5.80 Romola Birra Di Roma ❤️ One of N7’s finest. . The Horatia is located at the bottom end of Holloway Road and is just a five minute stroll from Highbury & Islington station. . Formerly The Lord Nelson, The Horatia was built around 1860 and has seen its fair share of changes over the years. Holloway Road pubs were not always as welcoming as they are today, in 2010 this pub got its ducks in a row and has never looked back. . This is a spacious pub which still feels cosy and intimate. The decor here is traditional with a rustic edge. There are plenty places to sit, at the rear of the pub are chesterfields to lounge in, there are big and small tables to match your group size. Dotted around the pub are plenty of screens showing live sport, at the rear are a couple of Fussball tables and even an old school Nintendo if you fancy a game of street fighter. . The beer choice is excellent and has a mix of well known stalwarts plus diverse craft options for the inquisitive drinker, Hammerton and Magic Rock breweries are represented here. After an excellent consultation with The Guv’nor, I decided on a Romola Birra Di Roma which is a beer I’ve never come across before, Is was a very nice pint and average priced. The food here is East Asian inspired with Bao Buns, Gyoza and noodles. . I visited late afternoon on a Friday and the pub was quiet ahead of the evening’s trade. I had a good old chin-wag with the Guv’nor about the beer line up and the pub in general, what top top fella who is passionate about his pub. The Horatia has plenty to keep you entertained, there are quizzes and live music nights throughout the month. The pub gets packed to the rafters when The Arsenal are playing at home. . This is a pub I have visited many times on match days and I never saw the wood for the trees. Now I’ve visited @thehoratia on a regular day, I have to say I’m super impressed. This is a versatile boozer with so many strings to it’s bow, I will definitely be returning to this first class public house. . ℹ️ Info correct on...

I'm not a "gooner", but I know a man who is. This explanation is important because access to The Horatia is restricted, at least on match days, to those that apply the epithet.

Some pubs pretend to be more than they are, as if the art of pulling a pint is more than it is. The Horatia has no such pretentions. It's a boozer, where football fans can go to booze, in the happy knowledge that their view of the world will never be challenged.

If your taste extends to more than beer and peanuts, this possibly is not the place for you. I'm assured there is an extensive food menu, but on this particular afternoon neither its range nor its existence were evident. What was, was the solicitude and redemptive quality of friendship.

The Arsenal had just lost a local derby to Chelsea. The post-mortems were less than charitable but the drinkers in The Horatia were joyous mourners at a happy funeral. I felt joy and cameraderie. I saw hope for the future and nostalgia for the past.

It's a shame you can't just turn up and experience this. Let's face it, the best in human nature walks hand in hand with the very worst. Doormen check your credentials before they let you in. But somewhere near you there'll be another Horatia, where people go to drink and eat peanuts and find companionship. Turn up, drop...

Popped in for a pint and to check out a thing they had going on in place of a cancelled convention.

Missing signs outside meant we walked past the place twice. Ordered two drinks, Guinness and a spirit and mixer. £8.40 Having lived and worked in pubs for a number of years outside of London I was shocked at the price, especially as there wasn't a tariff sign anywhere that I could see easily. Maybe I just missed it.

The place is rough round the edges, wobbly tables, chairs stools but maybe that's its charm?

The regulars seemed bemused by the visitors who piled in whilst they loitered around the doors to smoke doing nothing to prevent the stench of the roll ups and herbally filled filling the front of the bar.

Couldn't say what the food was like as there were no menus and until I looked online I wouldn't have known they done food.

If you like "typical for London" prices and rough round the edges furnishing then you'll like it enough. But that's not enough to capture my attention and...