The Phoenix — Restaurant in London

We were a group of seven — my family of four and our dear friends from the UK — and we visited The Phoenix Pub after a lovely walk from Buckingham Palace. My friend’s husband had done his research and found this pub based on stellar Google reviews, especially for their fish and chips. It was also my first ever pub experience, so my friend was especially excited to share that moment with me.

At first, we picked a cozy corner table downstairs since it was easier to manage with three little ones. But while my friend and husband went to find the restrooms, they discovered a whole upper level with much more open space and even some patio seating. So we moved upstairs and gave the kids their own table while the adults enjoyed a separate one nearby — it gave us all a little breathing room and a chance to relax and chat.

The bartenders were extremely kind and welcoming. We placed our orders at the bar, and everything was brought to our table shortly after. I went up to pay — again — but my generous and clever friend had already told them she was covering it. The bartender smiled and walked over with the card reader to her instead of me. This has now become a bit of a theme on this trip — she’s incredibly kind and simply would not let us pay.

For the kids, we ordered three portions of fish and chips. My friend’s husband went for the Sunday roast beef, and my friend and I both got the fish and chips as well. When my friend mentioned her severe shellfish allergy, the bartender was so considerate — he made sure her meal would be prepared in separate oil. She told me later how rare it is to find a place that goes to that level of care, and how much she appreciated being able to enjoy fish and chips without worry.

My husband wasn’t feeling great, so he just had a few bites from my plate. My older daughter, on the other hand, was loving it — she kept coming over and taking bites of fish from mine too, even though she had her own. That’s how good it was.

The roast was hearty and well-enjoyed by my friend’s husband, and the fish and chips were crispy, flavorful, and comforting — everything I imagined a real pub meal would be. But beyond the food, it was the atmosphere and the exceptional service that really stood out.

The Phoenix Pub gave us such a warm, memorable experience. The staff were thoughtful, the food was excellent, and the company made it all even more special. I'm so glad this was my first pub — I’ll...

I actually quite liked this pub but experienced awful service. I waited 20 minutes to be served, people kept walking up in front of me and the bar staff did not seem to care that I had been waiting the longest, it's also worth pointing out that 2 people were serving, and another 3 were stood around the corner of the bar talking. When I finally got served, I was extremely polite and asked for a rose spritzer with lemonade. The bar maid forgot if I wanted soda or lemonade, and I again politely said lemonade. She passed my order onto a male member of staff and after another 5 minutes I received my drink and began to walk out after paying. During this, a member of staff went to chase another customer as they 'hadn't paid', and it was actually hilarious as the customer had to tell the guy that she had infact paid, but in cash. As I was walking out, I tasted what I thought was my rose lemonade but it was actually rose spritzer, I went back in and again was super polite and said this is rose soda not lemonade. The bar man ACTUALLY ROLLED HIS EYES at me, which at this point I began to get frustrated and said that this was so rude. A bar maid then decided to engage in an argument with me, and defended the man, after this awful service. I was completely shocked, drank my drink of course and then me and my colleagues went and found another pub. The pub wasn't even busy and they all seemed to be messing about behind the bar so I am shocked to why they would treat customers so appallingly. I would never go back...

We searched for somewhere near Victoria to watch some matches in the rugby world cup and this came near the top of the list. The pub's website heavily promoted the RWC experience and when reserving a table, you were directed to select a part of the pub apparently dedicated to watching the rugby. In reality it was the general lounge area of a large pub which, whilst nice in itself, was full of a typical daytime crowd of people, chatting noisily away, with evidently no interest in the rugby. We couldn't hear the commentary and so asked a member of staff to turn the volume up. This was done but only by a small amount. Another customer, one not there for the RWC, immediately asked the staff to turn the volume down which the staff then did. After I asked the staff to honour their heavily promoted stance as a RWC watching venue and turn the volume up again a member of staff preceded to secure the ( previously closed) main door to the pub in the open position, close to where we were sitting, letting in an uncomfortably cold draught. Our objections were met with indifference. We left not long after, taking our business to another local pub. We won't be back. There is clearly little communication from the part of the organisation responsible for running the business and promoting its events and those on the...