The Princess Victoria — Restaurant in London

I want to tell you about something that happened recently on a trip to London. So me and a friend stayed at a pub boutique place in Shepherds Bush called The Princess Victoria. The first evening was absolutely fine with no issues. The Saturday after, we went out in central london with some friends and came back around 5pm with some friends to get ready for the evening. We had a code to put into a door for us to get into our room without going through the pub entrance. We put in this code which didn’t work after trying a few times. This is the point we wish we had said something but because the pub entrance was open at the time we just thought the door wouldn’t work because of this and didn’t think of reporting this to the hotel staff. We went on our night out and returned back to the pub about 1:20 am. We went to try the door forgetting about the struggle we had in the afternoon and couldn’t get in after trying the code for a good 40 minutes. We were outside the hotel banging on the windows trying to get the attention of somebody else staying there. We tried to call the number given by the hotel where nobody was available to talk to after 11pm so we received no response. Not knowing what to do next my friend tried calling booking.com which is where we booked the hotel. We must’ve called them about four times to let them know of our situation and every time they hung up on us. By this point we were starting to panic that we were going to be left in the streets all night as we couldn’t get in. Everywhere else was closed at this point and the only thing we could think of to do was to call the police for advice. We were practically told on the phone that there was nothing they could do to help and we needed to suck it up and that nothing was going to happen to us. So just to get us off the streets we decided to go to the police station for help on what to do as we were two young girls locked out by ourselves. We booked an Uber as it was a 35 minute walk from our hotel. At first it seemed like he was going to help us, telling us to sit in a room while he tried calling the number for us and saying we can stay in there but the metal seats would not be comfy for us. Whilst in there we explained our situation and also the fact that my friend had medication for an illness which she couldn’t get to as it was in the room we couldn’t get into. While sitting trying to figure out what to do the police man called me to his desk and basically said we couldn’t stay there and had to get out now we had “sobered up”. He clearly thought we were just drunk and causing a fuss. I can say now that I was completely sober at this time. I was trying so hard to call other hotels just to find a room for a couple of hours until we could get into our original room again with no luck. I went into the police man as I had found a hostel 3 minutes up the road from the station and asked him about it to which he replied “oh yes we drop people off||there all the time” not sure why this wasn’t mentioned to us beforehand and we had to sit for about an hour trying to figure it out instead. We made the 3 minute walk up to the hostel to be told there were no rooms available so we walked back towards the police station. In that amount of time a black car with 2 guys pulled over near us and tried to get us into their car. We went back to the police station and let them know what happened but again he didn’t seem bothered about the situation. After this we were then advised to go to the hospital so my friend could get the medication that she needed. Again we were treated like we shouldn’t be there and we’re soon shifted out. By this time it was 6am and light so we decided to go back near the hotel hoping that we could get in soon just to get our head down for a couple of hours. We got back and eventually after trying the door again many times it opened. Not sure if the key pad or anything was faulty but it should not of taken that long to get it open. After having a couple of hours sleep we went down to the pub to check out and explain to them everything that we had been through. They couldn’t be any more apologetic as to what happened and we received a full refund on our room for that night, however we were not given any reason as to why we could not get the door open with the code given to us and were told we couldn’t get through to anybody on the number as the manager was on holiday. They basically did not have anybody as a back up emergency contact. This experience has left me really wary about staying in places like this again. Please be careful when booking somewhere in London. My advice would be to make sure you are always somewhere with 24 hour reception so you do not end up in the same situation. It was really scary and wanted to let...

I want to tell you about something that happened recently on a trip to London. So me and a friend stayed at a pub boutique place in Shepherds Bush called The Princess Victoria. The first evening was absolutely fine with no issues. The Saturday after, we went out in central london with some friends and came back around 5pm with some friends to get ready for the evening. We had a code to put into a door for us to get into our room without going through the pub entrance. We put in this code which didn’t work after trying a few times. This is the point we wish we had said something but because the pub entrance was open at the time we just thought the door wouldn’t work because of this and didn’t think of reporting this to the hotel staff. We went on our night out and returned back to the pub about 1:20 am. We went to try the door forgetting about the struggle we had in the afternoon and couldn’t get in after trying the code for a good 40 minutes. We were outside the hotel banging on the windows trying to get the attention of somebody else staying there. We tried to call the number given by the hotel where nobody was available to talk to after 11pm so we received no response. Not knowing what to do next my friend tried calling booking.com which is where we booked the hotel. We must’ve called them about four times to let them know of our situation and every time they hung up on us. By this point we were starting to panic that we were going to be left in the streets all night as we couldn’t get in. Everywhere else was closed at this point and the only thing we could think of to do was to call the police for advice. We were practically told on the phone that there was nothing they could do to help and we needed to suck it up and that nothing was going to happen to us. So just to get us off the streets we decided to go to the police station for help on what to do as we were two young girls locked out by ourselves. We booked an Uber as it was a 35 minute walk from our hotel. At first it seemed like he was going to help us, telling us to sit in a room while he tried calling the number for us and saying we can stay in there but the metal seats would not be comfy for us. Whilst in there we explained our situation and also the fact that my friend had medication for an illness which she couldn’t get to as it was in the room we couldn’t get into. While sitting trying to figure out what to do the police man called me to his desk and basically said we couldn’t stay there and had to get out now we had “sobered up”. He clearly thought we were just drunk and causing a fuss. I can say now that I was completely sober at this time. I was trying so hard to call other hotels just to find a room for a couple of hours until we could get into our original room again with no luck. I went into the police man as I had found a hostel 3 minutes up the road from the station and asked him about it to which he replied “oh yes we drop people off||there all the time” not sure why this wasn’t mentioned to us beforehand and we had to sit for about an hour trying to figure it out instead. We made the 3 minute walk up to the hostel to be told there were no rooms available so we walked back towards the police station. In that amount of time a black car with 2 guys pulled over near us and tried to get us into their car. We went back to the police station and let them know what happened but again he didn’t seem bothered about the situation. After this we were then advised to go to the hospital so my friend could get the medication that she needed. Again we were treated like we shouldn’t be there and we’re soon shifted out. By this time it was 6am and light so we decided to go back near the hotel hoping that we could get in soon just to get our head down for a couple of hours. We got back and eventually after trying the door again many times it opened. Not sure if the key pad or anything was faulty but it should not of taken that long to get it open. After having a couple of hours sleep we went down to the pub to check out and explain to them everything that we had been through. They couldn’t be any more apologetic as to what happened and we received a full refund on our room for that night, however we were not given any reason as to why we could not get the door open with the code given to us and were told we couldn’t get through to anybody on the number as the manager was on holiday. They basically did not have anybody as a back up emergency contact. This experience has left me really wary about staying in places like this again. Please be careful when booking somewhere in London. My advice would be to make sure you are always somewhere with 24 hour reception so you do not end up in the same situation. It was really scary and wanted to let...

"Had a lovely time here last Tuesday at the Princess Victoria. It's local to me but I hadn't been there for ages, so me and my good friend popped in, and finding out they were still doing their 50% discount was a lovely bonus.

We both chose the special a Steak & Ale Pie, and my goodness, was it delicious! It was probably one of the most filling pies I've ever had, well cooked and lovely, washed down with a couple of drinks we barely managed to finish because we were so full. The pie was definitely worth the foodie coma and bloat!

We ate in their spacious dining room next door, as we didn't join the quiz night, which is a very popular Tuesday fixture. The quiz creates a lovely atmosphere, bringing together a mixed community and families.

What made the night truly wonderful, like the cherry on top, was our server, Freda. I specifically asked for her name because she deserved a mention and is one of the main reasons I decided to leave this review. Freda was like a hypercharged worker bee all night long and attentive, friendly, and full of energy. She was non-stop on the go, working both rooms. I noticed that in the time it took another server to take one table's orders, she served food to three tables - this isn't meant as criticism of the male server, rather it's a testament to Freda's energetic nature, and even as she was rushing through the dining area with her hands full of orders, she still stopped to ask a table if they were waiting to be served.

Her dedication to service and customer satisfaction was outstanding. she's a rare find, a true gem.

While everyone who works there is lovely, some people deserve a special shoutout. I've always believed that when you receive excellent service or notice a business doing something right, you should let them know. We're quick to complain in reviews but often keep the good stuff to ourselves.

As we left, I told her she should be a restaurateur if she's going to stay in the hospitality industry because she carried the weight of the night and as under pressure and as tireless she worked, knows how to run a place. greeted everyone with warmth, kept a smile about her, and keeping this kind of humility and cheerful personality going under pressure isn't as easy as it looks and she made it seem effortless.

To all the bar staff, kitchen staff, and dining service staff: you do an amazing job keeping a full house with all the pressures of running a pub in these difficult times of soaring energy bills and rising costs. You're...