The Royal Exchange Pub — Restaurant in London

🚇 Edgware Road 🍺 £5.50 Paulaner

A Surviving Oldschool Paddington Boozer.

The Royal Exchange is tucked away in a side street at the eastern end of Paddington. The nearest Tube is Edgware Road, it’s a three minute walk to get here.

This pub was built in 1832, the name refers to the exchange of letters by royal mail by horse drawn coach which eventually ceased with the advent of the steam engine.

This is a cosy one bar pub that is traditionally decorated. The servery is located on the right hand side and has a dark wood illuminated back bar. The bar area is split level with a snug located at the rear. The seating is a mix of green velour banquettes with matching green and red stools around copper and brass topped tables. Around the walls are two large TV’s plus some interesting artwork by a local artist who is a regular here.

The beer line up was on point, there was a good mix of mainstream and craft beers plus one cask ale. I decided on a pint of Paulaner, my pint hit the spot, price point was excellent, this is probably the cheapest pint of Paulaner in London. The pub doesn’t serve food at present.

I visited for an afterwork pint on a mild Friday afternoon in February. I was the only punter in, so I had a good mooch around the pub. Shortly after I arrived, a couple of tourists came in for a pint whilst working out where to visit in London. I had a lovely chat with the friendly barman, the Guv’nor was also friendly and took time out to tell me about this lovely little boozer.

The pub has plenty on to keep you entertained. On Thursdays nights there is a DJ, there is also Japanese and Latin nights. This pub also shows live Premier League for all you footy fans.

There are not many proper oldschool pubs left in the Paddington area, so it was great to see the @royalexchangepub cracking on. It does however struggle with footfall as there are about a dozen pubs closer to Paddington station. So next time you’re in this part of town, be sure to check out this bonafide London boozer.

ℹ️ Info correct on...

There's a golden rule that states: pubs near large railway stations are generally awful. The area around Paddington does nothing to undermine that prejudice but this pub stands out as a wonderful exception. Quietly nestled off grubby Praed Street this cosy pub serves a solid selection of quality ales and wine alongside traditional, simple pub grub. It's a 'local', so don't expect to be greeted with open arms, but return a couple of times and you'll soon realise that it's a friendly hub of the local community. It's a good pub, for sure, but I actually think it's much more than that. When this great city is threatened again, as it has been many times before, it's to places like this that Londoners will surely come in search of strength. Like St Paul's cathedral or Aldwych tube station, this pub is one of a few stoic bastions of true...

Having walked for 15 minutes to get here after reading information on Google, I was disappointed, to say the least, to be told at 10.15 on a Saturday night that they were no longer serving as they were wanting to close. I asked why and was told "because it is so quiet". That may be so (and indeed the bar was almost empty), but if you turn customers away so early on a Saturday night you don't deserve to be in business. It spoilt an evening as time was short and I could have chosen to go somewhere else. Don't take any notice of the closing hours given on google and make sure you arrive early if you want to have a drink here. Or better advice is to find somewhere else. It suggests an underlying problem. I gave it one star only because no stars...