Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese — Restaurant in London

If we had just come for drinks I would have probably given 5 stars, however I will never bring guests here for food again.

We arrived just before 2pm on a Sunday and 2 of the roasts had run out, leaving just pork. We brought our friends who were visiting from abroad for them to sample English cuisine, I wish I'd taken them to a good Italian instead. The roasts that arrived had Yorkshire Puddings that were overcooked and obviously been sitting out for too long, the full-size portion was smaller than expected - I get the feeling they were given the scraps left from the end of what they had cooked for the day. Neither of our guests who had the Sunday roasts made a comment, which, considering how complimentary they were about everything else that day, speaks volumes in my opinion.

Before our mains we ordered a selection of starters including olives, the rarebit and whitebait for our guests to try. The rarebit was very nicely done, however the whitebait was a bit lukewarm and not very crispy.

My husband had the fish and chips, and, as there was only pork roast available for me, I decided to have the steak. Our meals were better with crispy chips and a thin crispy batter on the fish, although the size of the fish was underwhelming but the quality was ok. I think I lucked out with the steak, which was well seasoned and cooked just as asked, although considering the price I would have expected a sauce such as peppercorn with it and I don't think it would have been too much to have a vegetable side alongside the tomato, as the plate felt quite empty.

The level of service was mixed. On entering the pub we were quickly greeted by the bar staff who were engaging and happy to talk with us regarding the different beers and alcohol on offer. They were in the middle of preparing an order when we arrived, but once they were finished found us our table promptly. On being seated I asked our server for tap water and this was brought over quickly, however our table didn't have either main drinks or food menus. After waiting for quite some time and attempting to get the attention of the staff, I gave up and went in search of the menus myself. After ordering our food our server returned to tell us that of the three roasts we ordered, two of them couldn't be done as they were out of beef, we both switched to chicken. A few minutes went by and then we were told the chicken was out too, without any kind of real apology or suggestion of an alternative. During the meal I attempted to get the attention of a staff member to ask for more ketchup, but gave up as my food was going cold.

The atmosphere and the drink selection are however fantastic, so I absolutely recommend coming in for a drink and especially if you have guests visiting London. However, I cannot recommend a meal here based on either the quality or quantity of food, or the...

I want to preface this by saying that this pub is beautifully decorated and a historical London landmark, like a traditional English tavern. However, that is the only positive aspect of this place.

Firstly, the service was abysmal. We walked in, trying to find our table, but not a single member of staff was willing to assist us, despite our asking multiple times. When we eventually located our table, we were served by an Australian waiter who was attentive and helpful, despite the chaos that followed. Unfortunately, the two female servers who also attended our table were both rude and untrained. When we asked them to take our order, they outright ignored us.

We ordered the mixed roast, but were informed they had run out of beef, so we opted for pork and chicken. Nearly an hour later, our food arrived—but to our surprise, there were no roast potatoes. When we asked one of the waitresses why the potatoes were missing, she responded aggressively, stating that they had run out. She added that if we wanted a replacement, we needed to specify how many we required—as though we were supposed to know this in advance. She then stormed off and sent over another waitress, who appeared completely clueless, struggling even to take our order properly. All we wanted was some potatoes.

Eventually, the Australian waiter came through for us and brought chips as a replacement. However, they were utterly underwhelming—dry and clearly straight from the freezer to the deep fryer. The rest of the meal was equally disappointing. The meat was dry, and the pork was soggy and tasteless. A pitiful spoonful of red cabbage sat beneath the meat, accompanied by a limp carrot. It was dreadful.

At this point, we simply wanted to leave. When we requested the bill, another waiter came to clear our plates. He seemed drunk and almost dropped the entire stack of our plates all over me.

I would have loved to remove the service charge from the bill, but given the Australian waiter’s efforts, we decided not to. Desperate to leave, we paid up and left as quickly as possible.

Please do not visit this establishment. The food is terrible, and the service is even worse. Don’t be deceived by the charming interior—it’s...

🚇 Blackfriars 🍺 £5.00 Organic Lager ❤️ A unique historic London pub that you must visit at least once in your lifetime. . I often get asked which is my favourite pub? or what’s your top ten? and I can never choose because I have so many favourites for many different reasons. But one pub I would always recommend to visit is Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese as this pub experience is like no other. . As you approach the pub on busy Fleet Street it’s easy to miss it, when I first came here I walked past it a couple of times before I sussed out the entrance is in a small alley at the side. As you enter the pub it is a real attack on the senses, it’s dimly lit, the smell of the open fire and it’s confusing on where to go. The best option is to grab a beer from the first bar on the right as you enter and then go for a wander to discover the many different alcoves, bars, nooks and crannies. As you head further in to the pub and descend the steep staircases and peer in to the many seating areas and cellars it fills you full of wonder and excitement about what lies around the next corner. On this visit I sat in the bottom bar/cellar which was busy and as with all areas of the pub is very atmospheric. This is a Sam Smiths pub which only sells it’s own in house beers, wines and spirits, I had the Organic Lager which was ok but this is not somewhere I come to for the beer, that said there was a good selection on offer. There is also food available serving up British classics. I would recommend visiting during the week as this pub is hot on the tourist trail and you will often hear an American twang here and there and it’s also popular with day trippers. . As mentioned earlier, this is a must visit pub. This is a place to immerse yourself in to a piece of history and soak up the unique atmosphere. It’s easy to imagine what it was like drinking in a London pub two hundred years ago which not many other pubs can offer. . 📊 Information correct on...