A bit of Dublin in Covent Garden: The Porterhouse

21-22 Maiden Lane, London, WC2E 7NA

Really, it is not the kind of place you think about when you have in mind a Dublin pub. Not too dark, quite noisy, and no Guinness in the menu. But the first time I called there, in Reinard's birthday party, I definitely decided that was a place worth a second visit. And a third.

Covent Garden area is quite a tourist one, as anybody who has been in London quite well knows. It has a brilliant market, some of the best shops in London, street art performances... and thousands and thousands of tourists around. Fortunately, that's not really a problem to have some of the best pubs in the West End, as Lamb&Flag (it will have its own post sooner than later) or The Porterhouse itself. Of course, they are frequently squashed, but if you have the chance to go for an early beer on a week day, just before every body leaves the office for a pint, and you find a good place to have a sit and a quiet drink... well, you can't really match that with many other things, can you?

Covent Garden... lovely, ain't it?

Porterhouse is actually a Dublin brewery, fancied as an 'independent' one on its website (while it's not independent at all). What makes them different, however, it's not the beer, but the huge pubs they build up to sell and promote it. There are three in Dublin, one in Bray and another one in Covent Garden. That last, of course, is the one we are talking about. And, as you can very likely imagine, it involves it's not just a traditional pub what we are talking about, neither an old one. You should go somewhere else if your looking for that, tough.

In fact, the place looks like the investment has been huge. We are talking about a three story building that looks like a fascinating stairs and hidden corners maze. Decoration is amazing, with loads of clocks, commemorative plaques and huge wardrobes full of bottled beer. The furnishings are of oak and leather and the wood paneled ceiling is quite cool, matching the use of gleaming copper piping throughout the interior. They also use bottled beers as a decoration thing.

Decoration is quite cool...

They have something as five or six different bars, two or three barmans on each, but it doesn't look enough as the biggest problem of the place is it take too long to get a drink, specially after job or at weekends.

Talking about the beer, they (obviously) sell different Porterhouse draught and bottled types, including Temple Brau (a nice lager) and Plain Porter (a compact stout). I have just tried those two and were both brilliant, so I imagine any other on the tap is quite good as well. Prices weren't too bad, just above 3 quid each, specially if you remember the tax increase I talked about some posts ago. If you feel like picky you can always go for the bottled ones, as they have over 50 different types, including Estrella de Galicia and the common Belgium stuff (Delirium Tremmens, Leffe, etc.).

Feel a bit Irish tonight?

The food, although I didn't try it, is quite good as well (as overpriced), or at least that's what I have red in some pub comparison sites. And almost everyday wed-sun they have live bands playing on the underground floor, non additional cover asked for. Whether there are bands playing or not, music volume is frequently quite high, but not over a disturbing volume, and that makes the place a great venue to begin a birthday party, as Reinard did, or to begin a hard long Saturday night. Which doesn't mean it's not a great place for having a relaxing one as well, of course. And on summer, you can even have a pint outside!!!

Some of us prefer inside...


... some others outside :D