Churchill Arms: we shall never surrender

119 Kensington Church Street, W8 7LN

We shall go on to the end.
We shall fight in France,
We shall fight on the seas and oceans,
We shall fight with GROWING confidence and GROWING strength in the air.
We shall defend our island whatever the cost may be.
We shall fight on beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds,
We shall fight in the fields and in the streets.
We shall fight in the hills,
We shall never surrender.

Winston Churchill, June 4 1940.

Talking about Winston Churchill here in the UK is talking about one of this godless country Gods. I'm not going to devote a whole post here about this great man, politician and, over all, fighter. It wouldn't make sense, as there is plenty of information about him wherever you have a look at on the Internet. Just recommend three different things related with him: 'The Second World War', a six volume book describing WWII under his perspective and a wonderful piece of literacy masterpiece that can be red with absolute delight and enjoyment (and the best history book I have ever red); Churchill's museum, very close to Downing Street in London, recreating the WWII cabinet war room; and Churchill's arms, of course, a magnificent pub.

The post is, of course, about the pub. One of my favourites in London, I have to say, and that's saying quite a lot. It is located very close to Notting Hill tube station. This area, notoriously famous for the well-known Hugh Grant/Julia Roberts movie (the blue door is now painted in black, to avoid tourists taking pics), is an interesting one: it deceives notably when you are looking for something special on it, an it takes pleasantly by surprise when you just go for a walk around there. Nevertheless, George Orwell lived there, and just that should be enough to pay the place a visit.

The best day for visiting it (forget about finding the movie's famous house, they have painted the main door in a different colour to avoid the touristic vermin) is Saturday, as you can go walking to Portobello Market, a really cool one I'll talk about in a different post. However, on Saturday Churchill's Arms is packed, so pay it a visit a different day, please!!

First great thing about the pub is the outdoors decoration. Fully loaded with different type of flowers, it really looks lovely from the outside. And that's just the first impression... let's better go inside.


The pub have two different areas: the pub itself and the restaurant. The pub, obviously, is completely devoted to Churchill itself. Pictures, paintings, statues and different memorabilia object cover every single wall or ceiling inside. If you go alone (and you shouldn't go alone to a pub, that's what alcoholics do, you know?) you can just enjoy your pint while you have a look at that many different objects related with one single subject: a great English statesman. Not only that, though. There is one of the best Guinness objects collections I've ever seen in a pub, and one wall holds photos of every British Prime Minister, from Sir Robert Walpole through to Margaret Thatcher. And some old fashioned rubbish scattered around: copper kettles, jugs, coal scuttles, brass instruments, old radios, violin cases, an accordion, old manuscripts, lanterns and a long etcetera.

The restaurant is another pleasant discovery. Fully covered with literally hundreds of plants, they offer Thai cuisine there. Prices are alright (6 pounds per course, and you just need one to be fed up), and the quality of the food is more than alright: it's quite good. Again, avoid it on Saturday, as there will very likely be there so many people that you will not enjoy your meal as you should. Even if it's not Saturday, it is quite possible that you'll have to queue up a bit. Just for once, it's better to get back the Spanish timetables and drop there around 3 pm, as it will be much easier to get a place. As it is quite small, it makes quite a difference if you get a good table or a bad one.

It is a historic pub as well, as it is more than 200 years old (of course, it wasn't devoted to Churchill in the beginning :D). But it's not one of those wrecked ones you can find in London: it's quite clear the owner appreciates his business. The beers? Fuller's on the tap, including the typical stuff (Pride, etc.). They also have London Porter on the tap, which is not quite usual (it's usually served bottled). Moreover, Guinness is perfect in Churchill's, allegedly one of the best in London. Finally, beer prices, though not cheap (this is one of the poshest areas in London), are not as expensive as they might be according to the quality of the pub.

Anything else? The pub is awarded in almost every pub website (try www.fancyapint.com, www.pubs.com or www.beerintheevening.com) as one of the best pubs in London. And pintofcarlingplease agrees with them. And, just as an ending coda, a bit more of pure Churchill:

It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.

Churchill, May 13 1940