Golden Lion in Watford

This place has been my local for over 20 years. I take my folks in for Sunday lunch around every couple of months or so and they always have a smashing time. It's everything a local should be, friendly, inviting, lively without feeling raucous. The folks and I were in on Sunday December 17 and Mum commented how nice it was to be in an old fashioned local. The staff are very friendly, there's always football on the various screens, service is quick and efficient and John the landlord is a thoroughly decent chap.

Great atmosphere, friendly staff, choice of drink and lovely food. The roast dinner is to die for. I have been here on many occasions for watford match days as well. The service and standards are the same when ever I go 👍🏼

Great Pub, decent prices 👌, 5⭐️

Stopped for a quick pre theatre drink. Lovely large pub, funny and friendly staff, great selection of drinks and beautiful interior.

Really rude ,except the Young lady from the evenig!

We used to come once a week with the kids for a drink and a pizza at around 6PM . The girl that covers the afternoons and evening was so very nice . Unfortunately our schedule change and we had to come earlier . The other people that covered the early shift we’re picking on us for various reasons. I guess they didn’t like 2 women coming with kids there ! I am sure if there were dads coming with the boys they wouldn’t have complained that much . I guess we have to find different place ….

Great pub in Watford with a very welcoming landlord and staff. Great garden space and the price of drinks are excellent for this day and age. Crisp clean pints. If you're looking for a pint while in Watford I'd 100% recommend it.

A nice little freehouse with a fair selection of beers and a well sized beer garden.

Werry good place. We have gone from Hungary

Want a home cooked Sunday roast out then go see John and the team. Family run independent pub so services 100% and the roasts in there will keep you coming back again and again, like it has for us.

No food here, but really nice local bar and nice pe

Nice place to hang out with friends.

Really ashamed about this pub… as soon as I walked in the staff were rude. I asked poilety for a drink and the landlord has a rude attitude about him, and said with a loud voice, MONEY NOW! Never going here again. You get a better pub in an council estate than this place.

My first visit clean staff friendly lovely beer garden I'm not from the area but will definitely return enjoyed my afternoon there many thanks

Nice friendly local beer at good prices lovely beer garden

Service top! Pizza delicious 😋 Great atmosphere 😊

Great pub and great service Food and beer the best in Watford. It also has a great outdoor area with loads of parking. John the landlord has a Great sense of humour and down to earth and will tell you how it is.

A very friendly pub if your in watford stop in for a drink you will find it welcoming

Great service, great Sunday lunch, and awesome location.

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Amazing food, good service and friendly staff, will be going more often

Rude staff and encouraging illicit behaviour

There’s a nice friendly vibe here with a pleasant interior and good seating. The dart board is a great addition too! Good range of drinks, decent prices and friendly staff means I’d happily return!

There’s a nice friendly vibe here with a pleasant interior and good seating. The dart board is a great addition too! Good range of drinks, decent prices and friendly staff means I’d happily return!

Great pub. There are few pubs in Watford now that aren't soulless chains and even fewer than will make you feel at home when you're there; the Golden Lion is a decent, friendly pub that is worth spending an evening in. Support your local!

Nice vibe, friendly staff and a lovely roast 😋

A pub in a lovely setting but don’t be fooled the staff are awful and their policies are discriminatory - we visited yesterday being in Watford for the weekend and were turfed out and refused to be served on the basis we were a group of middle fed men from the north!it’s the only pub to have been like this over the weekend and I wouldn’t mind it wasn’t even busy! Just to discriminate a group of men like they did was shocking just because there is a football match in the town there is also a rugby game in the city! The staff epitomises how southern people can be seen by northerners, rude and offensive and lacking common decency - I urge everyone to give this pub a miss and walk across the road where you will be met with a smile and open arms no matter who you are or where you are from!

Πολύ καλή, ζεστή ατμόσφαιρα, ευγενικό προσωπικό, κλασσική αγγλική pub.

Great atmosphere, great landlord 'John', reasonable prices

Great Sunday dinner and really good value. We had four empty dinner plates which is always a sign! . Friendly bar lady and warm atmosphere. Thankyou

Our first chance to revisit the Lion since 2015, John and his team were great a very busy Saturday lunchtime service but everyone was served quickly and efficiently and even found time to have a quick chat. However due to the reason for our visit it will be unlikely we will see the team again for a while with Watford looking ok for promotion and Blackpool not doing well. Thanks for the hospitality and hope to see you again in 23/24

My family of around 12 booked a table with golden lion tonight what a welcoming brilliant experience, food was fabulous customer service was 10/10 and genuinely brilliant owners will be returning thank you!

Great boozer. Friendly and quick serving staff.

Lovely pub, lovely staff and customers, generally a welcoming place for a drink

Met one of my oldest and bestest friends here with a group of her friends celebrating her birthday. I loved the Kareoke. Everyone is encouraged to have a go especially if you can't sing. We all left at midnight too full of lovely beer. Brilliant night!

Great bar staff and very hospitable landlord. 👍

The food is only limited to pizzas in the week the beer is ok. They have a large smoking area at the back of the pub with parking . A great friendly pub.

Went here to catch some basic local pub food, unfortunately I arrived after the kitchen was closed. But what I did find is a vintage local pub. Lots of different types of draft beer. Old style ambience. Very friendly people.

Busy pub with a good choice of beer, good atmosphere and frendly staff.

The behavior of the landlord is unacceptable. If you want to feel like an intruder, feel free to take advantage of their hospitality. I strongly not recommend this place.

Not any good Beer no good cider no good Rude landlord One to be missed

Small pub with beer garden at rear. Limited beers on tap. Friendly bar staff.

Lovely pub, with a nice beer garden & friendly atmosphere.

Good food and a very friendly host! We tried the bbq pollo and loved it! Fair price as well.

I love traditional pubs but sadly Watford centre is lacking, so sought this place out. Very attractive exterior, a modern single room interior, with a lovely outdoor space. Great selection of drinks but only one of the three real ales (Bombardier) was available at the time of my visit (mid-Saturday afternoon). Also a little too much bad language for my liking, not helped by the landlord’s contribution! A friendly welcome from the landlady and a pleasant enough experience, but could be better.

What a great pub this is . Walked in and felt as if we had been regulars for years. Fantastic atmosphere with the band on. Big thanks to the guys in the corner who became our 'official' photographers for the night, to the showman and the ex army chap they were so engaging and friendly and especially to the 'Gaffer' and his staff. All top people. Made the day so memorable for the right reasons.

Lovely pub always a great atmosphere

This pub is a must if your visiting Watford the landlord is brilliant makes you feel at home plus all the regular people who drink ere welcome you too summer time it is really busy

Fantastic pub good beer great atmosphere 👍

Nice pub. They make you fill welcome. Land lord as a good since for a joke.

Great pub,good choice of ales with an excellent landlord

Great local pub, Friendly staff and nice atmosphere & drinks reasonably priced.

Great atmosphere and great garden, very welcoming staff!

Fabulous little pub , loved it food is a plus

Lovely venue, clean, nice decor, welcoming, plenty of TV's for SKY events, pleasant bar staff, hygenic toilets, great garden seating area, lighting, heaters & well kept, tiny car park so used Sutton instead 3h £3 enjoyable evening

Great pub friendly staff. Food and beer decent.

Brilliant pub - we were down for the night and were made to feel very welcome by the landlord. He stayed and had a chat with us even when we were the only people left in the pub. Would recommend to anyone in the area looking for a good drink in a friendly atmosphere. Cheers John! From Laura and Lewis from Nottingham

Friendly, welcoming and great atmosphere. If your in Watford make sure you get a pint.

Nice pub! Very good atmosphere!

Can on a Thursday lunchtime with work friends. Big sign on side pub saying food served all day.. leave it at that

Great for a pre-match drink, great bar staff who just seem to know who has been waiting longest even with a line of people. Outside garden great in summer.

Am a DJ and I did a vinyl mobile disco here the landlord and his staff were so friendly and nice. Such a great pub .

Very welcoming, good atmosphere and superb London Pride.

Lovely atmosphere and brilliant staff very helpful

Great and attentive service safe and clean enjoyed our visit

We were greeted by a very nice lady as soon as we arrived (at lunch time). I asked for a table and was showed one immediately. Took orders for drinks super quickly. After the rushed initial contact we realised no one was eating and there were no menus anywhere. After receiving our drinks we were informed that they are not serving food (however they allow you to order take away and eat there). I would have appreciated if the lady had told us from the beginning as I was quite hungry and had to drown my pint quickly so I could go eat somewhere else. So cannot really say it was a positive visit and quite frankly felt a bit tricked to order.

Lovely pub good food and excellent staff. Highly recommended a visit. Will definitely be back.

Lovely peaceful place & well done garden away from the town centre crazy crowded

Booked up a garden table (as the covid rules were easing had table service). for dad's 1st Anniversary. Lovely hidden gem with gazebo, friendly mixture of people.

Great place, great atmosphere, 100% all round

What a really lovely pub. The team are really friendly and the service is great. Love the back outside area and we all felt really comfortable there

One of the nice pubs in Watford

Great staff and friendly customers. Nice pub inside and fantastic beer garden.Had a great time. Good beer and laughs. Will be back 👍🏻🍻

concrete beer garden is sun trap. Ideal for social distancing

Good place to sit in the sun till 6pm Beer range a bit restricted but large selection of lagers, ciders and spirits. Prices okay.

Had a sausage sandwich was deeply disappointed as it came out on dry bread with the sausage cheap cold cocktail sausages. They also forgot too bring out our chips - we reminded them and they had too cook them before they came out 10 mins later. We found the bar staff too be rude and not welcoming, especially the blonde woman who seemed to be sneering over at us whilst we was sat down. Will not be returning

Charming owner . Good drink selection and lovely food. Sadly Closed , for the right reasons

Amazing pub, amazing beer garden and awesome staff, and im not even a local!! Love the kareoke night!

Nice serving. I went there with my boyfriend and we ordered 2 beers, one which was Canadian and one from Belgium. One guy offered us 2 other half beers, for free, crafted here, in England. People were nice and friendly. The price was ok. We payed around 7 or 8 pounds. I liked it a lot

Another great find in Watford. Very friendly staff, comfortable surroundings, nice little outside seating area, surrounded by the offices of Clarendon road. A real sun trap in the summer. Looking forward to their Karaoke night. They have lots of regular monthly events. Give it a try. I did, and have been back many times.

Fabulous little hidden gem of a pub. Amazingly warm welcome to everyone. Highly recommend of you want a quiet drink with friends. LGBT friendly for those concerned, as long as you're reasonable with them they'll welcome you with open arms!

Top Pommy pub.. great food, excellent service and true pub atmosphere. We wanted a true British Pub experience before we flew home to Australia and we weren’t disappointed. The guv is the nicest bloke I’ve met in the uk.. cheers and will be back one day for those 10 pints..

A Christmas gathering. A fab lunch with one of the friendliest landlords in the area. Staff were delightful. Thank you. A real local.

Always a good pint and the land lord is a gent.

Nice pub with a garden at the back. friendly staff.. Very basic boring food. Nice place for big groups.

Good atmosphere. Great live music.

Great place to go and meet friends for a sociable drink. They also have regular entertainment and karaoke on too!

This is a great pub with a friendly and quick bar team, great selection of draught beers and Ales. The landlord John is great character and always has a warm welcome, the beer garden at the back is fantastic for the hot weather we have at the moment. It also has covered outdoor area and plenty of seats inside, all very clean and well maintained

John the guv always a good host and the girls behind the bar

Karaoke first Friday if every month!

What a lovely little pub this was - such a pleasant hidden treasure with really lovely staff, great food and drinks too! Big thumbs up 👍🏼

Great pub with great food. Highly recommended

Always friendly crowd, good entertainment,great landlord

Decent little pub with a nice beer garden near the town centre

Good pub great landlord good service.

Great night last night and friendly atmosphere....shall go again

Popped in for the first time yesterday was pretty decent good atmosphere, a little expensive but overall not bad.

In Watford on business so thought I would visit some of the real pub, all in the cause of research you understand. The Golden Lion had some good write ups, had being the operative word. No other real ale being available I had the Golden Lion house ale - and what an insipid, watered down sample of toilet water it was. Left the pint after 2 sips and then left the pub. Maybe I caught it them in an off night. The pub itself is pleasant enough, staff friendly so will try again on my next visit. Will let you know how I get on.

Colleague not happy with the selection of beers available, otherwise it was ok & friendly.

lovely place, staff, the management, and the food...well if you get the chance do it, you wony regret it. just fabulous, the best pie and mash for miles..