Players Bar and Kitchen in City of London, Westminster

I attended the piano bar area and it was without the best night of my many years in London

Don't bother. I've been here a couple of times and was looking forward to going last night, after the musical we were watching finished. I was with two friends and the only alcohol we'd had was a bottle of wine, between us, before the musical started (a good three hours before we arrived here). As we walked up, the bouncer stood in front of the door and blocked the entrance. We asked if we could go in and his only response was "how much have you had to drink tonight". We said that we'd shared a bottle of wine before our musical and he said we couldn't come in. He said if we went away, had water and came back in twenty minutes he'd *think* about letting us in, in quite a condescending manner. We asked if we looked drunk (literally, one bottle between three of us, hours before) and he just replied it didn't matter, he didn't want to let us in. We got the distinct feeling that it was nothing to do with alcohol, but simply our faces didn't fit whatever vibe they were going for last night. But of course, you can't argue about not being drunk because, well, it makes you seem drunk. Unfortunately, long gone are the days when I could get drunk off one glass of wine and that do me for the evening! It put a real dampener on our day/evening and we were looking forward to rounding off our musical evening here, but instead we were just told to go away under the pretence of too much alcohol when it couldn't have been further from the truth

Good place for a pint on a night out

If i could give 0 stars I would

Decent watering hole if you work late in the area. And quite a vibe if you are around when the piano playing starts.

Great atmosphere, good service. Never disappoints.

Terrible service, aweful atmosphere would not recommend to anyone

Terrible. Aweful service, rude staff! Being rude in front of friends and bar staff not friendly at all! Would not recommend coming at all.

Fantastic place with live music on a piano! A place to enjoy good music singalongs.

The Players Bar is a cool place to go for a late night drink and dance.

So after arriving around 10.30pm we were having a lovely evening. Having been here several times before. We were the only guests to have actually tipped the pianist/singer who was delighted. At around 12am after having a few rounds of drinks with clients, non of which where showing any signs of being drunk or disorderly, one member of the bar staff suddenly refused to serve us drinks. The reason given was that he believed members of our party were drunk but could not identify who the members were? Totally ruined what had been a lovely evening until this point. He was not prepared to discuss the matter but instead was arrogant and on a power trip. Unfortunately he was the duty manager and despite other staff being happy to serve us, they said they could not as he was in charge. This resulted in our party leaving early and heading home and ruining our evening. Sadly after being a regular visitor to this venue, I will not be returning, which the duty manager was unconcerned with. Not the level of service I expect given I work in hospitality. Had we been drunk and disorderly, I could understand, but given the fact that we had not caused any trouble or concern and asked to be informed what grounds he had for not serving us which he could not answer. I found the whole situation extremely frustrating and unacceptable. Unfortunately I quickly realised I was wasting my time with the individual and i will not be returning. My warning to others is, avoid this bar as they clearly get too busy and to try to free up space by making excuses to not service clients and unfortunately on this occasion it was us that suffered the consequences. What was amusing was that 80% of the clients in there were clearly drunk but they seemed to be ok to be served but the duty manager.

Used to be good fun. The attitude and atmosphere has changed, which is a shame as it used to be my favourite bar

Best spot for late night drinks...the staff is amazing!!!!!

It used to be much better but it's still fun. Security can be a bit heavy handed and out of order.

Such a shame used to love this place, but now they charge £5 to even request a song from the paino player and got literally screamed at (a 5 year old girl couldnt have hit a higher pitch if they tried) by one of the bar staff when we asked for 2-3 mins to finish the beer they served us about 2 mins before the lights came on. As said such a shame as this place used to be great but I won't be going back.

Great piano music sang with the lads for a good while

Shame they don't do hot drinks. Great service though.

Great place to hang out and listen to some amazing live music!

Es increíble! Estuvimos toda la noche buscando un bar, y dimos con este lugar, fue la sorpresa de la noche, quiero volver hoy también y cada que vuelva a visitar Londres! ❤️

Shout out to the blonde Irish bartender, what a legend!!

We had been to a show on Wednesday evening 26th April. Finally we ended back at our hotel "The Grand" to find the bar closed. Having checked out other bars in the area we found nothing was open. Then we stumbled upon the Players Bar & Kitchen Piano Bar. There was a great atmosphere inside we we could hear. Inside the place it was quite busy with revellers dancing and singing along to a very enthusiastic piano player. We stayed for about half an hour and had our night cap and then left, as the call of the bed was greater than the drink. I know others have mentioned poor staff attitude and an unfriendly bouncer at the door. To be totally honest we never experienced any concerns. The bouncer checked my wife's and my sons girlfriends bags, and he was very polite and professional. When we got to the bar we were served by a very efficient young lady and payment was made by card only here, NO Cash! When we are back in London again we would certainly visit here to enjoy the party atmosphere. Thank you.

Something different for a Saturday night. Have a drink whilst you get entertained by live singer and pianist. Good vibe. Not too loud either but it gets busy.

Had nice cold pint of strawberry&lime cider before the show

Fantastic piano bar! Spent most of the evening there last night. Lee Ormsby the piano singer is an incredible talent & so versatile - I don't think there was a request that he couldn't handle. Brilliant 👍

Live music, great atmosphere, wonderful and friendly people.

Great place to let go and sing along with a wonderful and friendly crowd. Highly recommended for a night out

Awesome live Piano player, great vibes and good drinks

I was recommended to go to this delightful little bar on the understanding that it was a jolly venue where punters can come along and have a good old sing some with a live pianist. How wrong they were. The players is a bar frequented mainly by Conservative city boys in suits absolutely steaming on cocaine, there’s so much cocaine floating around you can get high walking in. The pianists are sub par and have a very limited list of songs mainly from the 90’s or show tunes such as the Lion King. You can’t sing along because around half an hour in they Jack up the mic so loud people are literally screaming. They’re pouring their drinks over you, the pianist screams at people to calm down, the staff are aggressive, the bouncers are hostile, they let in far too many people for capacity and so you can’t move in there, certainly not dance. It’s not a nice atmosphere. You go to the loos to escape, they stink, there’s more cocaine being taken. Men hanging around dealing drugs, a manager that’s obviously oblivious to everything that’s going on. Horrible night, horrible aggressive people, packed with angry drunk men. I do not recommend.

Lovely and cool good prices no cask ale.

What a wonderful evening of exquisite piano excellence and vocals by Nick! ❤️

First they didn't have the burger. 2nd I asked for extra bacon and mushrooms on my pizza. The pizza came with one mushroom sliced on it and 3 slices of streaky bacon that looked uncooked. I'm sorry but at these prices I expect above standard, not below. Not going there again 0/5

Lovely place, small and intimate with live piano, and a great atmosphere and party in the night

Very expensive for what it is. Poached eggs weren’t runny. Finished food before drinks even came. Hot chocolate tasted like water. £15 English breakfast was quite disappointing. Nice atmosphere but not a nice place to over pay.

I loved the live music on piano!

Really bad smell in the hallway

Late bar closing at @2am, big piano 🎹 playing and entry requires Covid-19 Passport

We had a fantastic evening at Players. Amazing atmosphere full of fun! Lee the pianist was unbelievably talented and played our somewhat bizarre requests. Can't wait to return!

Security does a good job of not overcrowding the place, but when clearly shown a groups of women stealing peoples jackets they were suddenly not interested in doing anything about it. Love the piano and atmosphere but it’s not a safe place to go out.

Enjoying an evening with colleagues. We had worked late and decided to visit Players Bar and Kitchen. There was an error with the drinks order, we spoke politely to a tall blonde female member of staff wearing black framed glasses explaining that we had specifically asked for white wine spritzers with soda & had been given spritzers with lemonade instead. Her response was extremely rude and dismissive, she refused to change the drinks and walked away. The individual then began to bad mouth our group to any possible bar staff and walk through to the other section of the bar in order to avoid handling the situation. We then asked for the Manager (also politely) short guy with glasses who was equally as rude and completely unhelpful. He showed no management skills whatsoever and accused us of being drunk. Both members of staff displayed a blatant disregard for the customers, being us! We left after this incident, the only person who seemed to act decently or with any respect was one of the door staff. To sum up tall female with black framed glasses and bar manager short guy with black framed glasses, the most poor mannered and incompetent bar staff I’ve ever experienced. The bar manager ignored us at any possible chance he did not even try to mitigate the situation. AVOID AT ALL COSTS, they have no manners and being polite gets you nowhere, we will not be returning!

First a great evening at Pippin at the Charing Cross Theatre then drinks in the Players bar. A great piano bar, and I love a good piano bar. It would have got 5 stars but the music was a cross between the great American song book and pop. I would have preferred more show tunes but I am old! Judging by how the young crowd was loving it it is a place for fun!

Always a really good night at Players! Live piano and singing every night. The pianist takes request so you can get ask for your groups favourite tunes to be played. Reasonable drinks prices for Central London, perfect for post-theatre visits

Out 'must go to' night time venue when visiting London. Never disappoints. Very relaxed atmosphere, great music, endless repertoire.

Not worth your time. The staff have no manners or personality. So disappointing. Try next door for a much better experience

Excellent piano bar. Iove it! Resident pianist happy to take requests. Very good!

We reserved a table here on Friday night, and as it was our first visit, we didn’t really know what to expect. The pianist was amazing, so much fun, and we had the best sing along to the cheesiest songs! The best antidote and night out after being in lockdown for so long! Will definitely be back when next in London! Great, laid back crowd, who were all up for a good time!

We as a group, have come to this bar for five years and multiple times a month each month. We were let in despite our temperature being outside of the normal living temperatures (we were four nurses and were told we had temperatures that didn’t conform with healthy living temperatures). We sat at an allocated table as per covid guidelines. We sang and were dancing at the table and were informed that we weren’t allowed to dance whilst seated so we stopped. We then sang as per the song request that we had put through (Which was a encouraged by staff members that we were allowed to do) and security told us we had to leave because we were singing. There is no sign outside to say that people cannot sing and also, the security targeted us as the only table that was singing and forced us to leave, despite every other table singing and us having full drinks to finish. As regular patriots of this bar, I am devastated as to how we were treated and told to leave despite doing nothing wrong. If the ‘piano bar’ would like customers not to sing, then they need to close down now. I met the piano man in the corridor at the end of the night who gave me a hug and told me he was glad we came to the bar but we were then told by security that we had to leave (for no reason) and this was extremely disappointing when we did nothing wrong (especially since we have such a good rapport with this bar). I hate to leave a bad review of anywhere but this Is a genuine review and we were hurt.

Amazing fun and welcoming atmosphere. Lee the pianist was great, played a real mix of styles and accepted our random requests happily... All apart from Bat Out Of Hell - which would have made barman Ed's night 🙂 we tried 🙌. Thanks for such a fun night. We'll definitely be back!

Always great pianist singers on here, bar staff always attentive with good eye contact and fast efficient service, while offering service with a smile

Great evening, lovely atmosphere

Talented piano player and quiet in early evening always a great atmosphere good quality drinks at a reasonable enough price and personable bar staff

Now I'm not a nostalgic fella. Life moves forward. And sometimes in the right direction. This is not the case at the Players Bar. To understand where I am coming from you need to know that I have been drinking here since 2001. Back then it was a place that theatre technicians, front of house staff, actors, wardrobe et al would all go and let their hair down. The pianist back then would even let the crowd practice their audition songs. It was excellent. You would always bump into someone you knew. Over the years it's become more focused on the sort of client who will stand behind you at the bar and claim they were in fact next to be served, dressed in their suit waving a £50. I rarely visit anymore. Knowing that this bar's culture has been ruined. It may be in a theatre, but they care little for theatre staff. I went tonight. The staff Ignored us for a good 20 minutes. Got queues jumped by an unremorseful man child. The place was filled by lots and lots of young men in suits. I wish I hadn't gone. It always upsets me. I wont go again. And they won't be bothered as the place was packed with the young suited children, constantly off to the toilets, rubbing their noses and shouting too much. I just find such a pitiful shame, a disgrace really, that such a wonderful haven for theatre folk got sold or given away without much (any) care. Especially as this bar is in an actual Theatre.

London's secret bar. Always amazing. The piano? Well, excellent ❤❤❤

Guys if you want to seat and have a chat before the play is good to go. But i wouldn't expect great experience. Glasses are dirty... A very dirty... Not many sits inside... Not as pleasant atmosphere. Simply not high standard PUB. ... So that is my opinion.

I know there are people who will think a 5-star review for the Players invalidates all of my other reviews. It is so scruffy, they say. Everyone is so drunk. But I have never left other than happier tha when I went in. Bellowing along to the piano guy belting out Elton John and Billy Joel is absolutely joyous. And the clientele are the drunkest I have ever seen anyone who isn't having a fight. Also it is open late. I am *this close* to knocking off a star for the one-in, one-out queuing policy though.

Great fun. A late night out was greatly improved by a few sing alongs with the resident pianist and a small group of friends. I've only been twice but I'm very happy to return. Great atmosphere and you can just talk to anyone. My only criticism is that it needs a bit of clean and the bouncer was a little moody.

I know it is a pub, but one of our party wanted a cup of tea, and they went to look and they didn't have any tea bags.

This is a hidden gem. Befriended so many people there. And a live pianist who takes requests is the best. I will be back

As piano bars go this is good, however it does seem as though the person playing gets under siege and is forced to play more than enjoying it...

Great place with sing along classic tune from the piano

Quite literally my favourite place in the world.

It's late. You want to listen to, and indeed sing along to at the top of your voice, the songs you remember from your student union. And you want to have some drunk 24yr olds joining in. Who might go back to yours. Or who might end up asleep in a gutter. Congratulations - you're in the right place!

Just charming! I will come here very soon.

Players, you aren't what you used to be...you've lost the happy, energetic and joyful energy you used to have and replaced it with nasty rude staff. The general manager (or whichever man seems to be in charge), and an Irish sounding guy are quite possibly the rudest people I've ever been served by. Maybe remember what keeps you running and learn some manners or you'll start losing loyal customers and fast.

I've been coming here for the best part of a decade and can honestly say Mauro Montuschi you are BRILLIANT! Thanks for making our night. A great singer, very talented and super friendly, Players would be utterly stupid to not have you back every night! This is the guy who played on Saturday 18th May :D.

My friends and I have been coming to this bar religiously nearly every weekend since we started uni almost a decade ago, and the pianist on Wednesday 10 April was the best! Especially because he knew Mulan.

One od the worst security guy i ever seen in my life ,rude ,agressive And cleary racist black block ,although pub And bar staff friendly , higly recomended to change security people

This place used to be fantastic - it was my regular. One year later and I was literally embarrassed to bring people here. Objection one: the bouncer told me, casually, that it would be £5 to enter. Assuming this was a change since I'd last been, I handed over £5. He casually pocketed the money, leaving me to later discover that there was, in fact, no entry fee. Next, the pianist was absolutely awful. He played through 7 choruses of American Pie, glued to the chart.. Did he know a single verse ? No one knows. Did the rest of the bar know the verses? Yes. We were all embarrassed for him. This is American-bloody-Pie. It's bread and butter. It's like a butcher forgetting he's vegetarian, or Trump forgetting to hate brown people. We suffered through the rest of the set, then left our half drunk drinks to catch our last trains. I honestly cannot say I'd come back, which is terrible considering at one point I would be here each and every week. The bar staff are lovely - but without the general feel good factor, the drinks they pour - with an inch of empty glass at the top - can no longer be pardoned with goodwill. The only reason to come here now is for the crowd. London is crowded enough - choose another venue that will treat you better.

Mi amigo y yo nos topamos con este bar hace un tiempo, escuchamos un zumbido proveniente del interior y un piano en vivo, así que pensamos por qué no.He vuelto tres veces desde entonces y siempre he tenido el mejor momento.El cantante / pianista en vivo es genial, si eres un fanático del teatro, te encantará, incluso si no lo eres. Toman solicitudes de canciones también.El ambiente es muy amigable, puedes bailar, cantar, sentarte, como quieras.También es entrada gratuita.

Esta es una pequeña joya de bar en el área de Charing Cross / embankment y disfrutamos del músico en vivo tocando y cantando canciones familiares como "Disney", como ABBA y el Teatro Musical. El único problema que diría es que es tan ruidoso y un espacio tan pequeño en comparación que el sistema de sonido se puede bajar ligeramente en el área principal para que pueda tener una pequeña conversación sin gritarse. Buen bar para visitar si usted está listo para bailar y cantar. ¡Las bebidas y los bocadillos tienen un precio razonable!

Red wine is pretty bad. Could be better decorum between piano player and crowd, people were flinging requests their way. Great tunes played though and good energy from the musicians!

Comfortable setting Good place to wait before theatre

Requested Rocket Man. The pianist done and did it, didn't he. Very good

I use love going here , but their attitude last night ruined my friend’s birthday . The staff were rude, unhelpful and didn’t seem to understand the concept of customer service . Despite ringing ahead to say we were running late , they gave away our table and refused to make amends . They then compounded this by being rude towards to us and walking away in mid conversation .

Este es uno de mis bares favoritos en Londres, por lo que esta noche me siento tan decepcionado por la actitud atroz del personal de servicio. Voy todos los años por mi cumpleaños y este año no sería diferente, excepto por el atroz servicio al cliente. Reservé una mesa hace varias semanas para mí y para mi amigo. Fuimos a cenar primero y, al darme cuenta de que llegaría unos minutos tarde después de haber pedido los postres, telefoneé con anticipación para asegurarnos de que el grupo de mi grupo aún vendría pronto. Llegué 3 minutos tarde para ver a las personas que estaban sentadas en la mesa que había reservado. Inmediatamente informé al personal del bar y se encogieron de hombros. Se pusieron en contacto con el gerente, que era de lo más inútil y antipático. El bar estaba realmente vacío con al menos 2 mesas libres pero sin asientos. En lugar de ofrecernos una alternativa / bebidas en la casa para animarnos a quedarnos o incluso un saludo de cumpleaños que no cuesta nada más que buena voluntad, dejaron en claro que nuestra costumbre no era valiosa y que no tenían ningún deseo de darnos una velada memorable para las razones correctas Nos hicieron sentir tan incómodos que es una pena. Me ha encantado este bar y he pasado muchas noches felices aquí, pero no planifique con anticipación ni interactúe con el personal inhóspito: (

Friendly atmosphere. Love the live piano sing along.

Fun place for a late night drink. Some good piano players who can sing a bit too!

Tenía ganas de visitar durante tanto tiempo. Mi primera vez terminé siendo con un amigo de teatro musical, un amigo mío que visitaba Escocia. Llegamos bastante tarde (después de la medianoche) y terminamos haciendo cola durante una hora. Aunque la cola en sí era frustrante, había algunos personajes maravillosos para mantenernos entretenidos. Lamentablemente, cuando llegamos al interior, era casi imposible ir del bar a la habitación con el piano. Finalmente, nos apretamos y encontramos un lugar en la parte posterior junto a la salida de incendios. Perfecto para bailar. No vimos al pianista ni al piano porque estaba lleno. Pero cantamos nuestros corazones y bailamos tontos. Noche de diversión en general. No puedo esperar a volver antes y encontrarme en una mejor posición estratégica.

Great spot for s big gathering or office party!

Had a great time here with friends, made better with the wonderful pianist and the singalong. Highly recommended!

Always have a good time here. Fancy something a bit different from the normal when out for the night? Live piano sing along takes place on Friday and Saturday nights, good vibe and friendly crowd. Reasonable priced drinks, no entry charge, get their early though aas past 2200 queues start to form and you could be waiting for a while to get in.

Always a fun place to visit on a night out.

Anoche entré por mi cuenta para tomar un trago tarde, ya que en todas partes estaba cerrado. Qué bar encantador con un personal estupendo y clientes amistosos. Todos cantaban alrededor del piano. Fue muy divertido y, aunque estaba solo y soy un poco tímido, la gente viene y conversa contigo.

Nick who plays the piano on Thursdays might just be the greatest musician I've ever been in the presence of. Hand him a song on a piece of paper and not only will he almost certainly know it, but he'll play it with grace and skill. I'm sure his singing is also great but unfortunately I can't really hear it over my own soaring vocals

I had a blast there. Piano player is amazing!

Great place and ambient audience!

Great night, good old fashioned sing along around a piano. Great crowd and friendly team too.

Live piano music. Only good late night venue in Westminster

Amazing. Great night of Singing to some classic tunes

Excellent location, a friendly group of patrons, superb music, plenty of space to dance and a good selection of food and drink... what more does one need?

Es cerrado, pero el sistema de reservas en línea y el teatro aún le invitamos a reservar. Al parecer, la cocina se está trabajando y no saben por cuánto tiempo. Quizás tienen ratas.

Very rude staff and bouncers, would not recommend to anyone

Visité antes del teatro y tuvimos una comida muy agradable. Camarero simpático y la comida estaba buena y caliente.

Singer was quality could request any songs and he’d play it. Drinks are also pretty inexpensive for London so that’s always a bonus.

Reservamos una mesa para 6 pm para la cena previa al teatro para la noche de apertura de The Knowledge

A continuación de un bash en la terraza del tejado en Selfridges, que vinieron aquí para bebidas hasta tarde en la noche. El portero era un poco alto, pero nos las arreglamos para entrar. El bar en sí era lleno de gente cantando junto a clásicos antiguos realizados por la banda residente. Nos dieron nuestras bebidas y nos pareció un lugar un poco más tranquilo para disfrutar de nosotros mismos.

I love this place, but get there EARLY the queue can get pretty long as they do one in one out, bit pricy but nothing major for london, but it's free to get in. Pianists are great, especially considering what they put up with. Great place to get merry and shout along to some classics.

This isn't (just) my favourite bar back home, and it's not (just) my favourite place back home.......it is my favourite place on the planet!!!! The only person I've ever met that doesn't like it is my mother - because I love it more than her!!!

Having hired out The Ship & Shovell for my birthday (see separate review), I reserved an area at Players for the after party. Manager Chris runs an absolutely fantastic venue, with a Saturday night USP of singalong piano tunes. The pianist Lee was amazing, delivering on a staggering range of requests (small selection: Hit Me Baby One More Time, Take On Me, Don't Look Back In Anger - with a nod to recent events in Manchester and that night's events in London Bridge - All That Jazz and Let It Go from the movie Frozen) and leading a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday. My guests and I had a fabulous time.

Este es un bar estupendo y frecuentes que a menudo. Todo el personal del bar es maravilloso, sin embargo, se deja completamente por el hombre al que es grosero y prepotente y obviamente en algún tipo de viaje de poder. Y que me hace dudar de nuevo, lo cual es una pena, ya que el lugar es fantástico y nos hemos gastado mucho dinero en aquí a lo largo de los años. Por favor dar este hombre algún tipo de formación en servicio al cliente, o mejor aún - sustituirle.

Great late night venue with live piano