The Old Bell Tavern in City of London, Westminster

Only popped in for quick drink as passing.

Okay, when we made the reservation we thought it would be a bit more of a restaurant than a bar... But the place was full of people who were drinking beer/ale and being extremely loud ;) But we found it in the crowd our table, which was unfortunately dirty, but was cleaned immediately after a note to the staff. Food and drinks were placed on an A4 page (front and back)... Most of it was intended for islanders and not for sensitive Germans :)))) So it had to be the burger on the menu... to be on the safe side - double well done before the thing reached the table bloody... Burgers arrived and were small but delicious... on one plate there was only half the fries as on the other... probably the cook was blind in one eye... or the other guests were helping themselves through the people... us don't know. The burgers with fries were around €21.00 each... that was very steep. But at least it tasted... but recommend??? Okay, you have to know for yourself.

Very nice and pleasant typical English pub with good Christmas decoration. Very very nice staff. They gave us a taste of beers to choose which pint we had. Not bad price.

Great pub built by Christopher wren

Really cosy, welcoming pub in the heart of the city. Hena and Ben were delightful hosts and very friendly.

Ben is as absolutely amazing! Best bartender!

Cute little pub.. and amazing bar staff especially Ben 😊

Great staff. Good beer. Ben and Hannah

Fantastic service. Great beer and pleasant staff, especially Ben and Hena.

Ben and Henanh were the best!!🥰

Great atmosphere, food and service, especially from Ben and Hena!

Oh, what a great place, I'd come back 6 times a week and twice on a sunday

Fantastic atmosphere. Visiting from Malaysia and wanted to see an authentic English pub and wasn’t disappointed. Ben and Hena working on the bar were so friendly and gave such great service.

Ben and Hena are the best!! We love the place and deffo coming back!🫶

Brilliant and friendly atmosphere. Great selection of lager and ales and the staff were amazing, Ben and Hena were just perfect. Will be back!

Amazing!! Perfect and cozy with great drinks

Lovely pub, brilliant atmosphere

Ben and Hena are fantastic barstaff

Handsome old pub with great ale, food, service, and a fireplace!!

Ben was fabulous. Service was amazing highly recommend

Nice Pub, good food and good beer.

Nice bartenders, cute and cozy pub. Regular prices

Have you seen Big Ben?? As in Ben from The Old Bell? If you haven’t, you’re missing out. Ben will welcome you to TOB with a warm smile and plenty of recommendations that go beyond just the drinks and food. Don’t miss the ambiance, comfort, and strong drinks from OTB.

Very good based in Fleet Street and not far from City Thameslink Station so easy to walk to . Very nice and friendly people if in the area I would definitely pop in.

It's a beautiful place, with great people and a great atmosphere. This is what an authentic pub should look like!

The best experience I had in London. Service was amazing, ask for Ben and Lily!

Enjoying a night out and discovered the Old Bell. We had the best time thanks to Ben and Lily. We walked into the bar towards the end of the night and they were so nice. Drinks were delicious and service was top notch.

Great beer, great beer and very friendly staff

Ben and Lilly weete fantastic and there service was phenomenal andni had fantastic time !!

Ben and Lilly were some of the most welcoming bartenders I’ve ever met. I have been here with my mother and she really enjoyed her time and she normally hates socialising so well done Ben and Lilly.

The two bartenders were amazing. Very nice and knowledgeable. Ben and Lily made our final stop of the night incredibly memorable. The atmosphere in the bar, was quite lovely and was a perfect place for our group. 10/10 would recommend to anyone.

Food was good and relatively quick to arrive, service was prompt and friendly, atmosphere was decent (we created the atmosphere :)...) The pie was pretty good although i expected fabulous as it was labelled as award winning.

Great spot to grab drinks!! Ben was super helpful and had great suggestions! The menu has fun pub options and will definitely meet your expectations.

The pub has a great atmosphere but was abismal for ordering with an allergy. The staff didn’t seem to be able to access the digital allergen menu and didn’t have a physical copy. It took ages to order and by the time my food arrived everyone else I ordered with had finished their meal. What added insult to injury is that it’s started that the burgers come with chips but not the vegan one which comes with a salad. It’s not clear as the astrix was so small we didn’t initially spot it. It’s a little thing but after a long day and feeling hungry it just disappointing. And to charge £16 for a tepid burger that could have been store bought is a rip off. It’s just really disappointing when you’re hungry and excited for your meal to have a little disclaimer ruin the experience and it should not take nearly 5 min to get allergen info. Food should be enjoyed but this was such a sad meal. Not worth it at all.

Some terrible, very inexperienced staff. Atmosphere on a Friday was very drab, neither cosy nor exciting

Fine boozer, not bad prices, beer was well kept.

Excellent!! The perfect British Pub we were trying to find. Sausage and mash was delicious!!! A definite stop if you want an authentic pub.

Dimly lit and dark wood panelled interior gave the old bell tavern a cosy historical feel. Clean and fresh but kept to it's original old London tavern decor and feel. I sat by the fireplace in a high back leather armchair, sipping my ale and soaking up the atmosphere. I could spend all day here.

It's a nice, classic, central London pub which served some very nice London Pride - so far so good, and at least a 4 star rating. But, I go to the pub to enjoy the chat with whoever I'm with and not to listen to loud background music which makes you have to shout to be heard - the choice of tracks wasn't that bad but I have a perfectly good sound system at home to listen to music on so I don't need to compete with it as a soundtrack to attempted conversation. The pub was busy (lively) enough to be generating it's own atmosphere so turn the effing music off.

This is a hidden gem. An old pub with great history behind. It feels authentic. We loved the food; fish and chips and pies. They also have a great selection of drinks. Service was friendly, prompt and professional. The Old Bell Tavern is located near Blackfriars Station. We will definitely be back!

Excellent service by fantastic staff

Nice quiet pub in.a busy area, surprisingly well priced considering it's near St Paul's cathedral

Brilliant place, tasty food, very intimate and personal atmosphere!

Old school pub atmosphere really enjoyed it Aurimas made us feel really welcome! We will be back.

What a gem! So full of character in a really great part of London! Can’t wait to come back !

Look anywhere else. Average food, darkest tavern ever seen, and disgusting barmen. To forget as soon as possible. Look anywhere else.

Nice little pub , with good service and very nice English Fish and Chips , worth a stop 👍🏻🍻 old and original decor to which is good to see.

Just been in to the old bell tavern today, the bar staff were extremely bad mannered to an older gentlemen who paid for his drink, unlike some younger men who asked for cheaper drinks, (when they could obviously afford it), the bar man apologised for the smell the elderly man left behind, but did not apologise for the arrogance of the younger men (In my Opinion a far bigger SMELL than any man).

Great little pub, nice atmosphere and great lads behind the bar. We were served by Ben, who was spot on the whole time

We were staying nearby and popped out for food. Spotted the Old Bell and pleased we did. We had a lovely meal - ordered at the bar and the food was brought out. Cocktails too. Lovely atmosphere.

Beautiful, old, classic pub on Fleet street. Lots of dark wood, stained glass and little snugs. There is an enclosed front area with tables and there are lots of tables inside. It's pub food, but very good. My bacon and cheese burger with chips was £10, ample and delicious. Really wonderful pub in a great part of London.

Place is a real pub! Good pub food, great music and very relaxing atmosphere around candles on the tables. Would love to see those fireplaces on in winter! Prices do bite and if you come from a village, you do expect a top restaurant with private waiter, but this is London, this isn't a village! So for myself this place is a treat!

Little to no atmosphere, surprising for 7.30 on a Friday evening. Barmaid couldn't have looked less interested if she tried, especially when we sent our "hot" dessert back for not being anywhere near hot. Limited menu to begin with at Nicholson's, not helped by some items being off the menu. Food was actually ok , just would be nice to have plates that weren't cold....seems to be something we never find.

Wouldn't go again. Like most places, food served on cold plates. Unlike most places, food turned up within minutes.... definitely NOT cooked to order then. Must have been ready before we ordered

Lovely pub. Lots of character, and good lunch menu. Loved the runny scotch eggs!

Very typical London pub. Great for a quick pint post work or wandering the city. Paulaner on draught is amazing.

Enjoyed our first meal this visit at The Old Bell Tavern. Standard pub food and drinks with friendly service in a historic Christopher Wren designed building

Great food. Friendly service, I recommend.

I visited this pub on a sunny, hot, Monday afternoon. The efficient air con was a welcome relief from the heat outside. I opted for a Camden lager at £7.15, the service was excellent. They had 5 cask beers and over 20 whiskies. The pub dates back to the late 1600's and the dark decor does give it an authentic look. There are various seating areas. This is in a good location being just 5 minutes from St Pauls. The toilets are upstairs which may be a problem for the less mobile. Please note that this pub is not open on Sunday's and they do serve food.

It was sensational. Best beers in England on tap, and great food, it's a real pub

Blackfriars 🍺 £7.50 Paulaner The Old Bell Tavern is located at the eastern end of Fleet Street infront of historic St Bride's Church. The nearest Tube is Blackfriars, it’s a five minute walk to get here. The Old Bell stands on the site of an earlier tavern, The Swan. The current Old Bell (previously the Golden Bell and later the Twelve Bells) has been greatly renovated but was originally built in 1678 by London’s most famous architect Sir Christopher Wren. This is a cosy one bar pub that has a ye olde pub feel. At the centre of the bar is a curved servery which is clad in dark wood panelling. Around the bar are a number of nooks, crannies and snugs which make for an intimate setting. The decor is traditional with a bare boarded floor, comfy furniture, a couple of fireplaces, the low level lighting sets an atmospheric tone. The stand out feature is the stained glass window at the front of the pub. There is no beer garden, but you can stand in the back Alleyway which looks across to St Bride’s Church. The beer line up was solid and included popular keg beers, some craft and impressively six cask ales. I decided on a Paulaner, my pint was great, price point was a bit punchy. The food menu is classic pub grub, Fish & Chips cost £17. I arrived around 1pm on a sunny Saturday lunchtime in March. The pub was fairly busy with several groups settled in around all parts of the pub. The atmosphere was chilled and relaxed with the odd hail of laughter from a wedding group by the stained window. The service was pleasant, I was served by a welcoming member of the team who was busy beavering away behind the bar. Fleet Street has some notable pubs and The Old Bell Tavern is no exception. This is a nice spot to have a pint in, if a little pricey. ℹ️ Info correct on visiting 30.03.24

Amazing service, fabulous atmosphere and really good beers on offer! I didn’t try the food but it looked and smelt wonderful

Amazing staff, amazing people and the place is just stunning, I had the greatest time and the place was just amazing vibes Matt was incredible, I’ll be sure to make this my regular pub

What a great vibe! The experience is one of a kind! Lovely people especially Matt behind the bar helping with sorting out a nice table for the England match! What a legend!

KP would really love this pub, incredible

Incredible service, great pub for the euros !! Chips are lovey

Amazing pub! Amazing atmosphere! Amazing people!

Best pub in London! Great atmosphere, matt the manager is outstanding bloke!

Great atmosphere. Bartenders were friendly. Exactly what you’re looking for out of an old pub in London.

Fish and chips are great. Ipa beer is tasty.

I review in Italian. We were looking for an original, typically London pub. We ended up here a bit by chance, attracted by the outside. The environment is dark, inviting, with soft lights. Friendly staff, never intrusive, very helpful. Wide but not sensational choice of gins, we accompanied it with delicious tacos. Prices slightly lower than in other pubs (a gintonic is around 13 pounds, the average elsewhere is around 16). We entered with the children (having asked first, to avoid any misunderstanding). Definitely recommended, it is located not too far from St. Paul.

Ben is amazing, this pub has so much history that i did not know about but Ben was great at updating us on this. He has really taken the London vibe to heart and given us interesting facts. 5 star

Nice place for a beer and snacks

Matt is great, the manager looks as hot as Ryan Gosling

Bar man daddy Matt couldn’t have made us feel like one of the family at this cosy pub

Matt is ok as a manager, it’s a good pub

Great pub, very good selection of drinks, low lighting was great for a hangover! Fantastic interior to the pub too.

For £7.15 for a pint of Camden Hells the least I can expect is they clean the lines. But no. Filth. I got the same pint in the Tipperary for £6.40 1 minute away and it was the best pint. Lazy lazy management.

Ben heard that we were having our last drink in London (for this trip) and suggested some drinks for both myself and my partner. He was brilliant - charismatic, patient, and hilarious. Not only did he immediately know that we were from St. John’s, Newfoundland, he also acknowledged that others probably thought we were American due to our dialect; not Ben, however. He suggested a remedy for my hairloss, jested about my partner’s predilections towards Puritanism, and supported me in my debauchery in a very responsible and caring way. Thanks to Ben, myself and my partner have agreed to name our first child either The Old Bell, Sir Christopher Wren, or (this one has my vote) Ben. Thanks for such a brilliant evening!

Got served by iona, brillant service ! And a lovely pub x

Beautiful little pub, great find! Lovely staff, Iona serves with a smile. Hard to come by nowadays

This is a great little tradition London pub. The staff do their very best at busy times, have some respect, understanding and patience for them. If you don't understand that feck off to somewhere with neon lights. PROPER PUB!.... Update - I popped in for a few of their fantastic ales, the end of April. It's still a great pub Zain, Marty (sorry forgot your colleagues name) are very welcoming, brilliant customer service.

Durante un tour dei pub storici di Londra, siamo entrati in questo pub, molto accogliente e caloroso, ci hanno servito un ottimo sidro e ottimo cibo, grazie a questo pub ho assaggiato per la prima volta l'halloumi, favoloso!

During a tour of the historic pubs of London, we entered this pub, very welcoming and warm, they served us excellent cider and great food, thanks to this pub I tasted halloumi for the first time, fabulous!

Zain was a terrific help and a pleasure to speak too.

A cosy pub in the hectic center of London. The bar guy is great, food is good and the choice of 🍻 is both local and international. The place to be for a quiet drink and dinner.

Zain (Bartender) was very welcoming and made us feel welcome. Can’t wait to come back!

surly barman. flat beer. very disappointing, as the London pride was flat and tasted old. shame that a great old pub can be spoiled by not bothering with service or looking after the beers. Nicholson's should really look at their staffing in these pubs.

Ben was lovely, such a great talent behind the bar, a true natural

Really lovely traditional pub in the heart of London. Wooden panelling, cute nooks, warm lighting. And great bar staff, especially Zain who was delightful. Highly recommend

I came ın to the oide bell after work and ben and zaın were very welcomıng!!!

Great vegetarian options and English classics. Good ale selection as well!

Lovely atmosphere in the heart of London Zain is a super helpful member of staff 👍🏻

Nice place for a beer. Friendly staff, good beers.

Fantastic place, great service from Zain 👌

Great venue, tasty food and friendly staff. Zain was particularly helpful

Buzzy old pub with friendly staff. Well worth a visit to see a piece of history too...

Beautiful historic pub. Stained glass windows onto Fleet Street are particularly memorable.

Lovely atmosphere, great service and delicious menu!

Zain was an amazing bartender. Thanks for a great time!