It’s home to the $14 steak special, but there’s more to the London Hotel than MEATS the eye.
Paddington is home to several great pubs. On the corner of Oxford and William Street is Paddo Inn Bar & Grill. Further towards Woollahra is The Light Brigade and its recently refurbished rooftop bar. Let’s not forgot about The Royal Hotel tucked away down in Five Ways. The London Hotel is a particularly worthy member of this esteemed group. What makes for a great pub? It’s the homely, unpretentious aura that exudes from its walls. It’s the stellar beer list and the tasty pub food specials. Extra points if the floor isn’t sticky.
Situated on a quiet backroad just a stones throw from bustling Oxford Street, The London certainly doesn’t feel out of place in this leafy neighbourhood. This rather large terrace building comes adorned with heritage tiles and lashings of imperial finesse.
It may be eerily quiet in the surrounding streets on a Tuesday night, but walk inside this pub and you’ll find plenty of people shaking off the working day with a cold beverage in hand. Like any good pub, The London does a range food and drink specials for each day of the week.
On Mondays there’s $14 schnitzel. Come Tuesday you’ll find $12 burgers offset by $12 salads for those not looking to blow all their calories so early in the week. On Wednesdays there’s 2 for 1 pizzas followed by $14 steaks on a Thursday. Fridays are all about $5 drinks from 5-7pm. Sunday is recovery day with a special Sunday roast and $10 Bloody Marys.
We challenge the norm on a Tuesday night by ordering the 200g eye fillet served with fries and salad ($26). Despite asking for the steak to be cooked medium rare, it does come out a little on the medium to well-done side. Thankfully, a generous serve of mushroom sauce rescues any dryness, further assisted by a thirst quenching James Squire 150 Lashes Pale Ale. A generous mound of London fries doesn’t go astray, whilst a simple salad of lettuce, tomato and spanish onion livens up the palate.
Although we didn’t dabble in the Tuesday night burger special, there are plenty of punters in the fairy light courtyard getting hands on, quiet literally. Moving beyond The London’s pub specials, you’ll find English pub classics like bangas and mash ($24), chicken in a basket ($19) and fish and chips ($19).
The courtyard offers all the niceties of a cosy drinks hangout, with modern furniture and ample wrap around seating. You’ll soon realise that many of the table tops are plastered with the Union Jack. If you closed your eyes and blocked out the ramblings of the latest NRL game playing on the TV, you’d swear you were in the British motherland.
Although the courtyard was enclosed on our most recent visit, we’re told that it has a retractable roof, letting in plenty of sunlight and warmth in the summer months.
Feeling a little indulgent? The London is also currently dishing up banoffee pie ($12) for dessert. All we can say is that the union of biscuit, oozy dulce de leche, freshly sliced banana and cream is a glorious one. A word of warning, this dessert is certainly best shared, unless you’re okay rolling out of The London.
Upstairs from The London is East London. Haven’t been? You can read all about it here
The London Hotel
85 Underwood St, Paddington NSW 2021
02 9331 3200
Open Monday to Saturday – midday to midnight, Sunday – midday to 10pm