The Coal Hole

Good pub, good food with a great atmosphere. As expected for central London, it gets quite busy. You won’t get a table at the weekend or on a Friday night here!

Zu meinem London-​Kurztrip gehörten zum Abschluss irgendwie ein Pub und Fish ‘n’ chips.
Dank Unilocal gab’s dann in Laufweite unseres ‘Zielortes’ auch einen Pub, der preislich angemessen ist und nicht die allergrößte Touri-​Falle mittendrin.
Am späten Samstagnachmittag war es schon rappelvoll, aber mit ein bisschen Glück hatten wir auch recht schnell einen Tisch auf der Empore ergattert. Bestellt wird wie üblich an der Theke und ich konnte mit Mastercard und Bargeld gleichzeitig zahlen, um meine letzten Pfundreserven loszuwerden.
Also bestellt und dann recht zügig bekommen. Ein Garling-​Pint für mich und dazu leckere Fish ‘n’ chips. Für 12,50 Pfund eine gute Portion. :) Gut gesättigt konnte danach der Heimweg angetreten werden von meinem ‘One day in London’-Trip. :)

For just drinks, I would recommend this place. However, if you’re looking for food as well I would suggest going somewhere else. For the price you pay, the servings are tiny. At other pubs you would get more food for even less money. The service was very slow and there weren’t enough staffers when it got really busy in the dining room. Again, for drinks — come here! (Summer shandy made with London Pride was great.) Food — keep walking…

Been here several times. Had the best draught Guiness ever in whole London. Large variety of beers, even draught ones. Food lovely, everything reasonably priced. As a concierge in a hotel ranked among the Top10 hotels in London on Tripadvisor I recommended this lovely pub to hundreds of guests who were more than pleased with my recommendation. Good job guys, will return!

This was our favorite pub in all London during a month long stay. Fish and chips were our favorite on the menu. Favorite table in the back corner. A must while in London.

Die Location war Mittel zum Zweck und hat uns, wahrscheinlich gerade deshalb, überrascht… uns taten die Füßlein weh, wir wollten nach unserem Sightseeing-​Trip zu Fuß einfach nur noch sitzen und hatten Durst, viel davon.
Es war beste Kaffeezeit und trotzdem war dieser Pub gut gefüllt. Im oberen Bereich fanden wir freie Plätze für 5 und ließen uns… *ächzzz*… zum verschnaufen nieder. Der Liebste und der Sohnemann wurden losgeschickt, Getränke und Futter zu ordern. Wir Mädchen mussten uns schließlich ausruhen ;)
Sitztechnisch waren wir gut angekommen. Lärmpegelmäßig hätte ich gern dem Nachbartisch Einhalt geboten… :P
Die Getränke durften sofort mitgenommen werden, Fish & Chips wurden nach Fertigstellung serviert. Was soll ich sagen: britisches bitters Bier ist nicht meins, nicht mal bei Durst. Der Liebste fands lecker :((
Die «Kinder» hatten Cola, die aussah wie Cola und nicht schmeckte wie Cola :((Man lernt ja dazu.
Fish & Chips, eine Portion für den kleinen Hasen, kam heiß, fettig, üppig und legger daher. Namminam… ich hab als Erste Pommes geklaut und mir den Mund verbrannt, ob der heißen Teilchen. Selbst daran Schuld.
Fazit: Dufter, gemütlicher Pub! Man sollte stimmgewaltig sein, um gegen den Lärmpegel die Unterhaltung zu führen… eine Kunst. Getränke grenzwertig (vielleicht von uns nur schlecht gewählt), Fish & Chips jedoch heiß und lecker. Alles in allem, meine Empfehlung.

Still a nice little pub. Decent selection of real ales. Much less commercial feeling than many of Nicholson’s other properties. Food is good (standard Nicholson fare) but service getting it to the table is pretty slow. Getting an ale at the bar is usually pretty quick but the bartenders seem to be rushed and flustered even when the place is pretty empty.
When weather is decent, it’s possible to smoke on the side street/​alley outside the side door.

Decent pub on The Strand just along from The Savoy Hotel. The bar downstairs is much quieter than the pub and there is an outside standing/​smoking area overlooking the rear of The Savoy Theatre.
A steady performer.

Great décor. Lovely atmospheric old pub. Good selection of real ales. Good for a central London meet up with mates pub.

Last night, I visited The Coal Hole with my boyfriend and his parents. This was my first London pub experience and it happened to be a place that my boyfriend’s father used to go with his father!
We had a quick ½ pint for the sake of going to a pub on our first night in London. The Coal Hole was packed and we took our beers outside.
The Coal Hole is bigger than it appears on the outside and as I don’t have much experience with British pubs, I thought that it was an exciting new experience. It’s cool inside. I would love to go back when we have more time and are feeling less jet-​lagged!

Love the name-​good selection — huge pub. Convenient to west end shows

they told us to seat ourselves so we did and waited, waited, waited for a server, someone, anyone? Finally got up and walked out! Don’t waste your time.

Sometimes my husband and I end a fun day of exploring a new city with a short pub hop, and this popular place right on the Strand seemed like the a good stop along the way. On a Saturday afternoon, the place was PACKED. Diners, drinkers and tag-​alongers were all there — on the ground floor and upstairs — enjoying the selection of brews.
I decided to try the Shark Bite /​Shark Head? ale/​lager/​whatever it was — and I couldn’t drink it! It was horrendous!!! BUT, the good news is that when I took it back to the bar and asked for a The Rev. James instead, they replaced it at no cost. I was willing to pay for the alternate beer, but they were cool about it. Nice.
We had a good experience there, but I’m not sure that I’d go back for food. The upstairs dining area was sweltering (and it wasn’t very warm outside), and the crowded conditions just aren’t my favorite.
On to the next pub!

Cozy! I like cozy british pubs!
This used to be a coal storage.
Good selection if draughts — several ales and IPAs. That will do it for me!
Pale ale pint is £3.80. Wow!

Pubs should stick to serving beer, not food.

A loud pub located on the Strand — it attracts mostly London folk or local workers, the tourists opting for other pubs. Decent range of beers to be had here, and their ales are kept well. As with most Nicholsons pubs, you’ll get mid level food, some of it better than the rest. Their pies are always a safe bet!
Best bit about this pub is the downstairs basement bar. Head around the back of the building and sneak in. Tricky to find, but an even better hiding spot from the tourists! Lovely wine too. A Gordon’s substitute when too lazy to walk to the other end of the road.

No I didn’t see any hole (s) nor did I find any coal. However I did find some black stuff and it can in a pint glass.
Ahh Bisto!

While the bar food is decent here, your real reason to come in is the atmosphere.
City workers rub shoulders with the occasional curious tourist and it isn’t the worst place to meet people. I’m pretty observant at pubs — I get my drink, sit down and people-​watch, and this is a great place for that.
The wood décor and relative darkness inside can make you forget that the Strand is right outside the door. As others have said, it’s hard to describe just what about it is so special, but still, there’s … something.
Tip: The ground-​floor bar is going to be packed at any given time during normal human hours. A lot of people, especially first-​timers, don’t know that there’s another bar in the basement. You can always bring your drink up; I prefer to sit on the upper level and look down.

In a handy location on the Strand, The Coal Hole has been an after-​work watering hole for me on more than one occasion.
I have never had a drink in the ground floor bar, instead opting for the basement bar which always seems to be much emptier (perhaps less people are aware it’s there).
It’s a pub and it does what a pub does best — sells booze. It also has some decent albeit basic food — pub food — burgers, fish and chips, pies etc. I had a burger here once, not the most amazing meal I’ve ever had but it was tasty and I was hungover so was just what I needed!
Pubs in this area will always be busy, being in such a central location and The Coal Hole can certainly fill up in peak hours after work and in the evenings, but I have still had some enjoyable times down here and can usually find a place to stand or perch without being too uncomfortable.
In summary it’s a basic no thrills pub but it’s in a handy location and the food won’t knock your socks off but it’ll certainly do the job.

It’s classier than it sounds.
Stopped in and liked the atmosphere. Relaxed vibe, there was an older after work crowd, but I wasn’t there to pick up anybody, so I didn’t mind. The bartenders are really nice as well.
I also really like the name. It’s just fun to say. Come on, say it out loud. Coal Hole. Good stuff.

I expected more of this traditional pub. For all the dark wood and restored wall décor, it still had a bit of a chain pub feel to it. To be fair, it could be that I happened to be there during the after work crowd crush. However as much as I tried, still I found The Coal Hole strangely lacking.
In spite of the crowds, the sprawling space did feel at least breathable, while the service was trying hard to serve quickly –and graciously– in the middle of being slammed by patrons. The beers were the usual variety, including foreign selections. While we didn’t eat the food, it looked tempting, especially the savory pies passing by in front of us on a regular basis. It all seemed good enough, yet not amazing.
Still something was just missing for me. I didn’t really feel like I was in a pub, but more of a bar made to look like a pub. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from going though.

Pretty good food. Pretty poor service. Sat for almost 30 minutes with no drink after walking up the dreaded spiral staircase at Covent Garden’s underground stop.
The fish & chips were pretty good, but obviously not what this place specializes in. The inside was a beautiful old-​school bar with seating both upstairs and down.
The beer selection was pretty much par for the course. Nothing spectacular, but a good selection nonetheless. I probably won’t come back here, for fear of dehydration waiting for drinks.
The prices were a bit higher than other places nearby, but you’re paying for the atmosphere.