Do not get the Queen’s Head and the Old Queen’s Head mixed up. The one in King’s Cross has a long list of craft beers and old boys sat at the bar and the other, in Islington, is where the gladiatorial Paul Mescal used to ease in to become convivial.
We’re at the former, here. The one sans Mescal and, incidentally, sans mezcal. Lots of beer though, more than 10 cask ales, none of which I tried because I had the solitary lager, a crisp, refreshing Czech number.
Above me, two whirling fans; about me, a soundtrack featuring Rodriguez, Van Morrison, Blondie; and on chalkboards behind the bar, a selection of snacks, from £4.50 scotch eggs to £15 meat boards.
This is a true pub, a place to sit in; to play Backgammon, cards and chess. There is live music twice a week. I can’t imagine it is frequented by wankers or people who drive Teslas, not that these are mutually exclusive.
But I do love this pub. I’d never been before last month. Aperitif was beer; digestif was rum: the selection of spirits is strong and studied, though not tediously extensive. Whisky heads will be happy, though; no-one could get through them all in a night. Ellis liked the brandies.
A pub this week, part-circumstantial, but also it is important to be supportive of an industry in peril. More so independent freeholds such as this when venues like O’Neill’s are apparently in the market of surge pricing: at the Soho branch, a pint is shifting from £7.20 to £9.20 post-10pm. When it comes to indie boozers, we can’t save them all. All we can do is be careful about where we drink.
Drinks from £6, queensheadlondon.com
