Captain Kidd

Here we go: sadly another example of a pub with self-​righteous staff imagining themselves trade union leaders standing up for bureaucracy. Customers are a hassle. In an empty restaurant, my family are rejected to secondary seating away from our own choice due to the fact that we won’t occupy all seats. Well good bye. Although I’m not that unreasonable to recognise that tables need to be available for larger groups but if you got a customer who’s actually standing in the establishment with cash in their pocket do what you can to keep them inside and not existing down the stairs to another place. I’ll continue to stick to establishments that are successful due to good service, business understanding and good food. The only good thing about the Captain Kidd is its location and flowering history; otherwise staff horrible, food awful, booze mediocre.

A perfectly serviceable Sam Smith’s pub with a great patch of concrete outside– perfect view of Canary Wharf; excellent if you work around there and want to be reminded of your day job during the weekend… (or generally excellent in general)
Inside it’s dark with nooks and crannies, toilets are not too disgusting on our visit.
It basically is what you’d expect from a Sam Smith pub– nowadays less cheap beer, chocolatey stout and cherry beer. It’s not going to blow you away (but the full moon view of glittering high rise might, especially if you’re not used to that sort of thing).

This is a lovely riverside pub that is spoilt by awful food.
The pub grub at its most average. Shame really because it would be mobbed if it sorted this out.
Not helped by the Sam Smiths beers either.
I won’t be returning for some time and then only in the hope that things have changed because the location and the outside beer garden on the river is great.

Nice pub, right on the water, so it offers brilliant views — especially if you go outside.
The vibe is very casual and fun. Everyone seems friendly and at ease. They serve some lovely cider on draft and best of all, they serve chilli peanuts — and not the plasticky kind either!
The whole place is made of dark wood and it has loads of little nooks and crannies, rooms off of rooms and places to have an intimate conversation.
My only serious gripe is the smoking outside — such a beautiful spot with amazing views from the docklands to the city, and people spoil it with noxious cigarette smoke. Bleuh!

To be honest, the pub doesn’t look extremely special, but it has its own magic!
Especially at night when the weather is calm (doesn’t happen very often these days, but still — it’s lovely in the summer), the full moon is right in front of you and a pint of Taddy Lager is in your hand.
I don’t need nothing more!
I’ve never tried the food, because I go there for the atmosphere.
The beer is quite good though!
I simply love this place — it’s one of the most enchanting pubs in London.

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me!
I love this pub for a quick drink as it’s very close to home. It’s a real shame that the upstairs space which is beautiful is wasted on perhaps the worst food you’ll come across in all of London. I have given the food several chances and today’s food was so disgusting that I had to update my post.
The reason I tried again is that the menu seemed to have been updated with tasty sounding dishes. I ordered a fish platter which consisted of Goujon of lemon sole, two crab cakes, two prawn tempura, two scampi and potato wedges.
When the food arrived my heart sank. It was like a snack selection from Iceland for a kids party. Minuscule pieces of fish — about the size of a pen lid! — I wasn’t convinced that it was even lemon sole. Absolutely hideous crab cakes that tasted like mud. Mushy scampi and inedible prawn tempura that was limp, greasy and leathery– I couldn’t even bite through one of them. All the pieces were insultingly small and clearly cooked from frozen. Oh and the (yes cooked from frozen as well) potato wedges numbered a grand total of four. About the size of a small mandarin wedge. I couldn’t help but laugh not in amusement but sheer astonishment.
To top it off it was accompanied with the smallest side salad I have ever seen, but worse than the size it was dried out, brown and slimy. I think the plates had been dressed with salad hours before in anticipation of the frozen «food» that would soon grace the plate.
At £10 I felt this food wasn’t just disgusting it was an insult. If I were the cook I would be ashamed of what came out of that kitchen. I was not at all surprised the room was empty.
Close down the kitchen. Open up the upstairs bar and serve only snacks. The food is an embarrassment and shameful and spoils what is otherwise a lovely pub.
GO HOME CAPTAIN KIDD — YOUR DRUNK!
DO NOT MAKE MY MISTAKE AND ORDER FOOD HERE AGAIN!

Good pint of bitter. Crap food. Do not eat here. I ordered a mushroom Wellington and it was clearly microwaved or heated in some other way from frozen — and not well might I add. Mine was mostly frozen/​cold in the middle. When I asked for HP sauce to go with my potatoes I was given catsup. My American accent isn’t that thick. C’mon.

Awesome atmosphere and nice friendly staff. The location is a bit out of the way, but super nice. The beer garden is great, would be even better if there weren’t so many smokers out there, but hey, it’s a pub. I was pleased that there was samuel smith on tap, and very reasonably priced as well. Overall, I think it was a great place. I would give it 5 stars, but Ive only been to 3 pubs on this trip. I may re-​evaluate after trying a few more.

Buen sitio para ir a tomarse una pintas baratitas y disfrutar de las vistas del Támesis, ya que tiene una terraza enorme con unas vistas estupendas.
Si no te pilla de camino merece la pena acercarse un día con buen tiempo y disfrutar de un buen rato mirando los barcos pasar.
Además te atienden estupendamente, y como el local (tanto por dentro como por fuera) es amplio no tendrás problema en encontrar sitio para sentarte aunque vayas con amigos.

Had a nice relaxing and welcoming time here on a Sunday afternoon with 3 muddy boys. Bought chips and beers and bar staff didnt seem to mind the boys drinking smoothies we had brought with us. Friendly staff.

One oft the best pubs in London. Cozy, nice crowd, good beers. Nice views of the river and great for sitting outside in summer.

a sammy smiths pub, warm wood interior but the selling point is the huge patio on the thames. this is a must-​do on a (proper) summer’s day to enjoy a pint and soak in some vitamin d.

Not a bad pub if you’re in the area, but don’t go out of your way to get there. It’s in the upmarket part of Wapping, near all the converted warehouses and the Overground. It attracts a more local crowd, and there’s not much else happening nearby, so not the place for a big night out. Typical traditional pub interior, but only Sam Smiths Brewery beers and unusual brands of other drinks. On the Friday evening I visited, service was erratic sometimes quick, other times the small bar area was three people deep.

Great pub, simple with excellent range of drink and tasty wholesome food.
A great Sunday afternoon watering hole.
October 2011: Sunday menu consisted of half a dozen offerings scribbled on a blackboard Very disappointing. we went to the Prospect instead.

One of my favourite Sam Smith pubs. The interior is huge and wherever you plant your bum you’re guaranteed a great view of the Thames. There is also heaps of space outside on the terrace. The food isn’t going to blow your mind but is very reasonable.

Wunderschönes Pup direkt am Fluß mit einer sensationellen Aussicht und einem kleinen Biergarten. Drinnen sehr gemütlich, besucht von einem bunt gemischtem Publikum. Immer wieder gerne.

Yes this is a Sam Smiths and yes the interior does not budge far from the generic décor that this chain has become known for. But it is not to sit inside and drink that you come to this pub for, it is for the fantastic patio garden out the back which overlooks the eastern part of the Thames, looking over into Rotherhithe.
The drinks are the usual Sam Smiths choice, their own brand of spirits, lagers and ales from their own distillery. The price is also usual Sam Smiths, a pint here will cost you less that £2.50, and for a lovely part of East London with a location along the Thames as amazing as this, that is a real bargain.
A strong recommendation, especially if you can get over the fact that it’s a chain and the city boys packing it out on Friday evenings, you can’t do much better than this in lovely Wapping.

Hier — wie in allen englischen Pubs — sitzt man nicht allein am Tisch. Die berühmtesten Pubs sind auch oft so voll, daß drinnen nicht mal genügend Platz zum Stehen ist und so geht man halt mit seinem beer nach draußen. Falls Sie allein sind, wird sich bald ein freundlichen Engländer zu Ihnen gesellen. Wundern Sie sich nicht, wenn Sie ihn mit Ihrem emsig gelernten Oxford English kaum verstehen. Das ist normal.
Vielleicht erzählt er Ihnen hier die Story von Captain William Kidd (*1645 in Greenock, 23.05.1701 in London). Die gibt es in mehreren Varianten. Hier einige in Kurzform: 1. Der Kapitän Ihrer Königlichen Majestät sollte die Piraten — natürlich nur die nicht-​britischen — bekämpfen. Nachdem er das erste Piratenschiff gekapert hatte, verglich er sein Beamtengehalt mit den Schätzen darin und wurde selbst Pirat. Das Heimweh führte ihn aber zurück nach London, wo er seinen Schnabel nicht halten konnte und stolz von seinen Abenteuern erzählte. Hier, in diesem Pub sei er verhaftete worden und endete, wie es sich für einen Piraten gebührt: Galgen! 2. Das erste Piratenschiff, das der wackere Kidd entern ließ, sei das eines indischen Moguls gewesen, ein Verbündeter von Queen Victoria, die ja auch Kaiserin von Indien war. Das war zwar erst im 19. Jahrhundert, macht aber nichts für die Story. Der gute William wußte auf jeden Fall nichts davon, Unwissenheit schützt vor Strafe nicht: Hochziehen am Hals, bis daß der Tod eintritt! 3. Die Mannschaft war üblicherweise an der Beute beteiligt, es zeigt sich aber kein zu Piratenschiff. Daher drohten seine Leute zu meutern. Also kaperte man ein englisches Schiff, daß zur Tarnung eine französische Flagge führte, denn der verschlagene Kidd hatte selbst eine solche zur Tarnung aufgezogen. Der Irrtum war schnell aufgeklärt, als man des Schiff geentert hatte, aber seine Mannschaft war nicht mehr zu halten. Die Verantwortung trägt natürlich immer der ehrenhafte Kapitän: Hinrichtung! 4. Bei einer Auseinandersetzung mit seinem Geschützmeister William Moore hatte Kidd diesen mit einem Eimer erschlagen. Da der abominable Kidd sehr jähzornig war, brachte er auch seine Mannschaft gegen sich auf und die sagte in London gegen ihn aus: MordanklageHenker! 5. Lesen Sie bei
nach!

Eins meiner liebsten Pups in London. Total urig und gemütlich. Es liegt direkt an der Themse. Ich würde empfehlen gleich nach der Getränkebestellung, wenn man rein geht erst mal raus richtung Themse zu gehen und ein bischen den Schiffen zuzugucken. Einfach herrlich. Die Biere werden noch mit den alten Handpumpen gezapft. Drin ist es wie gesagt sehr urig und gemütlich. Unser lieblingsplatz war die grosse Fensterniesche. Wirklich sehenswert!

I’ve always loved this pub, which is a standard English pub — don’t expect to order too many exotic drinks here — with a beautiful traditional interior, and a great patio outside with a view of the Thames and flower boxes. Has a solid selection of beer, whiskey, spirits, etc. Usually staffed by a crowd of friendly Australians.
Next door/​upstairs is a posh restaurant that has really outstanding food.

This may well be my favourite Sam Smith’s pub,
the summer at least. If you like this chain of pubs then you should come here in the summer and head to Ye Olde Cheshire cheese in the winter!
Has the usual selection of cheap Sam Smith’s drinks. I think I have found a new favourite in the stout, which looks like Guinnessbut tastes much better. This is a good development for me as I sometimes find the selection in these pubs a little limited.
This pubs major asset is the beer garden with the view over the river. They have a number of tables and benches outside on which to spend one of those lazy weekend afternoons. When it is busy a number of people end up sitting on the river wall, in defiance of the ‘DANGER: Do not sit on the wall’ sign. depending on the tide, you could fall into the river or into mud. It’s quite interesting seeing the variety of buildings on the opposite bank.
Although the pub is new and has no history of its own, it does look out over the old location of execution dock. You are supposed to be able to see some remnant of the construction at low tide, but I haven’t ever seen anything myself. The pub also takes it’s name from a famous pirate (
) who was hung there (three times!) in 1701. And thank goodness for this name as other establishments nearby seem to have renounced old fashioned names in favour of bland monikers. The pub has an old fashioned feel to it too, even if this is not particularly authentic.
I haven’t been upstairs to the restaurantthe food menu looks very expensive, so I’ll give that a miss.

Each time I visit, I am delighted by the cheap but good beer, and the similarly bargain steak and ale pies, which are very filling and taste fresh and splendid.
The Thameside view is brilliant, and there is plenty of comfortable seating in the side garden.
My friend Charles Dickens probably used it regularly, it still being so similar as in his letters by Boz (mid 1830’s)
Apparantly, Wapping High Street once had more than 40 pubs, so it is a great tribute that this one still thrives.

From the Wapping High Street this pub looks like nothing special, with an old warehouse front and not much to hint at what you’ll find inside. However this is simply the façade and as you walk through into the courtyard to the tavern, it appears Captain Kidd has a lot to offer.
Named after Captain William Kidd, who was convicted of piracy and hanged in Wapping in the 1700, the pub walls hang framed illustrations and writings telling his grisly story. Paintings of ships, nautical diagrams and maps of the Thames crowd the remaining wall space whilst the low beamed ceiling is very traditional and barrels are used for tables. There’s an olde worlde feel to the place and is quite easy to imagine what is must have been like a couple of centuries ago.
Next to the Thames, this pub has the most fantastic window views and in the summer you can enjoy the lovely terraced area, where you can relax and watch boats sailing by. The beer is well priced (all pints are under £3) which is impressive feat in London and the bar staff are friendly too. It is mostly occupied by locals but it’s worth a trip from further afield on a nice, sunny day.
Ahoy there sailor!

I suppose if I had to name a London pub as my «local», this would be it. I’ve lived about 5 minutes from its front door for the past four years, so consider myself an experienced consumer of its offering.
The ups: fabulous cheap beer. Seriously, a decent pint of lager for £2. As the price of a pint spirals into madness elsewhere in London, the Kidd has maintained a very decent price list. The service is always very friendly, with not a single sour-​faced student in sight.
They have a fantastic beer garden to the side, providing excellent views onto the Thames — though I’m consistently amazed more people don’t fall in each summer — the wall is about knee-​height.
Possible downsides? Well, once the sun comes out, the beer garden can get a little crowded. And it occasionally falls prey to large groups of aged tourists who take up vast numbers of seats and nurse a half-​pint of beer for three hours.
All in all though, a quality pub.