Fire Station

I love that this is an old fire station! The outside of the building is stunning, the décor inside is minimalist although quirky with lights on the end of fire hoses etc, the staff are friendly and the food and drinks menu are good… AND did I mention it used to be a fire station?
I met a friend after work for a drink and some food and I can 100% say I’d be back. The food menu is simple with a choice of burgers, pizza and chips. We shared a pizza with chips and salad (although changed our order after 5 minutes and they were very accommodating). The pizza was good with a crisp base and plenty of toppings, served with a huge salad and a mix of fries and sweet potato fries. Overall entirely satisfying but nothing out of this world. The cocktails are lovely — well presented and refreshing but at over £8 a pop with no happy hour it rapidly increases the bill!
We were seating in the bar area, which had a nice buzz — busy for mid week but not too loud that you couldn’t hear the other person. They also have a proper dining room which was much quieter.
Overall simple yet effective!

This is a great pub right next to Waterloo Station. My friends and I came in for dinner on a Saturday night and even though the bar was crowded, it was quick and easy to get a table. Seems more like a drinking place than eating place but the food was overall pretty good.
Chili and caramelized wings were a surprisingly great side. They were sweeter than I was expecting but they were great. They come in various sizes. I had the burger with bacon and it was decent as far as burgers go. Fries were good.
Beer selection was pretty great as far as I saw in London. Service was also the best we had in the UK. Would come back here to eat and/​or drink.

I met with a group of friends here before seeing a show at The Vaults. The front part, which is the pub, is incredibly crowded, not surprising for such a prime location. They still had a few tables in the restaurant in the back though.
So, this place used to be a fire station, as the name suggests, and it’s decorated with a lot of fire fighter related materials. For example the ceiling lights hang from old fire hoses!
I really liked the atmosphere, though it’s a bit on the noisy side.
All of us ordered pizza, so that’s the only food item I can review. It was really good, with a thin and crispy crust and fruity sweet tomato sauce. The toppings were a bit sparse, but very tasty.
Would definitely return, though it may be hard to get a table at times.

Lovely place for a glass of wine, beer, spirit or some nibbles within a few steps of Waterloo! Very cool ambiance

The waitress was good, the beer cold my food wonderful. The inside is huge and open feel, with a large bar as well. Minimum decorations inside, I was expecting more Fire Dept memorabilia. My Burger was delicious and drink suburb. The outside is beautiful and next to understand and over ground transportation. Would go again.

So nice place. We just drop by to drink some coffee, but when we fall into that really comfortable armchair in the corner, we didn’t want to leave. Little bit loudly, but it was not disturbing in that place. At all I really like it :)

So we headed here tonight to check out the Christmas menu. I already loved the idea of the venue — an old renovated fire station — and I was very excited about going along to check it out.
It’s located perfectly by Waterloo Station and opposite The Old Vic. On arrival, the place was heaving and it continued to be so throughout the evening — a good sign.
The venue itself is just brilliant and designed so well — they have taken care in its renovation to keep the structure of the station building and there are also a number of hidden beauties including an old mini gold fire hydrant. Also if you head into the restaurant area you’ll find the lighting above, which is made from old fire hoses. A ingenious touch.
Now to the food — boy did they fill us up. We started with their special starter — chilli and caramelised chicken wings. They were delightful. The sweet taste of caramel gelled so well with the tang of the chilli — I’d actually eat just a whole bowl of the sauce. It’s safe to say manners went out of the window and licking the sauce off my fingers was the only way to go.
Next the pizza, we actually tried the smoked mackerel and prawn pizza first — to say I’m not a big fan of mackerel would be an understatement but I sucked it up and gave the pizza try. It was delicious — both types of fish were more meaty then fishy and the flavours complimented each other perfectly. I would actually order this pizza if I went back which really says something!
Then to the Christmas pizza — pure genius. It was topped with pork and sage stuffing balls, chestnuts, cranberry sauce and crispy parsnip swirls. Now I’ve had a lot of Christmas burgers in my time but never a Christmas pizza and I can honestly say this isn’t a pizza to look over. If you can, get down there and try it. The base is crispy the combination of toppings just works and it’s a taste sensation in your mouth!
NOW, the burgers! Yes, I’m serious. We ate this much food! What can I say, I’m running out of positive descriptive words. We tried the black and gold burger and the Christmas burger and both were fully loaded and packed full of flavour. I actually preferred the black and gold as I’m a meaty person and the burger was cooked to perfection but I would also definitely recommend the Christmas burger.
Lastly we had a bite of the warm chocolate brownie. It literally melted in your mouth and I have no doubt would taste great with ice cream.
So after all the food all we could to was roll quietly out of the place but we had to make a pit stop at the bar and try a smoked cocktail. I went opted for the smoked cherry Manhattan — it was good, not great as it’s not my usual beverage but I supped it up and went on my merry way (literally merry — it was very strong).
The only real negative I have is that this is a very busy and loud place so I couldn’t really hear or speak to people at the other end of the table which was a shame. But I’m not willing to drop a star on this as the food was just too good.

Excellent service and food for brunch — duck eggs, sourdough and smoked bacon. Very good coffee.

Great place to grab a drink and a light meal. Are there twice while in London and was not disappointed either time. The veggie burger was fantastic. One of the best I’ve had. Garlic bread was also very good. Dessert menu while short was also very good

I was so hungry after walking through inner city London.
I wanted something hearty and heavy.
They had what I was looking for: burger fries and a dark stout.
I gave it a 3 because the food was ok and a bit pricey compared so other similar burger joints. I spent about £9 ($ 13 burger).
And £ 2 ($ 3) for regular cut fries.
But I think they get a lot of business because it is right next to Waterloo station and the place is cool– a converted fire station.
The fries were greasy and the burger was a bit sloppy. The place can be extremely loud too.
But the service was excellent. The staff was fast and very welcoming. And they served my stout just perfect– chilled glass, with very little head.
Nothing too fancy here but I’d go back if I was looking to satisfy my hunger.

The fire station used to be somewhere everybody knew to try and avoid in the Waterloo area as it used to be very stale and boring and just full of tourists that knew no better. The recent refit has given this bar and restaurant a completely new lease of life. The décor inside is much classier and it’s easy to imagine this place as the fire station it used to be.
I tried one of the Pizza from the decent selection on offer and i was impressed both with the food and the service. The waiter serving was both very friendly and attentive. There was also a surprisingly good range of beers to choose from. Table service is on offer for both food and drinks which was a nice touch.
I look forward to visiting again very soon and I would thoroughly recommend trying the spicy chilli chicken pizza.

The Fire Station’s had a classy revamp, and I approve.
The cocktails are so more-​ish that it’s easy to blink and spend fifty odd quid.
The pizzas were a bit too thin for my liking (tortilla-​thin), but some really good flavours.
I’ll be back v soon to try a burger off the inventive menu, and the other half of the cocktail list

It’s great to see that the Independent is digitalising their articles from the 90s, I found one whilst researching the Firestation following a meal there on Sunday afternoon to celebrate it reopening today after a major refurb. Myself and the girls went down having been invited for a family and friends day via a friend of Sarah’s; Alex.
In 1994, Daisy Waugh talks about the Firestation as being in one of the most depressing areas of London. I’m guessing it was much different back then (21years ago?!), as now Waterloo area and the South Bank are lively and busy no matter which time of the year you come. Despite travelling on the sweaty Northern Line tube every day in order to get there for work, I am very much proud and grateful to work in such a fun area.
I visited this pub/​bar during 2011 whilst working in London the first time around for drinks. There was a noisy atmosphere and I vaguely remember ordering a standard style pub platter with onion rings and the like, with a dipping pot of badly served soured cream.
Since my second stint in London from 2013 to date, the Firestation hasn’t been on my radar at all; not until Sunday. Since closing at some point in 2014, it’s been refurbished and the menu drastically cut down to serve just burgers, pizza, cocktails, ales and ciders. In previous reviews, diners talked about the large airy room, due to it’s fire station history causing your words to bounce all around. Waugh talks about no menus on tables, but the food lists only written on blackboards around the room; she actually ordered Mussels back in 1994.
21 years later I chose the Pear Fizz cocktail, which came in a tall glass, a combination of Absolut Pear Vodka, pear purée, lemon juice, sugar syrup and Prosecco — it was delicious. Other treats that arrived at our table were the Blackberry and Cucumber Smash, Blueberry Julep and East 8 Old Up.
Next up came the burgers and pizza. Served in a similar style to those in today’s popular burger bars; on a metal tray and wrapped in a paper. To be more specific I ordered: Maple Glazed Bacon — 6 oz dry aged beef patty, maple-​glazed thick cut bacon, cheese, American mustard mayo, sliced beef tomato, little gem along with a side of mixed fries. LOVE being able to have both fries and the sweet potato ones too! The pizza was thin, with plenty of meaty toppings and a crispy, olive oily crust.
I was surprised when looking at the menu that it was just pizza and burgers, however they did both very well. There was a range of table styles and the service was good. A big thanks to Alex to sorted us out there for the afternoon!
This is definitely looking to be a place that sounds out for good food and drink, for meeting friends or colleagues with the convenience of the station just next door. A cracking burger, which I would definitely recommend to friends. See the full menu at

The Fire Station, Waterloo (Invited Review) (published 15^th July 2015)
The Fire Station, Waterloo — The Fire Station menu consists of burgers and pizzas. And your vegetarian friend will not be alienated with the mushroom burger as a possibility. Their pizzas had the thinnest crispiest base; not bulked with stodgy bread. A side of extra carbohydrates in the form of garlic or tomato bread are available, if you wish to fill up later. It was an easy choice to pick from the menu but if you decide to have the beef burgers they are served well-​cooked; there is no option as to how you want the meat cooked. I was not impressed considering that the menu is similar to that of a fast food burger chain, The Fire Station, is more upmarket, serves booze and provided service — so I would have expected a little more attention to how my piece of meat is cooked. Like I said, it did not take us long to decide and the food too, was served quite immediately.
With Ivy, Sharmin and Jeremy we were already tucking in to the first burger — buttermilk fried chicken with spicy mayo, spicy coleslaw and little gem £8.50. Forgotten the very much needed picture!
glazed short rib 6 oz dry aged beef patty, balsamic glazed short rib, American mustard mayo, sliced beef tomato, little gem £10.95 — the short rib looked dry but was indeed quite moist and slighlty sweet. The bun however was not such a good choice for that price.
black and gold 6 oz dry aged beef patty, black pudding, double cheese, american mustard mayo, sliced beef tomato, little gem £9.95 — the burger was very tasty, but given the choice, I would have preferred it medium-​rare. Unfortunately, the black pudding was a bit overwhelmed by the other flavours but all round a pretty decent burger.
smoked mackarel, king prawns, confit garlic butter base, marinated mozarella, mascarpone, rocket, soft boiled egg £12.50 — when I saw those lovely plump prawns, I am beginning to regret ordering a burger. It was possibly the thinnest pizza base I have ever seen. It was very crispy and was lovely with the different softer textures as the topping.
The wine menu was small but had interesting selection of wine. Our bottle of French from Bordeaux had the Saint Emilion Grand Cru appellation. The Bordeaux is a French wine region which has enough sub-​divisions of appellation that make my head spin, especially after a few glasses of wine! This wine was quite full bodied with deep crimson colour and was very easy to drink. Definitely a good French wine and at £45.00 per bottle, I thought, was quite well priced. The cocktails (from £8.25), beers, ales and cider menu (from £ 4.50) had more variety. Prosecco from £5.00 per glass to a bottle at £125.00.
The building was so iconic, it did not need a front door number. Location was great and easy to find. You will definitely recognise it. Just in case you have not seen enough photos of it, here you go. Come out of Waterloo station turn right on to Waterloo Road and the building is on your right.
I like the interior very much. Parts of the building were retained and put to good use. It gives a trendy and classy edge to the interior.
Service was very friendly, and it was not just to us. The food was on the mediocre side but the front of house team made the evening so welcoming that I am marking The Fire Station as a possible place to meet friends in Central London for a quick catch up. If the music had been less upbeat and slightly quieter, I would have stayed longer for puddings and drinks.
On Thursday evening, The Fire Station was packed. It was only just opened and was very humble to say that they were still trying things out. But I am sure they must have done this before because they handled the evening quite brilliantly. It was quite a rarity to find four people greeting you as you came in through the doors. Ushers were definitely quite handy for the sizable fire station.
What I thought would be better was if the history of The Fire Station was more augmented. I don’t really know the history of the building is but I’m sure that there is an interesting story to tell.

Always good to catch for a last orders beer when everywhere else in the area is usually shut

The Fire Station is actually what my rating says, ‘ok’
The beer’s fine, I’ve been here a couple of times because it’s next to waterloo so an easy place to arrange to meet people, would I intend to stay here all evening, probably not it to me has an atmosphere very much of meeting point have a couple move on.
the tables are a bit packed in so at times you feel a bit concious that you’re in the way of other people.
Not had the food so move swiftly past comment on that.
It’s neither top of my list nor bottom, it’s just easy as a meet up point

Unser Fazit zum Essen fällt gemischt aus. Wir entschieden uns für das Pre-​Theatre-​Menu, bei dem man zwischen zwei und drei Gängen zu 13.50 GBP bzw. 16.95 GBP wählen kann. Vorspeise für den Mitesser: Caesar Salad, der schmeckte, auch wenn die Makrelen im Salat irritierten. Hauptgänge: Hühnchenbrust mit Knoblauch-​Kartoffelpüree und Wirsingkohl sowie Homemade Pie of the Day (an dem Tag Huhn) mit Erbsen und Fritten. Der Pie entpuppte sich als Schale mit höllisch heißem Hühnerfrikassee, bedeckt mit einer Schicht Blätterteig. Definitiv kein Fertigfutter, also wirklich homemade, aber eher englisch gewürzt, also laff. Salz und Pfeffer standen zum Glück auf dem Tisch, aber Kapern und Worcestersauce wären für den Geschmack fein gewesen. Erbsen und Fritten konnten ebenfalls Salz vertragen. Der Mitesser war mit seinem Hauptgang einigermaßen zufrieden, bis auf das für ihn typische Nachsalzen Nicht berühmt, aber okay, lautete sein Fazit. Ich entschied mich gegen eine Vorspeise und für ein Dessert: Tarte mit Eiercreme und Muskatnusseis. Das Dessert war nicht wirklich befriedigend. Die Eiercreme schmeckte halt nach Ei und Crème, während das Muskatnusseis schlichtweg nur nach Vanille schmeckte. Unterm Strich bleibt ein gemischter Eindruck. Das Pre-​Theatre-​Menu ist verhältnismäßig günstig, riss uns geschmacklich aber nicht wirklich vom Hocker. Das Personal ist aufmerksam, flink und freundlich, das Lokal ist ansprechend eingerichtet definitiv ein Lokal, in das ich nochmal gehen würde, wäre ich in der Nähe. Dann aber eher, um die Biersorten auszuprobieren, nicht zum Essen. Dennoch, die sehr schlechten Bewertungen, die über das Lokal im Netz zu finden sind, kann ich nicht verstehen.

STAY AWAY, far far away. Honestly, I am not one to write a scathing review usually. My standards aren’t insane and I don’t expect a ton from a restaurant, but I have never had a worse restaurant experience in my life. If I could give zero stars I would.
Here are the lowlights:
1.) There was a mouse scurrying around the dining room floor — not kidding. We had to tell our waiter.
2.) The food was terrible, and especially considering the price we paid. Starter of tempura soft shell crab — have never had tempura so greasy in my life. Main of sea bass — only flavor was the pesto they smeared all over the plate. Broccoli was overdone as was the ‘lobster’ they had with it. Terrine was at best grey and flavorless.
3.) Brought the wrong wine.
4.) Slow to take our order.
5.) And on top of it all we paid £55 for it.
I will never go back here and would advise anyone reading this review to do the same. Go to Bangalore Express across the street and save yourself the trouble.

The last time I was here, I spent most of the evening fending off a really odd guy whom lived in a hotel, was drinking with the security guard from the hotel and worked (I think) at the House of Lord doing something important.
He had decided that I was the loveliest creature he had ever seen and the big surprise to him (and proceeded to tell me over and over again) was that he didn’t ‘fancy black women’ but I was ‘soooo beautiful.’ Having consumed three bottles of cider, I found it all amusing.
Anyway about the bar, the pear cider sold here is great! It’s a sweeter one but not sickly at all. It’s a good space and well lit but because of stones throw away location from Waterloo station, the bar is very busy most of the time. Fill with lots of city folk during the week but the weekend is the luck of the draw.
Despite my fun interaction I have not been put off and will be popping in on my travels.

Found this place while exploring the Waterloo area on a business trip back in April. Looked cool so I went in for some coffee and lunch. Being new to visiting London, I ordered fish and chips looking for what I thought was the comfort food of London. What I came away with was a memory of extremely slow service. Slow for acknowledgement of my existence, slow to take an order, slow to bring the food and slow to bring the check. Had to get up and ask a few times for someone to come by. Food was just average. The restaurant is actually very nicely laid out and a good setting.
This week I needed a place to meet someone near Waterloo rail station so I picked the Fire Station. Didn’t eat this time but I must say that they redeemed themselves as far as service attentiveness and promptness.
Good job.

Das Bier bekommt man anderswo auch etwas billiger. Für den London-​Anfänger aber eine gute Adresse. Das Essen ist lecker. Der Laden ist offenbar trendy, Freitags abends überfüllt. Wir haben uns dort wohl gefühlt. Wenn man Waterloo ausgestiegen ist, sollte man nicht weiter suchen. Nach einem Jahr wieder besucht. Immernoch sehr empfehlenswert!
Die Fire Station bietet kostenloses WLAN.
Wer sich auf der Homepage für den Newsletter anmeldet, erhält einmalig 20% Rabatt auf das Essen. Für soviel Gegenwert kann man seine Mailadresse schonmal hergeben. :)

Wow.
I’d been here a few times before nights out or whatever, and remember it being a decent boozer with decent food.
So when I was in the hood with 2 hours to kill before my 3PM appointment at St. Thomas’, I figured, ah, what the heck. It’s gotta be better than Pret-​in-​the-​station.
I wish I’d had that sandwich.
Took me half an hour of staring at the waitron to get a menu. OK, it was lunchtime, but heck.
3 ales on tap: Brakspear, Pride, and something else. OK, so that’s fine. Dinky bathrooms, but that’s all right too.
£10 for fish and chips? Well, I guess I am in SW1.
Pretty good chips (this is where the 2^nd star comes from). Cold dyed mushy peas. Indifferent, slightly fishy-​in-​the-​this-​might-​be-​a-​bit-​old fsh, thick, flavourless batter. Had to ask for vinegar for chips. Twice.
After I’d finished, I mentioned I was in a bit of a time crunch (had an hour, but was limping, so wanted to make sure I had loads of time), so could I get the bill with my coffee.
20 minutes later, I’d paid my bill, including coffee (and a generous tip) but hadn’t gotten the coffee.
10 minutes later, I went to the bar and asked for the coffee that I’d ordered and was waiting for.
10 minutes later, coffees were delivered to 3 tables around me and I asked that the coffees be refunded. The barmaid said «she didn’t know».
There are loads of nice places round here. This isn’t, unfortunately, one of them. Probably the worst service I’ve experience in the UK.
And this is the UK.
Uck.