Old Swan

People were nice. The bar is loaded, but the food is disgusting. It really does taste like the good was microwaved or put in the toaster. I got the ultimate fish and chips. Extremely disappointed, first time in London and first time eating fish and chips. I do not recommend this place at all unless you’re coming for drinks. ONLY DRINKS! Food is not good. At all.

Food was mediocre. Looked like it had been frozen quite a while and the portions were small. Good selection of beers but the poor food and bad service means I won’t be back again.
There’s plenty of other great cafes and pubs that are worth your time in the area.

First place we tried in our Notting Hill/​Kensington neighborhood. The exterior has been nicely repainted to give the place the feel of a traditional pub, The interior is nicely arranged around large-​screen TV, darts, etc. What helped us most was the Irish bar tender waitress who taught me all that I need to know about British ales and suggested we try chicken with leek and beef with burgundy pies. We haven’t been back, but it was a possitive experience. For those wanting a pub which has a centuries old tradition or a lot of faithful locals, this may not be it.

My husband and I had dinner at the old swan on our last night in England. The food was great and the staff was very friendly. My husband ordered the steak and ale pie and I had the fish and chips. They use haddock for the fish and the batter was very crispy. My husband really enjoyed his pie. As a tourist, we felt really welcomed and the staff really cared. we would definitely go back for the food and staff

This place was crap. Good place to stop and have a pint, ‘cos there’s not a whole lot more in the area, but I described it as a British Bennigan’s. Chain restaurant. Pity, that.
Lame. Not old, no history, no character. It’s clean, at least.

On a choisi ce pub un peu par hasard en sortant du marché de Notting Hill et nous en fûmes ravis.
D’une part parce que la cuisine était plutôt bonne, sans tomber de sa chaise on y mange très correctement. Le service est rapide et correct, bien que le serveur semble un peu hésitant
D’autre par parce qu’on s’est rendu compte une fois dans le métro qu’on a payé que la moitié de notre repas (c’est à dire que les desserts). Ils ont oublié de compter les plats principaux et les boissons ! Belle économies. Cele n’enlève rien à la qualité de la cuisine.

Maybe us dumb Americans staying near Hyde Park and Kensington make us naïve to what a pub should be. but we loved this place. pub music playing. friendly chaps to serve us silly jet lagged Americans wanting to experience of an English pub. LOTS of what we call rare brews on tap. Bulmers Pear Cider, no less. and its a nice, safe walk. just remember. you Americans. LOOK LEFT. PS. pub food. awesome. irish stew. lovely! fish and chips. okay. not what I expected and soooo slow to deliver. but the lad came over from the bar. apologized mate. and we had a couple of brews on the house.

Standard chain pub this. Crap music playing somewhere in the background, fruit machines, bleeding ketchup on every table and a crowd of local kids, tourists and everyone else.
No atmosphere to speak of really, perhaps it suffers a little from it’s position, being in the opposite direction to Portobello Road from Notting Hill Gate tube. They do have a pretty decent selection of beers and ales, the guest ale recently in particular was nice — a Highgate one. Double spirits and mixers are around the £5 mark. It’s cheaper and better elsewhere, really.

I like this pub, because it’s one of those that provide a good atmosphere but with the air of a local… some of the grizzled men who have been stuck to their bar stools for the last 30 years are still up for giving you a warm welcome. This is Notting Hill after all, so you can’t expect there to be a huge amount of rough and tumble pubs. I was fond of the place, though, with a slightly older décor and some friendly bar staff. The next time I come to this little pocket of Kensington — after or before a nice walk through the park, I will come.

Well, upon nearing this pub, I was a little miffed about the claim to be old. It’s in a 60s apartment block for heaven’s sake, how old can that be!!! But as I staggered towards the welcoming warmth, a little plaque outside revealed that there’s been a pub on this site since the Roman times. And I forcibly ate my words. Or thoughts, that I hadn’t yet vocalised to me team of fashionable drinking buddies.
Good pub, I think. Despite its sixties origins, they have made a fairly good job of making it look old, so that’s good. You got the standard Who Wants to Be a Millionaire grey computer thing in the corner, slightly denting the historic vibe. And the clientele were a funny old bunch when we were there. But it was ok, quite fun, although maybe I was a little too drunk to really remember the ins and outs of the Old Swan. To be continued… maybe

This pub is situated on Kensington Church Street and is good enough for a few quiet weekday drinks. Have heard it’s not very good at the weekends and to be honest it wouldn’t be my first choice but you are always sure to find a seat there on a weeknight evening if you just fancy a quiet one. Otherwise if you fancy a pub with a bit more atmosphere then I would pop over the road to The Churchill Arms. It will probably be packed but it’s a better pub with a great atmosphere.
Have only eaten here once which was last year for a Christmas meal I organised. The food was very good and of a much higher standard then I expected as it was a very cheap price for a 4 course Christmas menu.