The Star of Bethnal Green

Sunday roasts are excellent here.
My pick is the roast lamb which is full of flavour and a generous helping.
Best in the summer as disputes between the pub staff and the kitchen pop-​up crew mean that the bar staff ignore requests to turn on the heating.
Also beware going with a large group as the bar staff seldom bother to pass on requests for a booking, but if there is just 4 of you or so, just turn up on the day and they can usually accommodate you.

Came for a drink, stayed for the pub quiz, fell in love with the food.
An awesome way to spend a Tuesday night, we went for the Kim Jong Wings, Defector burger and fries — all of which were delicious.
A good selection of beers and ales on offer, as well as a great time. What more could you want?!

Great pub right off the high street. Went to The Star of Bethnel Green for quick drinks with a friend. Had a gin and tonic that did not disappoint. We didnt have time for food, but after looking at the menu I will defintely go back. «White Men Cant Jerk» did all the food and it look awesome. Caribbean jerk flavors, burgers, wings and other pub fare with an Island flair. The wings looked so good, gave me food envy as I was munching on crisps. I mean I am always a fan of crisps, but they’re certainly not wings.
The staff were all very friendly and knew had to pour a good drink. The interior was eclectic, and casual, and welcoming. Thumbs up!

Came here to eat at the Pop Up Restaurant «White Men Can’t Jerk» — food was delicious and they had an amazing Monday night deal. The salt fish fritters were some of the best I’ve had — portions were huge and prices in general were really very reasonable. As for the pub itself — good ambience — I think mainly to do with the pop up which has attracted a lot of attention.

I’d been to this place on a crazy Saturday night some years ago and had lots of fun so hadn’t expected to be taken there for a Sunday lunch with friends. All the better to be completely surprised that the food was absolutely amazing.
Started out with these lemonade soaked aubergine chips, amazing. Then had leek gratin, amazing. Then had a simple side salad, I mean it’s just a side salad for goodness sake but it was amazing. It seemed to have these little bits of salted walnut, fried onion and a delicate dressing, making it much more than a side salad. The aubergine chips were just really what they should be, soft but crunchy on the outside and really auberginey. What’s more the chef served us himself and was incredibly nice and friendly. Go there and be surprised.

For establishments of this type The Star of Bethnal Green is a gem!
We travelled in to meet with friends and finding another local pub too busy to accommodate us we ventured here.
This venue meets lively pub with superb food. I drank a pale ale (called five points pale ale) which was very well kept.
The food was exceptional. Do try it!

A nice simple pub, nothing too original or exciting. The staff are friendly and it’s usually fairly busy so has a good atmosphere.
It’s large with two stories, so you usually find a place to sit.
Nice place for a quick drink.

Excellent burgers, great beers available, and comfortable vibes! Definitely recommend this place for a night out with friends. Nice places to drink are few and far between in Bethnal Green, so the Star is quite refreshing. My only complaint – the food takes FOREVER to get to the table. (But it’s worth the wait!)

With a mix of patrons the Bethnel bar is always packed and entertaining. It is large with decent (or at least so-​so) beer and food. A little average on all fronts but is usual full of enough unpredictable people to bring about a good night.

With the Sun and the Camel closed (forever? ARGH) thankfully the Star seems to be going strong although it and everything else in London was weirdly quiet the last Saturday I was there. The Star has some good DJs and is quite nicely modernised inside, with a mini dance floor. Definitely a solid (and now the only?) choice in the area.

The place is nice enough décor-​wise but they just really aren’t trying. The staff seem at best a bit vague and at worst rude and indifferent. One girl particularly acted as though we were an inconvenience to be endured rather than the customers who pay her wages. I worked in hospitality for a long time and I would NEVER have dared to behave that way.
I ordered a bloody mary to kick things off and was pleasantly surprised when it arrived very quickly although I soon realised why it had arrived so fast. It had been poured from an already-​made-​up jug sat on the bar which contained warm, gelatinous red goo with small, white, unidentifiable chunks. When I asked what these were I was informed that they were horseradish but they tasted of nothing and added an extra unpleasant dimension to an already objectionable drink. I forced it down with difficulty.
We were there for the Sunday roast, which was also disappointing. The food was edible, but underwhelming none of it was terribly warm and the meat was dry and flavourless, with a bit too much gristle, and a salty, bland gravy. My vegetarian friend ordered the veggie roast and was shocked to discover that this consisted of half a butternut squash with a bit of sauce, a small Yorkshire pud and some more veg fine if it hadn’t cost 11 precious quid. Anybody foolish enough to order dessert got a tiny square of stodge with ice cream for an unjustified £4, and when I finally ordered a mulled wine, thinking that they couldn’t possibly get something so simple wrong, I deservedly (for my naïveté) received a glass of heated cough syrup with a tiny splash of wine and absolutely no hint of winter spices whatsoever. I couldn’t even force down a quarter of it for fear that I’d get type 2 diabetes.
Essentially I paid £23 to be repeatedly disappointed. I’m sure I remember the Star being a lot better in the past. I really hope they sort it out soon and stop being complacent just because they’re in a good location. After all, people who are paying for an enjoyable evening deserve to get one, don’t they?

Meh… just meh. Have come here a couple times for a Sunday drink and for the pub quiz. I think it tries really hard. I will say the Bloody Marys are pretty amazing on Sunday and the bartenders are lovely, it’s just the atmosphere screams too cool for school. Meh.

I really like the Star of Bethnal Green. I’ve been here for a film night where they showed Beetleguise, hung out during a club night and have come for a pub quiz and have had a good time at them all. The food is ok. I’ve only had the chips and nachos to be fair. I’ve seen their roasts and they look amazing. I’ll have to come back and try it one day. The staff are quite friendly and the clientele is a mix of local people and hipsters.
I will say that this pub isn’t always gay but it is gay friendly.

I liked the Star, as it’s one of few places in Bethnal Green that stays open fairly late. Good vibe, cheap drinks and good music most nights.

I think the «gay bar» categorization might be misleading… they may have had an occasional gay night a while ago, but it would be on a special event basis, so I wouldn’t make your decision based on that description.
We were here on a weekend night and quite enjoyed ourselves. It’s nice to find a place open until 2 pm that is still essentially a pub and is easy going. The music was awesome. They played my favorite ever Cure song, which I’ve never heard outside of my own home, The Smiths, some genuinely awesome ‘80s indie or whatever. £5ish for a double whiskey.
I’m not entirely sure why it was so great, I think it was the crowd, mostly… it was just a nice mix of people who wanted to be out for the evening, but didn’t want to be obnoxious about it, so it felt very natural and comfortable. Also, the bathrooms were not disgusting.

The word ‘star’ suggests something standout — a star performer in a musical or a star player in a football team, for example.
The Star of Bethnal Green, then, should be the area’s standout pub — unfortunately, it’s far from it.
The saddest thing about this place is that the potential is huge, but largely unfulfilled. A great building smack bang in the middle of BG Road, a unique interior, reasonably priced drinks, and the usual hip young folk. But the service and general execution of the simplest tasks is pretty appalling.
I took my mates in there on a Sunday for a roast and a big footie game. We had to ask for the lights to be turned off and the curtains to be drawn so that we could see the screen. We begged for the audio to be put on, but unfortunately ‘it’s not possible’, so we had to listen to jazz music while watching the biggest game of the season.
We all ordered food at the same time, and regretted doing so soon enough. Two of our party received their roasts after about half an hour, one waited an hour, one waited over an hour and asked for his money back, and one unfortunate fellow received a pizza in place of his roast.
And the pizza was memorable for all the wrong reasons. A toilet paper-​esque base, sloppy cheese and slimy olives that conjealed into a hideous ball every time a slice was raised.
HOWEVER.
It’s not all bad — I’ve been on a Tuesday for the pub quiz and it’s good, very good. The lively DJ nights at the weekend are also a welcome addition to this pub.
But if you’re with a group of wise men seeking food and football on a Sunday, you’ll be well advised not to follow this particular star.

This would be a great place in theory– cool people, good music, cheap drinks, «interesting interiors» and acceptable toileting facilities.
However, the times I have been at this venue, it just didn’t gel together very well; there was just a wrong vibe about it… let’s just call it «I’ve just fallen into a set on Nathan Barley «vibe. Other reviewers seem to like it and think it is unpretentious and fun, but I seem to get the so unpretentious it is pretentious feeling to it.
Obviously having toilets that are perfectly acceptable is the problem here…
great nights, but I rather catch the same people elsewhere.

Definitely one of your best bets if you find yourself at a loose end anywhere around the Bethnal Green Road. The Star is stripped back East End boozer basics with a party/​rave atmosphere supplied by always quality DJ’s and a crowd who are exactly where they want to be.
Brought down by Horsemeat Disco, Friday is gay night and is meant to be a bit of a new thing here. It’s £5 after 10 or so and can definitely take a while to get going but once it does it’s right on the money. Sunday’s are also a good day with nice roasts from about 1pm so you can dance off your food right after and forget all about Monday morning.

I live almost opposite to this bar and especially on Sunday afternoons I can’t stop wondering what goes on in this place as I can hear the parties from the night before still going on and bass beats all the way to my hallway. During the afternoon!
The place always has dark curtains covering the windows so instead just spying on the street like a granny, I finally went and visited the place. And? On a weekday evening it was surprisingly nice mix of happy and lively eastender teens, with few very drunk and annoying gangsters among. I can’t recall what was the theme of the parties but I do remember that any one could get a glitter eye make up done. Cute!
The place is a bit battered but still charming and cosy. Good place for party organizers, and after quick look to their calender the selection looks very creative and alternative. I also noticed from their websites that bar classified as RAVE-​PUB.

Formally known as Bethnal Green Pleasure Unit, this is a fun and packed venue on Bethnal Green Rd. I used to go to Pleasure Unit a lot so was intrigued to see how it had changed.
I walked in for the first time since it’s name change and it smelled really badly of sewage! This put me off, but i persevered and have since been back a lot. The atmosphere is great, and they have an immensely gay night on a Friday hosted by a few chaps from Horsemeat Disco and Disco Bloodbath.
A great place to end a Bethnal Green pub crawl, or a welcome change from Shoreditch, check out their website for listings.