The Windsor Castle

Excellent beer and great vibe with lots of places to sit and enjoy a drink with friends.

I love Sam Smiths beer and pubs. This one is probably the most beautiful of the dozen or so I have been to. The seating in the back is really nice, couches to hang out on and relax with friends and beer. Location is wonderful. Prices are good as well. I would come back no doubt.

Good Sam Smith’s pub tucked away behind the hustle and bustle of Victoria. Traditional interior with sofas! (Other seating is a available!) And areas for a chat over that pint. Reasonably priced food menu with good variety of choices.

It’s a Sam Smiths pub! In the heart of central London, esp in Victoria, I will say their prices are decent. Fairly old English after you are inside, with sofas and fireplace. Will go again!

Thankfully the service has greatly improved in the Windsor Castle since I wrote my last review. This improvement is definitely welcome and would ordinarily prompt me to upgrade the score to three stars, but unfortunately for the Windsor Castle/​Sam Smiths in general, the removal of this aspect of their offerings only exposes other shortcomings at the Windsor Castle, in particular the quality of the beer.
Five to ten years ago, Sam Smiths beer doubtless seemed good value and reasonable quality. These days however, with an ever-​growing amount of craft beer available from an ever-​expanding number of breweries, to me Sam Smiths beer seems bland in comparison and even of questionable value. Their standard bitter is a case in point. To me, it tastes of very little. It’s cheap, sure, at around £3 a pint. But far more interesting pints of locally-​brewed efforts can be found elsewhere — in fact, just 5 minutes walk away at the excellent Cask Pub and Kitchen — for not much more.
There are a few Sam Smiths beers that I like — the Organic chocolate stout certainly, their apricot beer and to a lesser degree, their wheat beer and oatmeal stout, but these come with a higher price and hence find themselves with much more competition than their standard bitter.
The food also seems of poorer quality and quantity than it once did, again undermining the value that used to be Sam Smith’s chief selling point.
So while it may now be possible to get a drink at the Windsor Castle quickly, I still can’t recommend this place on the basis of the beer it sells. While the rest of the pub world has moved — in the case of arch-​rival Wetherspoons, driven rather than moved — with the times, Sam Smiths seems stuck in the past. Until it radically improves its offerings I’ll be heading to the Cask Pub and Kitchen every time I’m after a drink in Victoria, rather than the Windsor Castle.

The Windsor Castle used to be called The Cardinal but has since undergone a full refurb and a name change. It’s still a Samuel Smith pub though so serves reasonably priced beers which is a refreshing change in this part of town. The bar staff were friendly too!
The bar is over 2 levels. On the ground floor it has a central bar area, with panel divided drinking sections around it and a large relaxing lounge area at the back with a very attractive stained glass ceiling. It has dark wood and ornate etched glass throughout and has a very traditional and cosy feel to it.
Upstairs there is a large dining lounge that has been done up in a similar style. They really have done a great job restoring this pub to how it once probably looked a hundred years ago and is certainly worth a little detour to visit.
The only down side is that you can’t take your drinks outside and there is no outdoor seating area.