White Hart

Small and typically crowded, but if you can manage to get a place to sit its a great place to drink. Fairly good service, particularly if you are a regular. I would advise against getting any food there– except maybe some crisps.

went here for some food before the theatre, mistake! how can you ruin scampi and chips? tasted like it had been refried in dirty oil, scampi was the worst quality I have ever eaten! never again!

Nous nous sommes faits des burgers avec des pochettes de bière devant un match de rugby… C’était très sympa mais assez moyen.

I would say a fairly standard pub, with nothing particularly out of the ordinary to make it stand out, but the one thing I did notice was a strong and unpleasant smell of damp that kept wafting over. I don’t know if it was all over, so would advise sitting away from the door in case it was localised. Very offputting — certainly wouldn’t have wanted to eat there.

I first came here in 2005 on a few occasionswhen studying abroad nearby. Somehow missed the «oldest pub» bit because we were more focused on grabbing pints and eating their delicious nachos. Came back again more recently and it definitely felt different (disco ball and apparently weekend dancing?). I didn’t remember it ever being so well-​lit. I think the other reviews speak well to its attempt to straddling the line between old pub and hip trendy nightlife.
Was delighted to have 2 half pints in order to try more beers this most recent time. I sadly did not get to try the nachos but I assume they have remained relatively untouched in the last decade as far as quality goes. A-​OK overall.

The White Hart claims to be the oldest licensed venue in London. Don’t ask the staff if this is true, they’ll likely gesture limply to the sign that says as much, and this seems to annoy them.
But you know what annoys me? Bad sandwiches at high prices.
The permafrost hugging some of the older bottles of beer in the freezer was testimony to the genuine age of this place, but I’d just as easily ask that their license to serve warm beer be revoked immediately, pending a review of their sandwich menu.
The staff couldn’t find the halloumi sandwich in their system, so that was an hilarious conversation to listen in on. We were all shocked to hear that the over-​priced, incomplete attempt at a sandwich was filed under «cheese» and not under «ciabattas». Props, though, for having a «cheese» section on their menu system.
A friend took a side of curly fries, which were amazing when dipped in ketchup, mayonnaise and mustard (the holy trinity of condiments), so that redeemed the venue slightly.
The décor isn’t far from being decent, but the space on the whole lacked any coherent theme. Other patrons seemed to be blow ins, seeking refuge from the English summer, and a cheeky check of the Wimbledon score.
If you’re in the area, have pounds to burn and hate good sandwiches, then this is the place for you.

3.6
OK pub with basic well done food items and nice staff.

Bar was est. 1612 so it had the cool factor of having been to the oldest licensed place in London. Walked in and while I expected it to be older but it was clean and seemed slightly updated. Although the stools and bar area is a nice place to hang out. This was the first bar we hit for our pub crawl.

Yet another ‘oldest pub in England’, I always weirdly seem to end up here on a Wednesday evening when it doesn’t seem too packed. However, having seen the overflow crowds on other nights, am not sure I could take the crush by the narrow bar.
A nice enough pub and well-​located for that ‘one last drink’ on the way to the tube.

Yet another place that can somehow claim to be the oldest pub in London by some measure (here it is «oldest licenced premises in London).
Nothing super-​special about the place, but it is a decent pub AND it is open till late. Weekends can get crowded, but if you’re on the lookout for a last drink this is a good choice.

The White Hart isn’t a bad pub, but it’s certainly not the best one around this area the main thing going for this place is it’s late licence so it stays open longer than a lot of the other boozers close by.
I was in here last Saturday and there was a DJ playing some good music, they also held an air guitar competition with a bottle of champagne for the winner, oh and they were open til 2am all in all it was a fun night!

A great pub but super crowded after working hours. So make sure you book in advance.
If you are lucky enough to get a table, you will then enjoy the atmosphere and their good nachos, and even you can enjoy their live music if you sit at the back.
A good old pub, to be enjoyed during the day so that it is not too busy.

A. An f’n DJ
B. Dancing to hiphop in an alehouse just seems odd
C. Dancing until 2 am (when other ale houses close at 11pm) was ill and fun as hell
D. 5 female bartenders looking like the spice girls catering to me was off the charts
I will hit again, with my dancing shoes.

It wanted to be a pub, it wanted to be a bar, it had a seemingly out of place disco ball, i felt like i was in the middle of an identity crisis. You know those old men that buy expensive new cars to pull younger women? I feel like that odd mixture of old and new in the attempt to attract whatever clientèle we can agree on would be their target demo, made me give the bar a side-​eye.
The workers were all really nice though, I just don’t think it’s what I’m looking for when I’m looking for a pub. Especially considering it’s supposed to have a history, they certainly don’t capitalize on this.

Turning up to what looked like an old man’s pub post 11pm, didn’t give me high hopes of finishing the night in any style. As I cruised past the doorman I was met by an oasis of cool music and trendy bar fittings. The bar itself is quite spacious with a decent area for lounging and even dancing in the back. To get you in the mood, the bar serves up pretty cheap drinks.
The White Hart will never be a hangout for me, but I was pleasantly surprised at how trendy it was.

Claims to be the oldest pub in London, but I feel like I’ve seen a lot of places making the same claim, so it might just be like the 734 «original» Ray’s Pizzas in NYC. At any rate, it does the job, with cheap pints and a lively crowd on most nights.
Last time I was there we invaded a private party in order to steal from their tray of tiny sausages that seemed to have been fried in ketchup. The party featured a tall guy in an excessively floral shirt and the flannel brothers, a trio of guys in nearly identical flannel shirts.

White Hart is just another divey pub in central London– Holborn. It is spacious, especially with that room in the back that was unfortunately booked every time I went– thought that didn’t really stop overflow from going over.
White Hart was a few minutes walk from the London Office I was working at so we went there frequently on Friday nights. When it gets packed at the bar, its really hard to move around. Beer selection was pretty typical (Guiness, Peroni, Star, Hoegaarden, etc). Never had food there except for the crisps.
There are tables and chairs/​stools all over. There are some booths as well. The ambiance is relaxing– just people chatting over a pint. It gets quite loud in there though. It is dark, but not dingy.
What I remember most about this pub was the Dyson Air Blades in the toilets/​washroom/​loo. It was quite funny watching a [former] co-​worker become so amused/​amazed drying her hands with it.
Oh right, this pub was notoriously known within the [ex] company for stolen laptops. Don’t leave your stuff unattended.

This is our local for Friday drinks, and it’s often almost always heaving. The staff are always friendly and helpful, even when it’s full to the brim. They do have tables at back, though they fill up quickly on Thursday and Friday nights. I think they even (at least for one period they did) had one of those little old arcade pacman machines you could balance your drink on.
I can’t say anything about the quality of the food since I’ve never eaten here, but Tuesday nights are particularly entertaining when a bunch of elderly people come out to play the piano in the back room with a number of their own jazz instruments.

The White Hart pub in Holborn has the distinction of being the oldest licensed venue in London. In spite of this there is nothing particularly oldy worldy about this venue, things inside feel cosy and welcoming but the presence of a massive flatscreen reminds you of the times. Lots of comfy chairs and dark wood make this place feel like a proper pub in spite of the West-​End location.
The atmosphere of the place is pretty relaxed and of an evening you will find it notably busier thanks to the crowds of theatre goers. The staff are polite and hard-​working but lacking in social graces, probably because they’re often very busy.
In terms of drinks there’s not much to shout about, a few of your more standard beers, ales and wines at prices which do not account for their rather poor quality. On a sunday there is also the option of a roast dinner though I’m not sure I’d chance it at that price.
The White Hart is a fairly decent venue that hasn’t really made enough of its fantastic location, cahnces are if you’re a regular theatre goer you may stop in at some point but it’s probably not worth seeking it out.

My local village pub was called The White Hart, so when I found out my new work local had the same name, it was obviously fate.
The proximity to theatreland, Holborn and Covent Garden means this place is always fairly busy in the evening, and there are loads of photos of famous folks lining the back of the bar. That said, we’ve never seen and ‘slebs in our time there (and that’s quite a lot of time).
The décor’s a bit of a mix. Lots of pictures of chickens on the walls for some reason, a space invaders game in one corner that doubles as a table, and seats ranging from stools to sofas depending on where you sit. The further back, the less crowded it feels, with a dining style area right at the back. Beware though, Tuesday night is Jazz night up there. The pianist and clarinet player are definitely talented, but don’t sit anywhere near them if you’re there to talk, because the music’s pretty loud.
The menu is fairly small, and food is good enough but not memorable. Sharing the nachos is your best bet — just beware the jalapenos.

«The oldest licensed premises in London», apparently, thankfully The White Hart has had the odd refurbishment since it reputedly opened for business in 1216.
It retains a fair amount of olde-​worlde character though, and in the evening tends to be dimly-​lit. This has a strange effect on females, I find — a glass of wine more often than not tends to become a bottle. After work it tends to have quite a lot besuited sorts hanging around the bar, but gradually the vibe tends to become more laidback. Um, Tuesday appears to be jazz night, and the jazz tends to be played at quite a high volume — so choose a different night if you’re going for a deep-​and-​meaningful.
The food is good, if a little limited — and if you’re a veggie, even more so. Had a weird lunch experience there once; a colleague and I were kept waiting ages for a Chicken Caesar Salad, but were kindly informed by the bar staff that this delay wasn’t our fault. Which was nice to have confirmed, I suppose…