White Hart, Covent Garden

White Hart, Covent Garden

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"The oldest licensed premises in London," reckons the lintel, as does some prominent lettering above the bar. It's a dubious claim. The building is only 100 years old, and built on a different plot to the original White Hart. But we like the sentiment. It stands beside the ancient crossroads of Drury Lane and Holborn, a junction whose antiquity probably goes back to Roman times.

White Hart pub Holborn

The pub is easy to miss, its tiny frontage cowering beneath three giant brutalist buildings that really need sorting out (update: one of them has now gone, to be replaced by the Post Building). Inside, it's a different matter. The pub extends back a long way, culminating in a brightly lit dining area. The plum seats are right at the front, though — a cosy pair of sofas in the window.

Whether it can be dated to medieval times or not, the pub certainly has history. Like many a vintage drinking hole, the White Hart claims Dick Turpin as a former customer. In this case, there's documentary evidence. A 1735 Old Bailey statement clearly puts him there. Then, in the 1840s, the pub was dubbed 'the German Hall' and used as a gathering place for the Fraternal Democrats, an international society with a far-left agenda.

Today, the White Hart remains an everyman kind of place. No great flare or flamboyance, and a relatively limited choice of drinks... but a thoroughly pleasant place to while away the hours.

Photos below are from 2015 and might not reflect the current look. We leave them in for posterity.

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Pub Features

Dining options Live music

Address: 191 Drury Lane London WC2B 5QD

Phone: 020 7242 2317


Email:
[email protected]

Website:
http://www.whitehartdrurylane.co.uk/

Monday: 11am-midnight

Tuesday: 11am-midnight

Wednesday: 11am-midnight

Thursday: 11am-midnight

Friday: 11am-2am

Saturday: noon-2am

Sunday: closed

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