Wandering Up Whitehall

Brief midday central London pub explorations en-route to a CAMRA day out in Maida Vale.
Yes, an unusually-wise short post featuring three half-pints in Good Beer Guide-listed pubs all within a few minutes of Trafalgar Square.
The Oxford Tube bus whisked me from Headington to Marble Arch remarkably swiftly on this occasion. My Oxford colleagues who'd opted for the train were entangled with the United massive ("yelllllows!") on the station platform on their way to a crunch game at Portsmouth.  All trains delayed - so just me in the capital early doors.
I opted to head right to Whitehall, remembering that London looks pretty spectacular when the sun is shining. 

I hadn't walked this street in years.
It's busy with tourists, police vans watching diligently for wrong un's, the neo-classical governmental buildings magnificent, the cluster of pubs at the top of the street looking inviting. 
It was the Old Shades that I headed to, a 2026 Beer Guide entry that I really couldn't decide whether I'd visited before or not.

The Old Shades (37 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2BX)
This is a Grade II listed building, the true magnificence of which you need to be across the other side of the road to witness.  I wasn't about to try and stand in the middle of Whitehall waiting for a gap in traffic and pedestrians for the perfect pub picture.
The current narrow gothic building was built in 1898 by Treadwell & Martin.  Wedged between souvenir shop and Italian café, the Old Shades is bigger than it looks once you step in - stretching back some distance and widening after the first few tables by the window.

It looks like a Prop Up the Bar exclusive visit has been arranged to ensure pictures without pesky customers... 

The cask range on the long majestic bar counter featured six hand pumps, playing it safe with beers folks have heard of and the two locals.
"Prices reflect the very central location", notes the CAMRA website description.  Uh-oh.

A Southwark 'LPA' for me, a crisp pale ale with a bitter kick. 
£3.50 for the half pint.
With the pick of the tables, I slipped into the curved leather-upholstered corner seat underneath the portrait of Churchill.  And marvelled this magnificent pub...

So, where was everyone?
Some were drawn to outdoor tables, basking in the sunshine outside The Clarence.  Some were tempted by advertisements for steak & ale pies at the Greene King Silver Cross, 
But most were bothering the Guardsmen at Horse Guards Parade...

Crikey, that's a lot of tourists.
I continued to Trafalgar Square and snapped my own tourist shot of Nelson on his column and Charles I on his horse.

In an enviable position in the corner of the square was pub number 2.
This building was originally built for the Union bank, designed in Italianate style by F.W. Porter and opened in 1871.  Turned into a Scottish restaurant in 2005, Fullers took over and opened it as a pub in 2014.

The Admiralty (66 Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross, London, WC2N 5DS)
Pre-noon drinking may be frowned upon in some quarters but it's all relative to what time you went to bed and what time you had breakfast, isn't it?
And it means you can make a fairly relaxed visit to The Admiralty before it gets inevitably rammed and the pickpockets begin their shifts.

'Jaipur' and 'ESB' perhaps a little stronger than I needed, Timothy Taylor 'Golden Best' lesser-seen than 'Landlord' or 'Boltmaker', but I steered towards the 'Pride'.  On reasonable, if not spectacular form with a price tag of £3.45 a half.
Most of the tables were adorned with 'reserved' signs, but I'd be long gone before "Vicky 1pm" arrived, hogging a large table with a prime view of the impressively decorated pub.
It's that mezzanine that is the icing on the cake...

You need to descend the spiral staircase to the basement to reach the loos.
That basement - refurbished after a big fire in 2022 - was a warren of booths within pillars and vaulted ceilings: the Gunwhale bar situated in the depths amongst nautical decor.

I had time for one more swift half before I needed to be elsewhere in the capital.
Plentiful options within easy reach of Trafalgar Square.  I decided to make a revisit to The Harp...after all, what right-minded soul could walk past this...

The Harp (47 Chandos Place, Charing Cross, London, WC2N 4HS)
Stained glass windows, budding flower basket display, outdoor vertical drinkers...
This is a central London pub with a deserved good reputation.
The first recorded mention of the pub was in 1805 when it was known as the 'Welsh Harp'.  It's a now a Fullers pub operating as a free house, providing a vastly different (and hard to pick from) range of cask than the Admiralty.
Ten hand pumps offering both familiar and more unusual ales.  I fancied veering to the dark side, so ordered the fantastic Downlands Brewery 'Oatmeal Stout'.

One day I'll do justice to the collection of classic central London pubs.
And find the most daunting steep staircase up or down to the WCs.
In the meantime, The Harp makes its case for an inclusion on that list - I wouldn't want to try taking these two steps at a time after five pints of beer...

But right now I was navigating them safely and leaving the heart of the city behind to catch the Bakerloo Line to Maida Vale.
More waffle and some half-decent pictures from there in the next post.