Mediocre
18 Apr 08, 15:19
As expected
Tucked just behind BHS on Oxford Street this is indeed the only pub on Cavendish Square. I wouldn't normally drink there as there are far better pubs just the other side of Regents Street (The Yorkshire Grey and The Crown & Sceptre to name but two). It's not the fastest place to be served - definitely not enough staff. And when my gin and tonic arrived it came without lime / lemon and a distinct absence of ice! The beer drinkers are much better served here.
That being said it is a comfy pub with benches and big tables. If you have to eat there, the nachos are the best bet.
Groups: capitalradio
Decent pub in Cavendish Square shock
31 Jan 08, 15:58
Above expectations
Perhaps the headline is being a little unfair. Partly because this is just about the only pub on Cavendish Square, and partly because one shouldn’t assume a pub is going to be snooty or pricey or hideous just because of its location.
In fact, the Phoenix is none of these things. It’s welcoming, the prices are reasonable (for W1) and the clientele represents a broad spectrum: office workers, tourists, Oxford Street shoppers and the assistants who serve them.
On my visit there was a choice of three hand-pulled ales, the usual lagers plus an unfamiliar one that my colleague told me was ‘to die for’. Can’t remember its name. Black, stein-like font. Sorry.
The food started from about £4.50 for fish fingers in a flour bap with lime mayo and progressed up to around £10-£12, although I rarely look at that end of the menu when I’m in a pub. There’s a nice mix-match of seating so you could get quite comfy, although don’t take the newspaper or a book because the lighting doesn’t seem to have changed since Edwardian days.
The one downside (assuming the low-key lighting doesn’t matter to you) is that the service can be quite slow (due to lack of staff rather than lazy staff). This won’t matter too much during a leisurely Wednesday lunchtime but it’s a right pain come Friday nights when the place suddenly gets rammed thanks to the DJs playing in the large basement. Expect a long wait at the bar.
On Monday nights there’s comedy – at the amusingly named Old Rope club – and for one moment I thought the chalkboard showed the previous week’s act as being Peter Kay. Then my eyes adjusted to the gloom and I saw that it was one Paul Kay. Neither have I.
To find the Phoenix, just head north up Regent Street from Oxford Circus, take the first left, then a right and it’s virtually dead ahead.
