I have no idea what the prior incarnation of this pub was like, but the current one certainly ticks all the boxes for me: kitschy taxidermy, spectacular ceiling metalwork and chandelier, absurd art in the toilets, and one of the better Sunday roasts I've had in London. Oh, and they have a television, which I probably wouldn't have noticed except for the fact that Murray/Federer match was on and everyone was enthralled. On one hand, my lamb roast was absolutely beautiful. At about £14 (if memory serves), it was the right amount of food to be heartily satisfying. The meat was perfectly tender and kicked up a notch by the mint sauce which came with it. I also sampled some of my tablemates' horseradish sauce and was impressed by the kick - they don't mess around! Meanwhile, I made the mistake of ordering the gazpacho. I really couldn't distinguish it much from just straight-up tomato juice with some salt in it. I'm used to my gazpacho having some consistency and thickness to it. This was watery and unexciting. Even throwing all of the garnishes in (diced tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers) didn't help that much. I probably shouldn't have ended my meal with this, as it was utterly underwhelming. At this point, I was far too full to consider actually enjoying a dessert, but they do offer a cheese board that caught my eye. Another time - definitely glad to have this joint as a wonderful Sunday roast alternative after climbing at The Castle! read more

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Loved it. Great room. The Sunday roast was good. The Art was saucy. The service could have been better. But I work in a fancy Canadian restaurant so I don't know what's expected here. read more

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I may review this review (haha) after my next visit to the Hunter S - when I plan on eating! This time, me & the hubs came here for an after-work drink with a few friends. It has fantastic décor: plenty of crazy taxidermy (think bearskin rug... on the ceiling!) and lovely vintage-y looking sofas for lounging in. There's a big ol' chandelier in the dining area, and the menu looks extremely tempting. The gin & tonics were well-priced & strong! So ... can't complain. Looking forward to coming back for dinner sometime. But ultimately: a bar named after one of my all-time favourite writers?! Yep, gets a big tick from me. read more

The Hunter S Pub - The outside & bar of The Hunter S - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

I am a HUGE Yelp'er. And I am SO glad I am because I find Gems like this everywhere I go! At the Hunter S. I had the best dinner I may have ever had in my entire life. I am not kidding. We ordered the Beef Wellington for two and I am SOoooo glad we did - it was truly amazing! Yes, the place is quirky and yes there is taxidermy and yes, the toilets are a sideshow of their own haha. The bartender was great and offered his knowledge, suggestions and gave us excellent and fast service. When he didnt know something he asked instead of just blowing us off. He also let me try a few of the beers on tap before I made my decision. It was a long day for me and my legs were hurting, it was also cold outside and I just wanted to be comfy. My friend and I plopped down on the couch and put our feet up. We tried the beet soup as a starter and it was excellent. The Beef Wellington was so good I am still dreaming about it! The meat was cooked to perfection! The side salad was perfect, the chips were perfect, the veggies were perfectly cooked - literally, The. Best. Dinner. I have EVER had! Thank You Hunter S. -I have already recommended you to locals. And thank you Yelp community!!! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE HUNTER S. - if your going to London or live in London, this is a MUST **Vegetarian options were avail on the menu as well - just fyi. ENJOY@@@!!!!! read more

The Hunter S Pub - Best dinner I've ever had. The beef wellington here is amazing! - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

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Came here the weekend before Christmas for a group lunch. Very hipster gastropub, though not unfriendly. Very cool animal heads on the walls and even plastered to the ceiling, which were pretty awesome. Foodwise, it's good quality English pub grub. Borderline pricey but they get away with it. I ordered the dressed crab on brioche toast to start, which was great. Really decent sized portion of crab which tasted light and fresh. I shared a beef Wellington for main, which has a side of (very) chunky chips, small side salad (with pancetta bits) and gravy. Again, great quality. Meat was tender. The pastry was very rich and delicious although it was super filling (no need for a desert). In all, slightly pricey, very hipster gastropub with great quality food and cool ambience. Service was pretty slow though (took over an hour before our food came out). read more

The Hunter S Pub - Dressed crab starter - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

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No fear and loathing here! As a fan of the author I was very excited to finally visit this bar. Expecting some gimmicky twist on Hunters books, I wasn't disappointed to find a subdued decor, lacking in the garish department, that had a chic well thought out and sophisticated flair. With a mixed air of American lodge, 1950's airport lounge and speakeasy, I was rather fond of the taxidermy, and if you look closely (and I did), prints of Ralph Steadman's work on the walls (the artist synonymous with creating the covers for hunters books, and the labels for the flying dog brewery if you weren't aware). The real ale beer selection was limited, but good, although I was a little disappointed there wasn't a selection of American craft beer if I had to be honest. I did rather enjoy the handled beer mugs as I've never really been fond of real ale in pint glasses. However I couldn't but help fall in love with this place, relaxing into the dark leather seats and soaking up the grandiose vibe. Friendly (although typically Shoreditch) staff and a little 'shock' for those visiting the bathroom round off the experience. I do intend to revisit and try the food, what I saw coming out of the kitchen looked pretty delicious! read more

It's kinda my local pub, however I rather walk an extra 5-10mins to go another pub. They definitely need A/C and better security? The pub is literally based in Canonbury - Dalston with bunch of East London people yet you get weird looks for not being ordinary haha. Very limited seating outside, serving licence isn't till late really. Also quirky toilets read more

The Hunter S is a quintessential English pub with added quirky cool. It feels more modern than your standard local and apparently the food is off the chain (unfortunately, we had a dinner reservations only had time for drinks). If you're going with a group, make sure you book a table. When we went at 4pm it was relatively quiet but by 6pm - packed to the rafters! Also, don't miss the loos. Both the mens & womans are lined floor to ceiling with 90's nudes and play classical music... quite an interesting experience. read more

My lamb pie was good, though a little on the small side. The vegetable... I don't know what it was but there wasn't much of it. The mashed potato was green and kind of sausage shaped; it looked horribly like a green turd. The pie was steaming hot. The rest of the food was nearing room temperature. It came on a slab of wood rather than a plate. Not sure what the point of this is. But it does seem to be a bit of a trend in the more pretentious wannabe gastro pubs these days. (Price: £13.50.) The toilets have already been mentioned here. A chap came in to the gents behind me and remarked that he didn't know whether to pee or have a wank. As I left I did consider the thought that the owners of this establishment were having a joke, that they know that their clientele are mostly a bunch of wankers. The selection of ales was unremarkable. What's the point of being a free house if you serve pretty much the same as everyone else? The Timothy Taylor Landlord was perfectly good, nothing wrong with it at all, though I've had better elsewhere. The music was like wallpaper, I stopped noticing it after a while. Neither interesting nor offensive. Although after eight o'clock the volume went up so that it was difficult to converse with the person opposite me at the table. The lighting went down at the same time so that I was barely able to see what I was eating. Hunter S Thompson would have hated the place with a vengeance. read more

A whole kilo of mussels in a wine sauce with crisp fries on the side for just 12.50! It was a bit warm despite the fans they turned on all over the pub, but it was more than made up for by the high quality grub, friendly servers, and fantastical decor. Between the enormous taxidermied animals lining the walls and the framed pornography in the toilets, this place is full of character. Will return. read more

Hunter S. is a cool pub, looks like it is great for making reservations for a group for friends. The sunday roast was amazing.. £16.50 - so not cheap but very good meat and a kickin horseradish sauce. The music was a great collection and was not too loud. Great styled decor- lots of animal head trophies...framed nude photos in the bathroom. the staff is friendly and nice...the girls are great bartenders. - I only say that as the tall thin, pale guy bartender pours short on wine. but that is ok. Next time I will mention it when it is served. I like this place and look forward to going back. read more

OH. MY. GOD. This was the best lamb roast I have had in a pub ever. Tender, juicy lamb. Perfect yorkshires. Delicious potatoes and all the trimmings. It was £14.50 so not cheap. But, they really freaking nailed this. I will be back again in winter for many more roasts like this I hope! Decor is cool, staff are nice and check out the crazy toilets! read more

Ahh, so glad this pub finally changed hands!! It'a now a trendy sort of pub but with very normal staff & patrons (i.e. no too cool for skool hipsters, well not yet anyway...). Staff are pleasant, helpful and friendly. They have made fantastic use of the large space by filling it with lots of lovely tables and chairs. The music is great (elective mix). They have TV's for showing popular events but keep the sound off (fantastic!). The food menu is pretty good, they serve sweet potato chips!! Yummo!! They also serve the usual modern pub cuisine (from pate to Thai beef Salad, fish and chips, beef wellington etc). The pictures in the ladies loo's will keep you entertained (all framed pictures of naked Male models who work out way too much!). There is even a picture on the ceiling of a Burt Reynolds look alike, fully dressed but with his manhood out and alert! Quite an odd addition to a toilet ceiling..... Yes, this pub is a lovely addition to the area! read more

My favourite local pub. I had my birthday party there in march for 14 people. The staff were so nice taking my reservation and accommodating with changes to numbers. They didn't expect a deposit to hold the table which I was pleasantly surprised about. The hubby, pooch and I go often. The chicken liver pate is better than a Gordon Ramsey restaurant. The food is seriously as good as a posh restaurant. The decor is so cool with the taxidermy and the metal ceiling. The noise level is always decent and the crowd is a nice mix of locals and hipsters (but not pretentious). Dog friendly pub and the bathroom is a real talking point. Love this place!!! read more

I only had drinks, so cannot rate on the food! It's a cosy pub with friendly service and a nice (if you like taxidermy) ambiance.

A good friend of ours held her birthday bash at the Hunter S on Saturday. It seems there were two quite large parties that evening that had booked areas and this may go some way to explaining the shoddy service and in my case decidedly average food. The waitress who was looking after our table singlehandedly was an absolute legend, friendly and diligent; but the poor thing seemed to be doing everything on her own. I ordered the belly pork; which turned out to be a rolled belly pork strip with overly sweet red cabbage and an under seasoned layered potato dish. Very disappointing. I've been to the Hunter S a number of times; always because friends are having a celebration there. The décor is superb, the food is always average and the thing that gets me every time and something I genuinely can't get my head around is the rudeness of the bar staff and why this is tolerated. Rarely is a please or thank you muttered and the too cool for school attitude just comes across as rude. I have watched the Scots barman (he could even be management) at work on a number of times and I've never seen such a combative, less eager to serve barmen in my entire life. The disdain he treats customers with needs to be seen to be believed. But he looks quite cool, so that makes it alright in this style over substance establishment. Awful bar staff, very average food, good beer and lovely décor. I won't be going back unless under duress (someone is having a do there)! read more

The food was over priced, inedible and stingy portions The staff were the rudest staff I have ever come across The manager was unprofessional, told me he was unable to resolve our issue even though he was the manger I was advised after complaining not to return as a way to avoid being disappointed again. Very professional way to deal with a complaint by a manager! Avoid this place read more

I recently went to this pub for food and drinks and had the WORST experience. The staff were insanely rude and the food was inedible. I wouldn't recommend anyone to go here and certainly won't be going back myself. read more