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    The White Lion

    3.8 (37 reviews)
    ModeratePubs
    Closed 11:00 am - 10:30 pm

    The White Lion Photos

    THE WHITE LION ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

    Recommended Reviews - The White Lion

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    Bar area
    Pamela M.

    Drinks were wonderful here. Atmosphere was authentic. It was filled with both locals as well as tourists. We ordered the sampler of appetizers. They were just okay. Nothing special or unique. I don't think food was their priority. They were extremely busy and everyone was friendly. The servers were great and they were doing their best to get tables cleaned and wiped.

    Sweet potato goat cheese pie (VG)
    Sapphire M.

    Was pleasantly surprised at how fair priced and good the food was, considering the pubs location in Covent Gardens. We stopped in after spending hours waiting to see the new King at Buckingham Palace yesterday, so we were desperate for a meal and a chance to sit down. The upstairs dining room and downstairs pub had a good crowd without being overly crowded with tourists. The prices were also cheaper than what was listed on the menu outside. They have vegetarian and pescatarian pie options. I ordered the sweet potato and goat cheese pie and loved it! The crust was nice and flaky, and the texture of the filling was rich and creamy. They also have a great beer menu, though it was odd that out of the four British selections, only one was available on tap. Managed to get some cute photos outside, the street view reminds me a lot of Dublins Temple bar. That being said, I'd choose a visit to The White Lion instead any day of the week.

    My friend pissed at the service here !!  TAKE THAT!
    Alaina C.

    The service was not nice. The bartender yelled at my friend after asking what wine you recommended. I am appalled. I demand a refund. DONT GO TO THIS PLACE!!! I love trying new places but this place is OFF my list!

    Andrew T.

    Authentic pub with some really good food. Service was on point, try to get there before the crowds because like any proper pub the locals come to have a pint and socialize. The lamb pot pie was pretty damn good

    View from outside
    Matthew M.

    Overall solid pub in Covent Garden. Great, central location. Small downstairs that is often crowded but a dining room upstairs that is normally less crowded. Good Pub food including pies, fish and chips, etc. Cask ales. A few vege options. Nice holiday decorations. Overall recommended if you are looking for a nice, central pub!

    Steak and ale pie
    Neisha M.

    The food was not bad.. I had the steak ale pie and a beer. I wanted to try something English. It was very busy.

    Ale selection and sample jars.
    James H.

    Excellent pub just a few minutes from the Covent Garden tube station. Excellent traditional Ale selection, very friendly staff, and a great after work atmosphere. The Ales are rotated regularly and there's a good eight or so on tap. The staff are very knowledgable if you're not sure which to go for, and very helpfully, they place a small sample of rack ale in a mustard jar in front of the pouring tap so that you can see the colour. Excellent if you're looking to avoid light or dark beers respectively. The staff are lovely. No longer living in the UK I don't have a UK phone or phone number. That limits me from using much of the free wifi. The barman allowed me to enter his phone number into the wifi browser, so that he'd get the wifi security pin text to his phone, in that I could activate the browser on my phone. Excellent service! He must do this hundreds of times a week for tourists!

    Jacob V.

    My brother and I were in London from the U.S. and stopped by here as part of the "London Ale Trail"... It was a little hard to find, as it was off the beaten path a little, but I liked how there was the bar downstairs, and the quiet restaurant upstairs. We had the fish and chips, and while not the best of our trip, it was pretty good. Overall, it was a cool place.

    Lusea W.

    This is a really sweet pub in Placed in the middle of Convent Garden. I like this place as it is a refreshing break from many of the surrounding touristy bars and pubs. If your on a day trip and want a taste of real england, then this is a good start. It is very small but suprisingly uncrowded. They Serve traditional English pub grub like steak and kidney pie, sandwichs,and fish and chips which arn't expensive around the £6 mark. They also have a really good selection of ales and beers. They h

    Tanya P.

    SOOOO good!! We stumbled onto this place famished, but not wanting to compromise on finding a great British meal in London. We found the upstairs dining area and decided to stay despite the cramped room. One of the best decisions I've made. The service was friendly and efficient. The pie I ordered - the steak and mushroom.... I will dream about it. My friend ordered the lamb and potato pie, it was also very good. We left well nourished and warm from a glass of wine.

    Laura Y.

    The White Lion is a pretty standard and basic pub which doesn't have a great deal of 'pzazz' but is nevertheless, still decent enough to go for a drink. There isn't a huge amount of seating and it does tend to get cramped - a lot of shuffling and huffing and puffing goes on which can get quite tedious. The (very steep) staircase leading the eating area is a little more open and the food is pretty typical of that of these type of pubs - which I have to say I quite like! I had the bangers and mash and despite the fact that it wouldn't have won any points on Masterchef for presentation, was very edible indeed and if you come to this sort of pub, lets face it, you're not expecting Gordon Ramsay standards. An ample and adequate pub.

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    9 years ago

    Good food, Good Beer. Buddy got a meat pie and said it was terrific.

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    7 years ago

    The service was awesome and the food was great. We had Sausages and mashed, steak and ale pie, and a side of awesome service!!!!

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    12 years ago

    My "go to" place when the wife is shopping in Covent Garden... pretty quiet in the afternoon but can be very busy in the evening.

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    The White Lion Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - The White Lion

    The upstairs dining room and downstairs pub had a good crowd without being overly crowded with tourists.

    Mentioned in 2 reviews

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    The Centre Page - Modest entrance area.

    The Centre Page

    3.6(25 reviews)
    1.1 miBlackfriars
    £

    After visiting Shakespeare's Globe across the Thames River, I was rushing to the airport and…read morespotted this place near St. Paul's church after crossing Millennium Bridge. Given the location, I knew it was probably a tourist trap and I wish to avoid those usually but had no time so stopped in on a Monday afternoon for lunch. I'm so glad I did! I was in London only briefly and had yet to try proper fish and chips and I was definitely WOW'd. I've only had this in America, and this was definitely better than anything I've ever had. When it arrived on my table, I could feel the heat from the plate -- that's how scalding hot and fresh it was, and I loved that! The cod was absolutely massive, a thick portion of fish deep fried with the skin on within an incredibly crunchy beer batter. There were pieces of bone in it, but no bother, this only made it seem more fresh. The chips (thick cut fries) were perfectly crispy and both the fish and chips were insanely delicious with a bit of salt and malt vinegar (which I had to request by walking up to the bar). The dish came with a tartar sauce and ketchup, but tasted way better with the salt and vin. I absolutely love that the fish and chips also came with mushy peas, whereas most pubs only give you fish and chips alone. The dish was also very well priced at 9.95 GBP, and I was able to use my credit card, rounded up to 10 GBP because they have a 10 GBP minimum for using cards. I appreciate that this restaurant had free wi-fi, which I found out by asking my waiter, who quickly provided the secret code for me to use. In America you would never ask your server for this but I noticed that nearly every hotel and restaurant I visited during my 11-day tour of Europe offered wi-fi. Good on them, because how else would I check in to a restaurant on Yelp and shower them with praise and circulate promotional foodie photos on Instagram? During a weekday, many workers nearby flood this place to grab a pint during lunch....now, why don't I work in London? I would give this place five stars based on the food alone, but I am giving it four because I wished the service had been more attentive, as I had to go up to the bar to get malt vinegar and also to ask to pay my bill. I understand service in Europe is more laissez-faire than in America, but since this is a tourist spot I would have liked to be checked on by the staff at least once during my meal, and certainly to be presented with the bill. Note: They also serve Sunday roast dinner for 9.95 GBP on Sundays

    Great location, great specials and great service. This is a solid pub that seems to attract a good…read morecrowd. Being from the states I am not as familiar with all the UK brands --- but they seem to offer a wide variety of beers (lots on tap) and cocktails. TIP: I recommend hitting this place before 5:30 on the weekdays as the happy hour crowd fills this join up.

    Photos
    The Centre Page
    The Centre Page - Downstairs dinning area

    Downstairs dinning area

    The Centre Page

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    The Banker

    The Banker

    4.3(16 reviews)
    1.4 miThe City
    ££

    We had passed this pub several times, as it is located on a common route to the hotel we were…read morestaying in, and we wanted to have our first London pub experience, so try it, we did. We arrived just after the work day, and the crowd was buzzing just outside. We did the self-seating option indoors, and sat down to a great view of the Thames river, as we pondered our meal choices from the menu. The location is just great. For a leadoff drink, I had to go with the house cask ale, which was the Fuller's ESB, a drink I've been enjoying since the 1990's, and it delivered as expected. I went with an order of Sausages with mashed potatoes and peas...it doesn't get much more classic than that, and I was happy with it, especially with the quantity (3 sausages!). Wifey was on the hunt for a meat pie, and she went with the Steak, Ale & Mushroom Pie, which I can report was wholeheartedly approved. One of the better pies we've had on the overall trip, and the best we had at a pub location. The overall vibe of this pub is exactly as you might picture it, and we weren't disappointed with any aspect. Service, though not overly patient (hey - they were busy), was competent and pleasant. Cheers!

    Great pub in the City of London. Found it while walking near the River front after crossing north…read moreover London Bridge. Casks, drafts, lots of seating - both indoor and outdoor. They had billiards and some other entertainment. Quick service.

    Photos
    The Banker
    The Banker
    The Banker

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    The White Lion - pubs - Updated May 2026

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