Been wanting to stop here the last couple of trips here, but never happened. I was walking to the station to head to the airport and there it was. Since I had time to kill decided to stop for a pint. Since it was 11:30 am, place was slow, but they have a decent menu. Had friendly service and like the English pub vibes. read more

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Was searching for a traditional pub specifically for our first fish 'n chips in London. Happen to be staying in Covent Garden and fortunate to come upon this wonderfully decorated traditional pub. Outdoor seating available with the downstairs pub, full dining upstairs, albeit a bit of a cramped space, but so completely charming with outstandingly friendly staff, we simply loved our experience! Fish was a huge portion, standard chips, good tartar sauce with a small portion of smashed peas. Simply couldn't finish it all. The Manger chatted us up, making recs for our next destination in Dublin. Highly recommend you seek out The White Lion. It's worth it! read more

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First time in London and ran across this place. Staff was very accommodating. Making sure to check about food allergies was a plus. All our food came lovely. So when you're in the area. Do try this place. read more

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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. read more

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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. read more

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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! read more

The White Lion - My friend pissed at the service here !! TAKE THAT! - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

We're headed back to London in a few weeks and one of our must-stops for a pint and a pie will be The White Lion. This is a favorite of ours for many reasons. My wife is a former Londoner and worked in the area of the pub. It was one of her favs for meeting up with friends. The ambiance is classic, the mood, especially at night, is festive. Classic and creative pub menu. Well done, WL. read more

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 read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

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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! read more

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This is the worst service yet in London. The server came to our table after 15 minutes of being seated to take our order (they were disorganized) and when she arrived at our table she had a dirty rag in her hand and dropped left over food from her rag on both the table and on my mobile phone. She did not wipe it up. The fish and chips were subpar (soggy) and the sea bass was plain. Lastly, when she removed the plates, she dumped food on my son's pants and new LV sweater purchased the day before. I recommend to avoid!!! read more

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

The White Lion - Steak and ale pie - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

An absolute hidden gem! Planted right in the middle of Covent Gardens, this dining center offered a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of the busy streets and loud attractions located right outside its walls. The outside of the pub is adorned with traditional pub decoration, but once you step foot inside and up the spiral staircase that leads to the dining room, you'll find yourself in a much more pleasant and peaceful setting, perfect for catching up with friends or interacting with locals. The food was incredible, and the service matched it perfectly. My mates and I ordered a variety of meals including the traditional fish and chips platter, a steak and ale pie, and the Nicholson's club sandwich, which all proved to absolutely delightful, especially for the price. The staff was all incredibly friendly and informative, and helped us pair our dining options with craft drinks to match. I especially enjoyed being able to try local beers that I would not normally have access to. I would highly recommend the White Lion to anyone looking to get a traditional pub meal for a fairly affordable price. If I ever find myself in the area again, I'll be sure to make the stop! read more

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! read more

The White Lion - Ale selection and sample jars. - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

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. read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

I loved it! The pie was great Service We had eight people lots of drinks It was the second or third restaurant I ate in England I would have to say it was my fav after spending three weeks over there read more

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 read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

My favorite weekly place to venture to, the White Lion not only has a great selection of food but of drinks as well. My girlfriend and I enjoy the fish and chips with a bottle of the house wine; affordable and delicious, a combo that a student like myself always enjoys! Easy to find with friendly people there all the time. read more

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. read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Because of its Covent Garden location, you'd imagine this would be filled with tourists and poor food to match. However, quite to the contrary. Mostly locals enjoying high quality pub food at fair prices. It's a charming old building with a narrow staircase leading to the upstairs dining area so you don't feel the madness of the busy foot traffic outside. The food is always delicious and I always eat here when in London. Have been back many times over the last 15 years. They put a lot of flavor in their food and it's a nice place for a pint and a pie after shopping. read more

OMG! I totally love this place! The food is Gr8 and the Hawks Ginger Beer is to kill for! The atmosphere is very lively, and exciting. It is a Must-Do when you go to Covent Garden! read more

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. read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Londons pubs are being corporately ran and handled like McDonalds franchises! Spread the news, tell the world! This pub is another branch of pubs owned by the same people who own The Red Lion and The Ship... their intelligent, original idea of having seasonal menus turning into a cheap corporate gimmick! (In my eyes) However once inside the pub, you realise that it might only be me with these misgivings. This is right next to you as soon as you exit Covent Garden station and after a 30 minute tube journey I fancied a nice sit down. There aren't many areas to sit at in this pub (I counted about six) but I sat down next to a guy reading his paper who looked pretty huffy with me - a young whippersnapper! The patrons of this pub were of this vein generally; middle aged and older, enjoying a quiet drink while relaxing music plays at decent levels in the background. The menu is as extensive as it is in all of these franchise pubs (as I will unpolitcally correctly refer to them from now) and they specialise mainly in Pies. They sell Mulled Cider, ladled from a cauldron by waitresses who, in my opinion, are slightly easier on the eye then witches are.. ahem. There's a nice dining room upstairs from the main bar and they also offer Ale tasting between 5 and 7pm on a Tuesday.. so get yourself down there to try some tipple and then go find yourself a fresher drinking den! read more

The White Lion - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Had a great time here. A quick stop on our pub crawl. The bartender hooked my boy up with a rail mat as a souvenir. They pour a delicious Guinness! This yank is a fan. read more

Good pub with decent sized windows, looks very traditional inside if you're a tourist seeking the british drinking experience you could do much worse than here. I had one of the traditional ales they offer, since this is a Nicholson's pub, so they'll do stuff you wouldn't get anywhere else. The name escapes me; why not try them all? Good size seats at the back, I stayed at the bar with the paper. read more

Went here soon after arriving in London. They have a very tiny dining area upstairs with no waiting space, but this isn't unusual for a crowded city centre establishment. Standing in the tiny stairwell was worth it though. I had an excellent mutton shoulder and several good cask ales. I was worried that it would be overpriced and touristy, but found it to be a place I would frequent next time I'm in London. read more

A much superior choice to the noisy, teeming Nag's Head (http://www.qype.co.uk/place/76075-Nags-Head-London) across the street, this pub is halfway between Covent Garden tube and market on a corner of busy James Street. There's less touristy tat on the walls, and it's still only £2.50 for a pint of London Pride. Sure, the location means you're going to get some tourists, but the pub is much smaller and less likely to attract groups of any size (there are no large tables downstairs). Downstairs you can order from a selection of pies. There's a full dining room upstairs. Timothy Taylor is on tap, and they always have a guest ale, with a board of upcoming guest-ale options you can vote on! They have an ale tasting night every Tuesday from 5-7pm, though I've not been. Even the piped-in music is less obnoxious. read more

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

Hands down the best place to eat, when we came to London! We dined upstairs and our server (foreign woman) was amazing. She was helpful and really nice. The food and cider on top was so delicious! read more

WE often go to the White Lion, because it's one of three pubs withing a few minute's walk of the flat we often rent in Floral St., and very handy to Covent Garden. We always enjoy the place, and after climbing the stairs to the restaurant, we enjoy a pleasant room with very nice staff, good pub grub of the better but not-quite-gourmet variety - in other words good value for your money. And a good beer selection. It's also a fairly quiet place where you can hear your friends' voices without engaging in a shouting match. We'll go back often, but: why are they always out of pies, or at least some of them? It's a running joke with us - "Let's go to the White Lion and not have a pie." But it's a friendly, good place, and we count it as one of our "locals." read more

Hearty foods and a dumb waiter on the 2nd floor (that is novel to most Americans). We had the Thai green curry chicken (chicken was dry) and roasted duck over potatoes/carrots/cranberries (duck was also dry). The appetizer sampler for 2 ppl was perfect: fried scallops and fried brie were delicious (I would be worried if something deep fried tasted bad). read more

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

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.

A quaint little pub. Many locals visit for a drink before heading home. Service was good but the food was disappointing. We ordered the large fish and chips and the fish was mushy/soggy. We did not even finish it. When asked if everything was okay we said no and explained why. The server said they would take some off our bill which they did-20% off food portion. We were expecting something more significant than a £3 discount. Would not recommend. read more

The upstairs dining room is adorable and quaint. We went Monday, August 22. The woman who served us was polite and helpful as could be!! My friend and I had the mushroom and cheese bake, it was delicious and the portion was generous. For an entree we both got the fish and chips and it was done very well. My friend and I are from the USA and were looking for great fish and chips and unlike a few other pubs, the white lion didn't disappoint. read more

Was visiting Covent Garden on business and had lunch at the White Lion. As pub food goes, really hit the spot. Great meat pie with leeks, mashed potatoes and veggies. Slipped in a pint with the boys, but don't tell the boss man. Waiter was very friendly and price was fair. The decor is typical of many pubs in the area. I think this is part of a chain. Nice spot next to the tube station and Royal Opera House read more