Easy to miss but worth looking out for, this is one of the few remaining genuine community pubs in the heart of the West End.

The Venue
On the western edge of Chinatown and the southern edge of Soho, the Blue Posts stands on the corner of Rupert Street and the alleyway of Rupert Court, which emerges at its other end in the heart of Chinese restaurant territory on the lower part of Wardour Street. It shares its name with several other pubs in the West End, including a Blue Posts in Berwick Street only a few minutes’ walk away, and there’s some debate about why this should be, and what the name means. Some people tend to go with the explanation that it’s a reference to blue painted poles which may once have been a local indication of some form of transport for hire, such as sedan chairs.

Downstairs there’s a smallish single bar with a few tables, stools and vertical drinking areas that looks like it hasn’t been refitted since the 1970s, decked out in a now-worn and weathered natural wood finish. Upstairs the space is doubled by another room with more seating opportunities, and a big square window with a commanding view of Rupert Street. The only outdoor drinking space is the alley outside, equipped with a couple of empty barrels. An intriguing hoard of nicknacks and breweriana includes a collection of maneki neko beckoning cats, a familiar sight round here. At Christmas they forego a tree for something more eccentric – one year it was a decorated topiary bear.

The Atmosphere
Unusually for the area, this is a real locals’ pub where the longstanding landlord knows most of the regulars by name – but more occasional visitors and tourists should still get a warm welcome. Plenty of people live nearby and they, together with staff from local businesses, make up the regulars, including many from the Chinese community. It’s also the kind of place that people from further away might choose as their local. The well-informed take advantage of its proximity to Chinatown, Soho and Theatreland by using it as a pleasant rendezvous for a night out. Upstairs plays host to meetings – including a regular gathering of BBC scriptwriters – and live jazz, blues and oldies from two resident bands on Sunday lunchtimes and evenings. Of course there’s a quiz too, on Tuesdays.

The Food
Lunchtimes and early evenings you can choose from a long menu of unreconstructed pub grub and greasy spoon comfort food at prices that must be among the lowest in the West End. Options include sandwiches, jacket potatoes, omelettes, salads (including one with smoked salmon), vegetarian and meat chilli, sausages, curries, pies and plenty of chips, with several substantial dishes under a fiver and very little over £7.

The Drink
The pub makes a point of selling cask beer as part of the authentic pub experience, though, despite being an Enterprise tenancy with access to the SIBA Direct Delivery Scheme, tends to stick to better-known brands. Three of its four hand pumps dispense Fuller’s London Pride, Hop Back Summer Lightning and Timothy Taylor Landlord while a fourth rotates through other familiar names like Black Sheep and Wychwood. They’re all well kept, as evidenced by the Cask Marque accreditation. Besides this there’s draught Leffe and Hoegaarden, Duvel and Budvar in bottles and a standard range of wines and spirits.

The Last Word
Rough around the edges but comfortable and friendly, the Blue Posts should be regarded and valued as a treasured survivor of the better kind of local London pub.

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