The Essex Serpent has the perfect location to attract the capital’s tourists and offers a buzzing environment whatever the weather.

The Venue
The Essex Serpent has all the originality of any of the other old boozers around Covent Garden but inside, its glories are championed by the wood and red decor that inspires comfort in which to enjoy the spoils beamed onto the big projector screen. The area is only small, but the size means that the wooden floor and lack of comfortable soft seating doesn’t leave the bar feeling hard and bare. The red wood of the bar starts a ripple of warmth that spreads forward through the rest of the pub helped by the soft lighting that glows day and night. The projector screen is a big deal for the pub with its focus on rugby.

The Atmosphere
The nature of this type of pub has to be one of patience. Weekdays are long and quiet as it readies itself for the after work crowd that swells in from the shops and businesses of Covent Garden.

The weekends are a different beast, however. The Essex Serpent attracts tourists but so many more seem to treat it as a local as it appeals to the England rugby shirt toting mob that gather to gawp at the big screen. The Six Nations is a special time for the pub and the corresponding weekends see its capacity stretched as the atmosphere buzzes with excitement. You feel the passion for the rugby and, even more so, you feel the passion for the weekend, those two days off that everyone here is keen to make the most of.

The Food
The Essex Serpent serves a simple yet quality menu. The old familiar names may echo what’s available elsewhere but there is certainly more care in the dishes than the average pub. The steak and kidney pie is a surprising success and the meat is flavoursome and tender in a way that throws the mind a little after the expectance of the tough meaty slop that often fills such pies. There is also the Moroccan salad and battered haddock as well as a selection of sandwiches and burgers.

The Drink
The small pub has only a small selection of draught beers but they cover the beer drinkers’ bases well. The poor quality of the Carlsberg is hidden by the Grolsch and San Miguel on tap. For the cider lover there’s something a little more interesting than the obvious Strongbow as Aspalls stands proudly among the beers. There is a fairly large wine list displayed on the blackboard on the wall.

The Last Word
The Essex Serpent has plenty of charisma for a venue that doesn’t look much better than run of the mill and its Saturday rugby games make it well worth paying a visit.

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