Tucked away behind one of Oxford Street’s busiest shopping stretches, a stretch it’s connected to by the pedestrianised and curiously peaceful St Christopher’s Place, this decent Nicholson’s pub is a bolthole worth knowing about.

The Venue
The Place was once owned by housing campaigner, pioneer conservationist and National Trust founder Octavia Hill, who in the 1870s refurbished and redeveloped it from a neglected slum. In recent years it’s been overhauled again as a specialist shopping and dining district arranged around pedestrianised alleys and courtyards – a boon for the Pontefract Castle, which sits right at the Wigmore Street end.

Behind a sombre façade surrounded by a handful of precious outdoor tables, the Pontefract Castle turns out to be bigger than it looks. Arranged on several levels, the often crowded ground floor space is optimised for standup drinking, with a small bar and high tables, while a cavernous vaulted cellar offers more intimate spaces if not reserved for a function. Up a spiral staircase there’s an attractive mezzanine with views of the main bar, then a more sedate seated restaurant at the top.

The Atmosphere
The Pontefract Castle is a lively place that, no doubt due to its proximity to St Christopher’s Place, attracts a relatively youngish crowd given the traditional vibe typical of the chain. Custom is drawn from shoppers, local workers and Marylebone residents – and if there’s too many of them in the main bar, try upstairs or down.

The Food
In common with other pubs in the chain, the menu is standard but of reliable quality and efficiently served. A full cooked breakfast is £5.95 with both standard and vegetarian options, and main courses might include salmon puff pastry (£10.45), aged rib-eye steak (£13.95), roast Shropshire chicken (£8.95), vege or meat sausages and mash (£6.45) or roasted vegetable tart (£7.95). During the day there’s sandwiches (£6-£7 including chips or salad) and lunches like meatballs in Thornbridge Jaipur IPA (£6.50). An early evening fixed priced menu offers two courses for £9.95 or three for £12.95.

The Drink
The beer choice here isn’t as wide as at some Nicholson’s pubs, but it’s reliably kept to Cask Marque standards: Fuller’s London Pride, Sharp’s Doom Bar and Thornbridge Jaipur are the cask regulars, with two changing guests voted on by customers from the pubco’s seasonal list. Beers from Cropton and Ilkely may well feature. Keg Staropramen, bottled Budvar and Blue Moon widen the beer choice. Around 24 wines are nearly all available by the glass (from £3.30), and there’s a short cocktail list too.

The Last Word
If you’re badly in need of recuperation after a stressful West End retail experience, you could do worse than unwind in the Pontefract Castle. Worth marking on your mental map of London.

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