Ye Olde Mitre, Holborn

There are pubs in London, and then there is Ye Olde Mitre, a place so hidden that finding it feels like joining a private society. Slip through a narrow passage off Hatton Garden, past modern offices and jewellery traders, and suddenly the city sheds several centuries. Timber, brick, uneven charm, and a courtyard of improbable calm appear where no sensible urban planner would have placed them.

The story begins in 1546, during the reign of Henry VIII. When the first version of this pub opened, forks were still a novelty in England and Shakespeare had yet to write a line. The site belonged to the Bishops of Ely, whose London residence once covered much of the surrounding land. That detail mattered: the pub stood in territory outside normal City authority, a legal curiosity that encouraged a certain independent spirit. If one wanted to drink, negotiate, gossip, or avoid too much official attention, this was helpful geography.

Then came the Great Fire of London. Vast parts of the city vanished in flame, yet Ye Olde Mitre endured beyond the main boundary of destruction. London rebuilt itself in stone and ambition while this address quietly carried on pouring ale.

Inside, the rooms remain deliciously compact. Low beams, dark wood, old mirrors, brass taps, and corners made for whispered conversations. One imagines jewellers discussing stones from nearby Hatton Garden, barristers rehearsing arguments, lovers making poor decisions, and clerks extending lunch beyond all reason. Some habits are eternal.

The courtyard holds another favourite tale: a cherry tree linked by tradition to Elizabeth I, said to have danced around an earlier tree on the spot. Whether fully factual or partly embellished hardly matters. Great cities need legends, and great pubs know to keep them alive.

Food wisely respects the setting. Proper pies, fish and chips, sausage and mash, Scotch eggs, cask ales served as they should be. No smoke domes, no tweezers, no speeches. The chef’s task here is noble restraint: feed people well and let history do the theatre.