Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese

Historic pub off Fleet Street, rebuilt after the Great Fire

One of London's oldest pubs, rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1666 and hidden down a narrow alley off Fleet Street. Dark, low-ceilinged, and arranged over several rooms and levels, it feels genuinely unchanged. The atmosphere is exceptional in the evenings. Fuller's ales on tap; the food is standard but the surroundings make up for it.

Wine Office Court, Fleet Street EC4A 2BU.

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A story
Samuel Johnson, who lived around the corner on Gough Square, was a regular here. So, later, were Dickens, Thackeray, Tennyson, and Conan Doyle. The pub was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666, and the cellars are thought to be older still.