The Mason’s Arms

Three weeks before my trip to London, I asked the hotel I stayed at (which is three doors down from this pub) for a list of restaurants they recommended in the neighborhood. They sent me a list of 30 different, moderately priced restaurants. The Mason’s Arms did not make the list and probably for good reason.
I didn’t get a good vibe from the place to start. The gentlemen at the bar weren’t all that enthusiastic about serving us, and it took forever (around 10 minutes) just to get our drinks. The food took another 10 minutes – an eternity by any standards.
I learned very quickly that pub food in London is quite different from the pub food Americans get at supposed restaurants claiming to be English style pubs. In real English pubs, beverages are usually served at room temperature and without ice unless requested, the concept of free refills of sodas is unheard of, and few if any places call it «fish and chips” – it’s usually labeled something like «battered haddock.»
All that being written, the most irritating thing was the «12.5% Discretionary Tip» line item on the bill, which, since the service was so unjustifiably poor, we used our discretion and didn’t include but gave exact change. A few seconds after leaving, the waiter came running out and gave me grief about not paying the additional fee. We told him why, and he accepted our reasoning. Bottom line: don’t call it discretionary if it’s not.
And by the way: your food wasn’t all that good. The greasy «battered» whatever fish gave me cramps.

Great Food. Everybody was friendly.

A real nice local pub. We stayed across the street at a crappy hotel.
The bartender was friendly and the atmosphere cozy. Upstairs is a cool section with seating that was being underutilized the day I was there. Some food is served, although I didn’t try any so I can’t report on that. If you are in the area, worth a check out.

This pub is painted fire engine red on the exterior and is frequented by locals. It is conveniently located on the corner, a few doors away from where we stayed at the Hotel Sumner. It has a history of being a holding place (in the cellar) for prisoners who were on their way to be hanged nearby at Marble Arch at the Tyburn Tree (a wooden tri-​legged gallow, not a real tree), built in 1571. Therefore, the pub is known to be haunted.
(Per Wikipedia)… As history tells it, the British were very into public hangings/​executions. They actually paid fees to watch hangings in Tyburn, a small village in Middlesex, what is now known as the Marble Arch area in London. These public spectacles drew thousands. The Tyburn Tree’s last hanging was in 1783 and 3 brass triangles on the pavement now mark the site.
We tried this pub twice because it was nearby. When we entered, the pub was full of men drinking at the bar or tables. You place your food order with the bartender and can eat downstairs w/​the barflies or head upstairs to a quiet room. We had a pitcher of Pibb’s (strawberry liquor with soda water) to try and beer. The pub food was very good! We tried their lamb shank over mashed potato & peas. The steak ale was superb but the 2 bangers were dry. The cost was approx 8 USD per plate, inexpensive compared to what we’ve been paying for food in London.
On another evening, the pub was hopping (tends to be on the weekends) and you could not avoid the tobacco smoke rising to the upstairs room, so we had to open the windows. The steak ale pie was not that great, but the chicken leek pie was pretty good.
They run out of popular dishes rather quickly and only serve food between 12 P-2:30P and 6P-​9P. The bar closes 11 PM M-​Th and 11:30P Fri-​Sat. Closed Sundays.