A powder-blue Georgian gastropub on Barnsbury Street in Islington, holding a Michelin Bib Gourmand and known for its Sunday roast.
The Drapers Arms occupies a powder-blue Georgian building on Barnsbury Street, a quiet Islington side street about halfway between Angel and Highbury and Islington. It was gastro-fied in 2001 and has stayed one of London's most respected gastropubs since.
Come for the food, especially the Sunday roast, with a pint or a glass from a smart wine list. Skip it if you want a quick anonymous pint, because this is a dining pub where the kitchen leads.
Downstairs is the pub proper, battered tables and chairs around a bright green central bar. Upstairs is a calmer dining room with high ceilings, candelabras and a chequerboard floor.
The Infatuation describes it as the kind of neighbourhood pub every area wishes it had, equal parts local boozer and serious restaurant.
There is real ale on the bar and a wine list that runs deeper than most pubs, so order a pint of cask or ask the staff to point you at a glass that suits your plate. Pints sit around seven pounds.
The food is the real draw. The roast belly pork, beef or chicken with Yorkshire pudding is the order on a Sunday, and the kitchen holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand for its value cooking.
The crowd is Barnsbury locals, Islington families on a Sunday, and food-led visitors who book ahead for dinner.
What to order
- 01
A pint of cask ale
- 02
A glass from the wine list
- 03
The Sunday roast
- 04
A classic cocktail
