The Hawley Arms

The Hawley Arms stands on Castlehaven Road by Camden Lock, a minute from the markets and a short walk from Camden Town station. It is Camden's most famous music pub, a regular haunt of Amy Winehouse and a fixture for the Libertines crowd in the 2000s. After the 2008 Camden Market fire damaged it, the pub reopened in 2009, a story NME tracked closely.

This is a pub that runs on its music heritage and its roof terrace. Camden regulars, gig-goers, and fans on a pilgrimage fill it most nights. Anyone after a refined cocktail lounge will not find it here. Anyone who wants a loud, rock-leaning Camden pub with a terrace will get exactly that.

The ground floor keeps a classic Camden pub feel, dark and music-soaked, with band posters and a well-worn bar. It fills loud and fast on gig nights.

The roof terrace is the prize, a rare outdoor perch above the Camden streets that draws a queue on warm evenings. Upstairs adds extra room for the weekend crush. The space is built for crowds and noise, not for quiet corners.

The bar runs a dependable cask ale or two, a full lager lineup, and the usual spirits. A pint sits around £6.50. This is a beer-and-shots pub at heart, not a cocktail room, and it does not pretend otherwise.

Order a pint and head for the terrace if there is space. The kitchen does pub food to soak up a long session. Reviewers on Google Maps come for the atmosphere and the history more than the drinks list.

Evenings draw a young, music-leaning Camden crowd, swelled by gig-goers and visitors paying respects to the pub's history. Weekend nights are packed and loud, with the terrace at a premium.

Regulars on r/london flag it as a Camden institution that lives up to the legend, while warning that it is heaving after dark on weekends. Weekday afternoons are calmer for a first look.

• "A proper Camden institution, the terrace is the best seat in NW1." — r/london
• "Came for the Amy Winehouse history, stayed for the atmosphere." — Google review (n=2,600+)
• "Rammed on weekends but that is the whole point. Pure Camden." — Google review

• ✓ Music fans and Camden history seekers
• ✓ A drink on a rare central roof terrace
• ✓ A loud, late Camden night
• ✗ Avoid if you want quiet, cocktails, or elbow room on weekends

Sources: The Hawley Arms official site (2026-05); NME (Camden fire coverage); r/london; Google Maps reviews (n=2,600+).