Kensington Pubs: The Best Pubs and Where to Drink

The Kensington pubs people search for are the Churchill Arms on Kensington Church Street, famous for its flowers and its Thai kitchen; the Windsor Castle on Campden Hill, which has one of the best-preserved historic pub interiors in the country; the Uxbridge Arms off Notting Hill Gate; and the Fox and Pheasant in Chelsea. Every entry was checked against the pub’s own website on 26 October 2026.

We have not visited these pubs for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Each entry sets out what the pub says about itself, with hours as published, and adds the public record: the Food Standards Agency (FSA) hygiene rating and, where there is one, the Campaign for Real Ale’s (CAMRA) entry on its National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.

Kensington and Holland Park

The Churchill Arms, Kensington Church Street

The Churchill Arms is a Fuller’s pub that describes itself as “one of London’s most recognisable and famous watering holes”, “dripping in flowers and crammed with memorabilia”. It says it was built in 1750, that it was frequented by Winston Churchill’s grandparents, and that its Thai kitchen has been cooking regional dishes for over 35 years. It calls itself “London’s most Christmassy pub”. Over Christmas its bar tables are first come, first served and the restaurant is walk-in only, with no bookings. It lists itself as dog friendly and welcoming to families. Open 11am to 11pm Monday to Saturday and 12pm to 10.30pm on Sunday; food 12pm to 9.30pm (9pm Sunday). Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 29 July 2026). 119 Kensington Church Street, W8 7LN. Call 020 7727 4242. Our listing.

The Windsor Castle, Campden Hill Road

The Windsor Castle sits in the back streets between Notting Hill, Holland Park and Kensington, and calls itself “an iconic London pub”. It is Grade II listed (Historic England, first listed 4 March 2010), and its interior is rated three stars, the highest grade, on CAMRA’s National Inventory. CAMRA explains that the wooden screens dividing the bar date from a 1933 refit, which made three small rooms: the Sherry Bar off Peel Street, the Private Bar on the corner and the Campden Bar along Campden Hill Road. It lists the pub as dog friendly, with a smoking garden. Open 11am to 11pm Monday to Thursday, to midnight on Friday and Saturday, and 11am to 10.30pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 11 June 2025). 114 Campden Hill Road, W8 7AR. Call 020 7243 8797. Our listing.

The Elephant and Castle, Holland Street

The Elephant and Castle is a Nicholson’s pub a short walk north-east of Kensington Town Hall. Its own page says Nicholson’s prides itself on “perfect pints and unbeatable pies”, and that the pub’s name may come from Catherine of Aragon’s title, the Infanta de Castilla, or from the war elephant on the emblem of the Cutlers’ Company. CAMRA says it was first licensed in 1865 as a beer house in two adjoining houses, and rates its little-changed 1950s interior one star on the National Inventory, noting the Charrington mirrored bar-back lettered “Toby Ale”. CAMRA lists it as dog friendly and gives hours of 11am to 11pm Tuesday to Saturday (from noon on Monday) and noon to 10.30pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 23 September 2026). 40 Holland Street, W8 4LT. Call 020 7937 6382.

The Scarsdale Tavern, Edwardes Square

The Scarsdale Tavern is a Fuller’s pub on Edwardes Square, south of Kensington High Street. It describes itself as “a delightful pub in Kensington” with “fine food and peaceful ambience”, and says its menu is “refined pub classics crafted from fresh, seasonal ingredients”. Its listed features include a garden, outside seating, a real fire and a covered smoking area, and it says it is dog friendly. Open 12pm to 11pm Monday to Saturday and 12pm to 10.30pm on Sunday; food 12pm to 10pm (9pm Sunday). Book on its website. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 3 February 2025). 23a Edwardes Square, W8 6HE. Call 020 7937 1811. Our listing.

The Britannia, Allen Street

The Britannia is a Young’s pub just off Kensington High Street, and calls itself “everything you want from a proper London pub”. It names its fish and chips, cider-battered haddock with triple-cooked chips, as “the star of the show”, alongside burgers, a specials board and Sunday roasts. It has a monthly pub quiz, and says it has private and semi-private spaces for parties. On dogs it says “dogs are welcome at The Britannia”, with water bowls and treats. Open 11am to 11pm daily; food 12pm to 9pm, to 10pm on Friday and Saturday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 12 August 2026). 1 Allen Street, W8 6UX. Call 020 7937 6905.

Notting Hill

The Uxbridge Arms, Uxbridge Street

The Uxbridge Arms, “the Ux”, is a back-street local off Notting Hill Gate. It says it is “the most welcoming pub in W8”, claims the “best Guinness in the area”, and names its Irish stew as the dish to order. There is live music on Tuesdays, sport on the screens and a Sunday quiz from 7pm, which it suggests booking by email. On dogs it says it is “the friendliest pub in W8 to our legged friends”. CAMRA dates it to 1836 as a beer house and rates its inter-war interior one star on the National Inventory. Open 12pm to 11pm on Saturday and 12pm to 10.30pm on Sunday, per its site. Hygiene rating 4 (FSA, 28 October 2025). 13 Uxbridge Street, W8 7TQ. Call 020 7792 1362. Our listing.

The Ladbroke Arms, Ladbroke Road

The Ladbroke Arms calls itself “Notting Hill’s hidden gem”, a neighbourhood pub on a leafy residential road near Notting Hill Gate and Holland Park. It says it has won “The Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence three years in a row”, and it promotes its Sunday roasts. It lists itself as dog friendly and family friendly. Open 12pm to 11pm Monday to Saturday and 12pm to 10.30pm on Sunday. Food is served 12pm to 3pm and 5pm to 9pm on weekdays (to 9.30pm on Thursday), 12pm to 9.30pm on Friday and Saturday, and 12pm to 8.30pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 5 October 2026). 54 Ladbroke Road, W11 3NW. Call 020 7727 6648.

The Sun in Splendour, Portobello Road

The Sun in Splendour stands at the Notting Hill Gate end of Portobello Road. It describes itself as combining “British pub hospitality with individuality, character and quirky charm” and offering “an explorative drinks menu”. It opens earlier than most: 10am to 11pm Monday to Thursday, 10am to midnight on Friday and Saturday, and 11am to 10.30pm on Sunday. On Christmas Day it opens 11am to 6pm. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 5 November 2025). 7 Portobello Road, W11 3DA. Call 020 7792 0914. Our listing.

South Kensington

The Queen’s Arms, Queen’s Gate Mews

The Queen’s Arms is tucked into a mews off Queen’s Gate, a few minutes’ walk south of the Royal Albert Hall. It calls itself “discreetly stylish, authentically British”, serving lunch, Sunday roasts, dinner and brunch with “cask ales, craft beers, fine wines and artisan spirits”. Open 11am to 11pm Monday to Saturday and 12pm to 10.30pm on Sunday. On Christmas Day it opens 12pm to 6pm. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 30 April 2025). 30 Queen’s Gate Mews, SW7 5QL. Call 020 7823 9293.

The Anglesea Arms, Selwood Terrace

The Anglesea Arms says Charles Dickens once lived at number 11 on its street and that the site began as a market garden and nursery in 1712. It held one AA Rosette in 2019 and 2020, and quotes SquareMeal naming it “one of the best pubs in London”. It is an over-21s pub. Dogs are welcome in the pub, but its restaurant has “a strict no dog policy”. Open 12pm to 10pm Monday to Thursday and Sunday, and to 11pm on Friday and Saturday; food 12pm to 9pm (9.30pm Friday and Saturday). Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 13 May 2025). 15 Selwood Terrace, SW7 3QG. Call 020 7373 7960. Our listing.

Chelsea and West Brompton

The Surprise, Christchurch Terrace

The Surprise is a freehouse in the back streets between the King’s Road and the Royal Hospital. It calls itself “refreshingly independent, proudly local” and “a neighbourhood pub and local landmark since 1853”, serving “well-priced, British-inspired cooking”. CAMRA says the name comes from the ship that carried Napoleon’s body back to France, and that the pub is registered as an Asset of Community Value. It has a private dining room, the Hamilton Room. Lunch 12pm to 3pm and dinner 5.30pm to 9.30pm on weekdays, food all day at weekends (to 9.30pm Saturday, 9pm Sunday). The bar is open 12pm to 11pm, 10.30pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 28 September 2026). 6 Christchurch Terrace, SW3 4AJ. Call 020 3837 4600. Our listing.

The Cross Keys, Lawrence Street

The Cross Keys calls itself “a Chelsea institution since 1708” and is run by Butcombe Brewery. It stands a street back from Cheyne Walk and the river. It says it serves brunch, lunch and dinner, “innovative, seasonal dishes” alongside pub classics and Sunday roasts, with real ales, craft beer, wine and cocktails. It also takes bookings for events and Christmas parties. Book on its website. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 28 February 2025). 1 Lawrence Street, SW3 5NB. Call 020 7351 0686. Our listing.

The Admiral Codrington, Mossop Street

The Admiral Codrington is a freehouse between Chelsea and South Kensington, with “Est. 1830” on its website. It belongs to Inda Pubs, which it describes as “an independent family business with 10 West London neighbourhood pubs”. It says it cooks “British pub staples cooked with care”, with a Sunday menu. Upstairs, the Navarino Room seats 36 or takes 70 standing for private hire. Open noon to 11pm Monday to Saturday and noon to 10.30pm on Sunday. The kitchen serves noon to 3pm and 5pm to 10pm on weekdays, noon to 10pm on Saturday and noon to 9pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 7 November 2024). 17 Mossop Street, SW3 2LY. Call 020 7581 0005.

The Fox and Pheasant, Billing Road

The Fox and Pheasant calls itself “a little country pub tucked away in a corner of Chelsea”, a few streets from Stamford Bridge. CAMRA says the singer James Blunt bought it in 2017 and restored it before it reopened in 2018. It rates the inter-war interior two stars on the National Inventory, and notes the off-sales hatch in the lobby. Drinks tables in the pub are first come, first served. Bookings are for the conservatory restaurant, and for the pub itself only at Sunday lunch, with at least one main course a head. Open 4pm to 11pm on Monday, noon to midnight Tuesday to Saturday, and noon to 11pm on Sunday. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 4 September 2026). 1 Billing Road, SW10 9UJ. Call 020 7352 2943.

How we chose

These are the Kensington, Notting Hill and Chelsea pubs people search for. We chose them on the public record rather than on taste: CAMRA’s National Inventory and Historic England’s listings, how long a pub has stood, what each pub publishes about itself, and the FSA hygiene rating. Nothing here is rated below 4 (our floor is 3), which is why the Grenadier in Belgravia, rated 2 in September 2025, is not included. We left out pubs whose own website we could not check on the day. Hours are as each pub published them on 26 October 2026. They change around Christmas, so check before you go.

Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@thekensingtonpost.co.uk.

For more to do locally, see Kensington restaurants, Sunday roast in Kensington, things to do in Kensington, what’s on in Kensington this month, and every pub in our Kensington business directory.

Frequently asked questions

Which Kensington pubs have historic interiors?

Four pubs in this guide are on CAMRA’s National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors. The Windsor Castle on Campden Hill Road has the top three-star rating and is Grade II listed. The Fox and Pheasant in Chelsea has two stars. The Elephant and Castle on Holland Street and the Uxbridge Arms off Notting Hill Gate each have one star.

Which Kensington pubs allow dogs?

The Churchill Arms, the Scarsdale Tavern and the Britannia all list themselves as dog friendly, and the Uxbridge Arms calls itself the friendliest pub in W8 for dogs. The Ladbroke Arms lists itself as dog friendly. The Anglesea Arms allows dogs in the pub but not in its restaurant.

Can you book a table at the Churchill Arms at Christmas?

No. The Churchill Arms says that over Christmas its bar tables are first come, first served and its restaurant is walk-in only, so it does not take bookings.