Wine Dine and Play: The Dickens Inn

A Tale of Two Pubs

London, United Kingdom

Dined in October 2010

By Sean Overpeck (CFE)

Charles Dickens is famed for many great works in English literature, and eating some pub grub while reading great expectations may he a good way to spend an afternoon. The Dickens Inn is like a Tale of Two Cities. You have the new London and its modern take on pub grub which has become more farm to table and bistro in style, and then you have the classic pub style. The Dickens Inn fits in as an 18th century pub and restaurant, with that modern bistro take, located in the heart of St Katharine Docks. With balcony dining, large beer garden, and views of Tower Bridge, Tower of London, and the Shard, it makes it an ideal location to stop for a modern take on pub grub. The building was originally a warehouse and is broken down by three parts, a grill, pizzeria, and a tavern bar.

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Main review:

I dined here while visiting London with my father where we went to the O2 Arena to watch the 25th anniversary stage performance special of Les Misérables, along with 32,000 other people. A double bonus was the special surprise performance of Colm Wilkinson as one of the best Jean Valjean on record, Sining Bring Him Home. The Dickens Inn was a lunch stop over before heading to the concert, so we ate light. Their grill menu was broken down by:

Starters and small plates
Sandwiches and Salads
Mains
Burgers
Sides
Weekend Roast

The bar and pizza menus were similar to the either the feature of snacks and of course pizza. The grill menu read almost like a comfy modern bistro versus the old style classical pub grub with ribeye and rump steaks, mixed grills for mains, and brie or pâté under starters.

Overall for tourists or locals it is a good place to stop in for a quick bite, but not a true representation of the old pub grub style. It doesn’t meet the qualifications for an old fashioned pub, and is more sensationalized by name recognition, but still worth trying out if your in the area.

Other Noteworthy Pub and Bar Restaurant Favorites:

Sloppy Joe’s Bar in Key West, Florida

First Flight Wine Bar at the Tampa International Airport, Tampa, Florida

Harlequin Public House in Christchurch, New Zealand

Pike Brewing Company in Seattle, Washington

Guilroy’s in Dublin, Ireland

Captain Tony’s Saloon in Key West, Florida

Texas Chili Parlor in Austin, Texas

Rowe Bar at the Loews Don CeSar, in St. Pete Beach, Florida

O’Maddy’s Bar and Grille in Gulfport, Florida

Final notes and observations:

What is a restaurant review? Is one better than the other? These and several other questions are what I hear from foodies, and readers alike. Restaurants ask how the rating system is broken down. Remember that reviews you read online are subjective, but they should also be responsibly, and respectfully written, upholding the truth and accurately conveying the experience. My job is to put you at the table next to me, and to always be objective and not subjective. Hopefully I succeeded with that. Being impeccable with my word, never taking anything that happens at the restaurant personally, being honest in the review, never make assumptions, and to always write to the best of my knowledge.

My ratings are notated by the level of stars awarded from 0 to 5. The star rating is based on the calculation and point accumulation of six separate factors with nearly seventy questions broken down by individual experiences such as wine and other beverage selection, plate presentation, customer service, restaurant or café ambiance, food quality, plus a bonus section called the wow factor. To see more details on how I do my ratings read this article:

What Is A Restaurant Review, And Am I Any Different?

Over all from this experience, and using my rating system linked above, I give The Dickens Inn a 1 out of 5 stars, meaning that they met my expectations for an average dining experience, but above the standards of other restaurants.

Corkage fee’s:	The Restaurant does not list any corkage fee’s however, most American restaurants charge $25.00 per bottle
Restaurant style:	Casual
Reservations:	Not Required, But Recommended Walk-Ins: Accepted, but not guaranteed
Dress code:	Casual attire
Child policy:	The Restaurants reviewed on this site may have a child’s menu or cater to them; however for full enjoyment of food and wine, it is recommended for children not to be in attendance, unless they have been trained in proper etiquette. If not then Hire a Babysitter!
Cuisine style:	Contemporary, Modern, Lounge, British, Bar foods, Pizza, & Vegetarian
Experiences:	Trendy, Lounge, Business parties, Hot spot, Great bar, Great outdoor dining, Good for special occasions, Rustic, Scenic views, Tourist grabber, and a Neighborhood gem.
Payments:	Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express
Parking:	Valet or Street Parking
Wifi	The restaurants reviewed on this site may have Wi-Fi, but do not require you to go online, because the excitement of the food and wine alone will keep you too entertained instead of checking your social media and emails.
Noise level:	Medium to Loud
Smoking:	Nonsmoking restaurant, with smoking patio
Patio:	Yes

Other London Restaurant reviews on Wine, Dine, and Play:

Mr. Todiwala’s Kitchen in Slough, UK (Vibrant Pan-Indian Cuisine)

The Medieval Banquet at St Katharine Docks, in London, UK (Medieval style dinner with show)

The Ivy in the Theatre District, London, UK (modern British in Art Deco Space)

The Dickens Inn:

St Katharine's Way

St Katharine's & Wapping

London E1W 1LA,

Contact Information:

Maître d or host:	+44 20 7488 2208
Online reservations	OpenTable
Restaurant website:	The Dickens Inn
Serving hours: Greenwich Mean Time British Summer Time BST (GMT, Zulu, or UTC - BST Offset + 1:00)	Dinner: Mon-Fri 11:00 am - 11:00 pm Sat-Sun 9:00 am - 11:30 pm
Email contact:	Contact The Dickens Inn
Social Media & Accolades:	Facebook link
	Twitter @DickensInn1
	YouTube
	Instagram

****

The worlds best, based on my list of restaurants reviewed and rated at 4 or more stars. From the 300 published reviews as of March 2017, less than 15% hold that prestigious ranking of 4 or 5 stars, meaning that the visit was an outstanding or extraordinary experience. I have dined at restaurants on five continents from cafes, chains, and fine dining best of the world Michelin rated locations. Not all of the worlds best ratings are the same as mine.

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Quay Quintessential Modern Australian Cuisine Sydney, Australia	Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud Impeccably Acclaimed French Cuisine Dublin, Ireland	The French Laundry French-American Fine Dining Yountville, Napa, California, USA
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Attica Inventive Eclectic Tasting Menus Ripponlea, Melbourne, Australia	Leopard Hills Lodge Safari + Upscale African Cuisine Sabi Sand Game Reserve, South Africa	Rioja Creative Mediterranean Cuisine Denver, Colorado, USA
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McCrady’s Inspired Farm-to-Table Dining Charleston, South Carolina, USA

So many great wines in this world, here are a few boutiques, cult wines, and favorites:

Meerlust Wine Estate Rubicon A 1756 Estate Famed Rubicon Blend Stellenbosch, South Africa	Hoopes Vineyard Big, Bold, Cult Cabernets Oakville, California, USA
Jonata Winery Screaming Eagles Sister Santa Barbara, California, USA	Yarra Yering Agincourt, Waterloo, Salamanca Yarra Valley, Australia
Penner Ash Wine Cellars Boutique Producers of Pinot Noir Willamette, Oregon	La Motte Old Huguenot Style Shiraz & Cabernets Franschhoek, South Africa
Château Lanessan A Cru Bourgeois Supérieur Cussac-Fort-Médoc, Bordeaux, France	Bergström Wines World Class Oregon Pinot Noir Willamette, Oregon
Biltmore Estate Winery 20+ Blue Ridge Handcrafted Wines Asheville, North Carolina, USA	Domaine Bertagna 13th Century Cistercian -1er Cru Les Cras Vougeot, Burgundy, France
Ghost Block Vineyards Exceptional Cult Sauvignon Blanc & Cabernets Yountville, California	Eagles Nest Winery Not Kehlsteinhaus, Exceptional Shiraz Constantia, South Africa

Reviewed by:

Sean Overpeck (CFE)

Executive Chef

Father, Husband, Wine Drinker

Restaurant nut, History and

Star Trek lover

winedineandplayblog@gmail.com

Picture below was taken in London

2010 at Kings Cross Station with

Harry Potter's Platform 9 3/4

About Sean:

I am based out of St. Petersburg, Florida working in the food service industry for over twenty years, and am currently with the American Embassy as the Executive Chef. Formally I have worked with groups contracting in Afghanistan, and Antarctica, also working in restaurants in and around Atlanta, Georgia prior to the wars. I have also owned a catering company and served proudly in the United States Army Food Service Program. The idea for Wine, Dine, and Play started in late 2012 after a trip to Jordan, when I was asked by friends to write down the experiences from a few restaurants, wine from the region that I tasted, and locations of interest such as Petra. Since that time, over 300 articles have been written, including fifteen restaurants from the worlds top 100 lists of San Pellegrino and the Elite Travelers Guide. There are articles on exotic world locations such as Victoria Falls, and South African Safari’s; food recipes & Grand Food Dictionaries; ethnic country cuisines such as Afghan, and Peruvian; tasting tours of world cities like Charleston, Cape Town, and Dubai; and of course wine from vineyards in California, Oregon, the Carolina’s, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia, with much more to see and write about.

Who is John Galt?

“Culinary perfection consists not in doing extraordinary things,

But in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.”

-Angelique Arnauld (1591-1661)