The best pubs in Canary Wharf

If you’re wondering what the Thames docks might have felt like before their Disneyfication into Docklands, these narrow, ivy-covered and etched-glass premises aren’t a bad place to start. The downstairs room of this riverside pub, which dates from 1720, is all wood panels and nautical jetsam. In 2011 the Grapes was bought by actor Sir Ian McKellen, and he’s been known to host the occassional pub quiz to a captive audience.

The Gun is an attractively spruced-up pub, with attentive staff and stiff prices. It’s suitable for both drinkers and diners, and is definitely a top choice for those into riverside boozing. Its terrace makes it a standout summer find. But hole up in the winter by a roaring fire and behave like Lord Nelson and his mistress once did on this very site.

Take a trek to Limehouse for possibly the funnest pub in the East End. An LGBTQI+ venue with top quality cabaret and drag performers most nights, this old school boozer is friendly as anything and has a chilled out back room if you don’t quite fancy a Bonnie Tyler sing-along. 

Down towards Crossharbour, you’ll find the George, a traditional pub that dates back to 1865 – although you wouldn’t know it on the inside, all bright and breezy decor. There’s a leafy garden and a conservatory for fair-weather gatherings, or stick inside and work your way through a pie and mash menu to suit the east London postcode.

Just because you’re in the financial district doesn’t mean you should have to pay the earth for two pints of lager and a packet of crisps. The Ledger Building is a Wetherspoons pub and it meets all the requirements you’ve come to know and love: naff, patterned carpets; all-day, crowd-pleasing grub (we won’t comment on its quality); and cheap, well-kept beer (and lots of it).