I don’t think I have ever wondered whether the area where Fetter Lane spills into the heart of Fleet Street needs another pub. After all, from here to St Bride’s and along the other way to Aldwych the streets are lined with good old-fashioned pubs still thriving decades after the print trade vacated the neighbourhood. Still, the Editor’s Tap (formerly a Slug & Lettuce) has turned up willing to give it a go, and a few of the local workers seem to have taken to it. You know the type: loosened ties, shirt sleeves rolled up, slightly sweaty for no apparent reason. This kind of pub draws them in, like moths to a flame; it’s a bright, open and echoey boozer, lined with big screens full of sport. In short, it hardly looks like the ‘craft pub’ it claims to be.
Unsurprisingly, most craft beer came in cans, too. And the drink selection from the pumps was poor and not particularly well kept. A pint of Woodforde’s Wherry took an age to pour and longer to settle, while a lively pale ale was served with a third of a pint of head. When I mentioned it, the staff just made a joke. Suffice to say, the old haunts on Fleet Street have very little to worry about.