Hand & Shears

Historical documents record that condemned prisoners were granted their last drink (‘one for the road’) at the ancient Hand & Shears before being led to the gallows at Newgate Prison, & this death-row drinking den looks to have barely changed in the intervening years. Sooty fireplaces & yellowing Victorian sketches are wonderfully archaic features of the partitioned interior – a glorious spot for a pint of Directors Bitter, Greene King IPA or one of the guest ales on tap. The lunchtime menu is happily oblivious to the gastro revolution going on outside: ham, egg & chips sits alongside sausage & mash on the chalked-up board, & there are salads ‘on request’ for that proverbial ‘last meal’.