The style of the bar is gorgeous, but they have got certain things wrong... Chronic and offish service, overly loud music everywhere (even in the restaurant part), and some of the dishes were poor (the flatbread dish was really tough and difficult to eat). Ceviche was delicious. This sounds tacky I know, but I do have to say, there are a lot of good looking men in there which gains it an extra star. read more

Same owner as The Folly. The drinks are great for an after-work social. The interior design of the bar is amazing. All of the furniture makes it seem way more posh than the prices. read more

Too busy; stupid expensive lager; only lager; still too busy; all of the gents toilets out of action on a Thursday night ? The queue to the Disabled toilets stretched to Shoreditch. read more

Came here for a weekday lunch with 4 colleagues and left with mixed feelings. On the plus side, I'm a big fan of the quirky décor - pretty lampshades, high ceilings, cutesy chat on the menus, newspaper-wrapped potted plants and tall candles lit on every table. But the service was noticeably slow and maybe it's just me but they lost me a bit when they served the food - I am usually all for interesting presentation, but when I'm paying a tenner for a burger and chips I wasn't really charmed by the small plastic school dinners style tray it arrived on (not that I'm a snob honest, but where do you put the ketchup?!). Luckily it tasted good (though most things do when they're topped with blue cheese mmm), and scampi looked like another good choice for next time (served in a basket on a plank of wood). Fine for lunch if you're in the area, just don't expect a plate! read more

An evening out with girlfriends on a Friday night...nice atmosphere in the dining room. We did book a table in advance at 7pm and it was a bit quiet, however, the bar area was quite busy. Gets a bit crowded as the hours pass. Food was nice, service was a bit rocky at the start as it was quite noisy and the waitress couldn't understand my friend so our wine order was wrong and it was a bit overboard...as it seemed she was getting a little too sarcastic to bear...so nipped it quickly and requested another waitress to serve us. The new waitress was wonderful so our night didn't get ruined. After dinner, we shifted to the bar area and joined the dance floor. Nice place if you want to eat, drink, and then dance all in one place. read more

A very modern bar with private spaces on the ground floor for small gatherings, located right in the centre of the city. It usually gets pretty packed on weekday especially on Thursday and Friday but the staff there are very friendly and some super attractive ones! They have some good bar food as well with lots of space on the restaurant area. The music is great here and people can stand outside on a summers day. Definitely a good hang out place for city workers and a pleasant one even for a large group because space is definitely what they've got! read more

Aha the Anthologist... If you're over 30 this place will make you feel old. Everyone in here is much younger. It seems to be the cool hang out spot for the young and upcoming workers in the area. Inside it might as well be any other chain pub. Standard platter grub, standard selection of drinks, and very little to distinguish it from anywhere else. read more

Stopped in here on a Monday night with some co-workers. The place is nice enough, quite chic, dimly lighted, very spacious. The beer selection is limited and the Adnams Bitter I had was not in the greatest condition. I don't think the prices were super reasonable, but I didn't pay so can't comment with any conviction. This really isn't my kind of haunt but I didn't mind it. A solid three stars. read more

The Anthologist bar and restaurant is tucked away near the gorgeous Guildhall, a Roman amphitheatre and a 17th century place of worship (the Lord Mayor of London's official church). The area is steeped in history being the location of the great fire of London in 1666. Here you have an area where the old truly meets the new. Catering to the drinking and eating needs of investment bankers and the like, pops up The Anthologist. This is a solid after work celebration and party venue. If you want quiet and calm, this is not the place for you. After work guys and dolls line the street outside the venue when it is warm, but also the big bar area. The restaurant is full of groups having fun. Perhaps not best for a first date the latter part of the week, as the room is full of good looking singles. Too much temptation for a Tinder nation. The drinks are great, the food is good. The staff are a key element though, with gorg gals as you come in, a hot Bar Manager, a General Manager who is a bit of a sort and we had the pleasure of the Area Manager making an appearance, again lush. What is it with this co, is it part and parcel that you need to be appealing enough to appear on the menu too? Well as I am spoken for, I will let someone else select one of these dishes, but food and drink wise, a big yes for me. In particular they have some great bar snacks such as prawn lollipops, flatbread with crispy duck flatbread cucumber, spring onion and hoisin. We also enjoyed a mezze board with bulgur wheat salsa, hummus, baba ghanoush, harissa, pickled chillies and olives. As the evening draws on, you get to enjoy some good tunes to throw some shapes at. Simple harmless fun is what this Drake & Morgan establishment promises and delivers. read more

Quite like the Anthologist, despite it being seen as the local "meat market" from Thursday to Saturday, it always has a nice atmosphere. Food is good and I've dined both with friends and for business. It's full of young suits and kind of reminds me of Ally McBeal - if only Robert Downey Jr was to show up *wink wink* read more

Went here on a Thursday evening for dinner with a friend from out of town. It was impossible to have a conversation because the bar and the music were so loud. Food was average, service was terrible. The only good thing was that the decor was nice and the food was reasonably priced. read more

Top place, with good food, great wine list, imaginative decor and a real buzz, even mid week. Huge restaurant and bar with different sections catering for different clientale. There are intimate(ish) tables for two by the window, regular tables for 4-6 people, spaces for larger parties, and wagamama style benches. Similar range of dishes to All Bar One, but a cut above, and more imaginatively presented. Highly recommended. read more

One of my favourite places in the City! Absolutely love it for both dinner and clubbing, just love it! The food is really gorgeous and it's got a gastro-pubby style going on. There's a huge selection on the menu and it really takes me absolutely forever to decide on what to order, before working my charm on my friends to persuade them to order whatever else I am craving! It's a really great place for big groups before the night continues in the area, they have these mahousive tables akin to fancy canteen benches back in the day. The only downside of having dinner there is that it's absolutely huge and drinks are held just next to the table - so it's packed to bits after work with all the city workers and everyone is getting near to screaming down their neighbour's ear especially with the music going up a couple of notches every 30 minutes. Also like another yelper noted before, the food is served on wooden slabs - having ribs on a slippery gooey sauce after a few large glasses of wine ends up to be quite a messy task. Ditch the cutlery and dig in with your hands, it's too crowded to notice the lack of table manners! Having been there for clubbing also, I can definitely vouch for that as well. I love how they play R&B and hiphop, one of the rare gems in London! Drinks are a tad expensive, but definitely less than some other clubs in London. The crowd was really good - definitely well dressed but the atmosphere was chilled and everyone was there just for a good time rather than people watching. So yes, it was love at first sight and I am definitely going back for more! read more

lovely airy room with well laid out dining and bar areas. Friends of mine have used this place for causal sandwiches / fast lunches etc. and found it good so I booked a table with a colleague for a working lunch. The waiter was harassed, offhand and didn't know the menu - he ran through the specials. allowed me to order seafood ... then came back ten mins later and said it was not available. They sold me a crab and crayfish linguine which took an hour and ten minutes ( despite repeated requests for my food), cost £12.95 and when it arrived the crab was giving off an aggressive aroma and very clearly off. Whilst they didn't charge me for this experience I shan't be back ....this place is overpriced for what it is, the service is sloppy at best and you get the sense they are just milking the cash flow it until it falls over ...maybe a little harsh but that's the sense I got .... AVOID read more

Good lunchtime atmosphere. I enjoyed the Grey Mullet and Chinese noddles. Quick and pleasant service.

Not bad. My steak and lobster was excellent and the reef beef and bubbles deal is great value for money. Only downside was my girlfriend's food was a bit of a let down and I think we picked the wrong night as the music was very loud and we could hear each other talk. Still a great place for a meal before a night out! read more

Really noisy City bar/restaurant but they do good food. I'd go again but it's not suitable if you want to have a serious conversation.

One of the worst dining experiences I have had in my life. Been here a few times now, purely for convenience as its underneath my office. Do not, and I repeat, DO NOT waste your time or money going to the Anthologist. The Décor is quite good, the food is average and the service is astonishingly bad. The waiters/staff are so rude, ignorant and downright obnoxious you will be actively shocked. I endured one waiter shouting and swearing at the top of his voice in the middle of the restaurant for some 5/6 minutes. Once I asked him to be quiet he rolled his eyes, offered no apology and simply walked off to other recount the story to the other staff, only for them to find it particularly funny. The bad service continued for the rest of the meal. Be carefull if you choose to use this venue for a business lunch/meeting as you will be left embarrassed. - Incredibly rude staff - Average to poor food - Awful venue for business lunch/drinks - Even worse if you're trying to impress read more

Came here for drinks on a summer evening as a break from my usual spots, and boy, was it busy. The indoors area is huge (I don't even know how to describe it... it can definitely fit at least 150 people), and there are plenty of tables for groups to sit and drink, or even nibble on some food. I was hungry so I ordered some chips at the bar, and I only had to wait like 2 minutes before a waitress brought a fresh order over, and they were some pretty decent chips! The service was surprisingly fast, given that the place was packed. I was only with one other friend, so we went outside to enjoy our food/drinks, and the entire pavement was like an extension of the bar and we grabbed a seat at one of their outdoor tables (that have blankets on the back of the chairs!). When we went in for our second drink, they had started playing club music, but the crowds had started thinning out (about quarter to eight-ish). I have a friend who said she went here on a date... in my opinion, this place is too busy/crazy/packed for a date, but perfect for after-work drinks! read more

Just another one of those overated "city bars"! Took forever to get served and far too busy. Only one positive - nice loos!

Attended a hen night at The Anthologist in summer 2010. You need to call in advance to book a seating area and pay a (refundable) deposit of around £50. The entry process to the club was rather annoying we got there very early and there was barely anyone inside the club, yet they made a real thing about making us stand around and letting only one member of our group go in at a time as if the place was SO busy they wouldn't be able to handle more than one customer at a time. Everyone had to have their names checked off a list and they just took ages finding each name! We had booked a seating area for 16 people. Once the whole group was inside, we were escorted to our seating area and shown where our tables/seats were. The bar was close to where we sat and the prices were reasonable considering it's a central London venue. The music was fabulous all night good 80s and 90s dance music and the evening went really well apart from one niggle. The seating was such that we had several tables and a corner seat. The people sitting on the next batch of tables to us seemed to be quite miserable and complained to the management that we had overflowed into their seats which was rather odd as we had been told where we could sit. We didn't realise it was almost a criminal offence to overspill slightly and we were scolded quite severely for not sitting in the right seats. It would have been understandable had the other group actually had enough people to use all of their seating but they didn't. This incident almost put a dampener on our mood but we ensured everyone in our group knew not to make the same mistake during the evening unfortunately it didn't stop the other group glaring at us for the rest of the evening. Overall we had a very enjoyable evening music was great and drinks priced such that it didn't break the bank although I'd add that the bar staff could do with paying a bit more attention to which customers have been waiting to be served the longest. Visited more recently (Feb 2012) and found it amazing that they kept us waiting outside in the freezing cold (and it was snowing) for 20 minutes after the opening time without giving any apology or explanation. The music was not as good as the previous time I'd visited and although we had reserved a fairly large table for our group of 30, we found the bar staff were constantly swiping drinks from our table which were still half full, once when I actually stopped one of the staff who'd picked up a drink and said it wasn't finished, he gave it back with no apology but as he'd had his fingers in the glass when picking it up, I waved him away with the glass. This collecting of glasses with drinks in was extremely annoying you can't basically stand guard at both ends of a table when most of your pals are dancing and who wants to make a fuss in the middle of a club about this happening? This has basically put me off wanting to go there again. Rating changed from 3 out of 5 to 2 out of 5. read more

Have now eaten here twice, both at lunchtimes and was very impressed both times. The decor is fantastic, there has been some real effort gone into the design of this place, and it seems the city people really appreciate this as it has been packed both times I have been. Service is good, as is the food, but for me, the menu lacks any imagination and offers nothing new to diners. First time I had the chicken club, second time the fish and chips....I'll probably be back again soon, and hopefully they will have added to the menu by then! read more

excellent service! great relaxed atmosphere, friendly crowd. been here a few times always a fun night out

i love this place - i came last thursday for a friends birthday party which was in the dark pig bar? i think thats what its called - it was downstairs hidden away from the main bar and was great - very dark with candles everywhere, funky cocktails and a nice nibbles menu. will be back for my birthday next month! read more

Too loud, service not great, but lively and the food's good.

Although you have to sign up to a guest list to get in, there's not much I could fault this place on other than the price of the drinks but for the area it's to be expected. The music was good but the DJ on that night seemed reluctant to leave a song on for longer than a minute. Other than that, a good place to go for a fun boogy with friends. read more

we've booked the studio (funky private room that looks like 50's style kitchen) for a company do, had a DJ and a cocktail bar tender who was mixing up some smashing cocktails for us all night long. canapes were amazing and went down really well :) needless to say the night was a huge success and we're planning our next event at the folly which is their sister site by the monument tube station read more