The pub has been lovingly upgraded by a killer team
Once upon a time, circa 1880, the site on the corner of Bethnal Green Road and Club Row sat a pub called The Knave of Clubs, established to serve the community of traders at the Club Row bird market. Since it closed in the 1980s, it’s been home to a variety of restaurants, including Les Trois Garcons in the nineties and Dirty Bones most recently. Now it’s been turned back into a pub courtesy of James Dye (co-owner The Camberwell Arms, Frank’s, and Bambi), Benjy Leibowitz, (formerly of JKS, inHouse and The NoMad in NYC) and Patrick Powell (ex-Allegra, Midland Grand Dining Room and Chiltern Firehouse) – talk about a dream hospo team.
They’ve done a beautiful job with the room, which boasts a deep green ceiling, gorgeous ornate signage on the walls, wooden partitions, and tiling on the entryway. It feels very close to what it might have looked like when it first opened all those years ago – this is most definitely a proper pub – just a little shinier and with extra rotisserie action.
Eat This
That grill in the open kitchen in the corner of the room is a big clue as to what to expect food-wise here. Patrick Powell and Attila Gellen have created a concise menu of dishes that fit the relaxed vibe of the pub but are also executed to a high standard.
Pub snacks are upgraded here; sausage rolls are made with venison, cheese toasties are pimped with leek and red onion, and scotch eggs have a soft prawn mix around a runny-yolked egg and a sweet chilli drizzle. There are also fried things that pair perfectly with a pint, like fried chicken with aioli and bitesize fishcakes with Old Bay seasoning, to nibble on before the main event.
The rotisserie grill is at the heart of the kitchen and the rotisserie chicken is the star of the show, though the herby porchetta with crisp skin is certainly worth an order too. The birds, sourced from Turner & George and served in whole or half portions (we recommend getting it with the chermoula spices for an extra citrusy hit), are soft and succulent. They come with insanely crunchy roasties cooked in chicken fat, a sharp green salad, aioli and slices of baguette – get these soaking in the chicken juices for your final bites.
Drink This
If you do just want to pop in for a drink, you’re well covered as the bar is stocked with beers from independent breweries, Guinness and Allsopp’s Double Diamond – the brewery used to own the pub in the 1930s and it’s now the first pub in east London to have the relaunched beer on tap. If beer isn’t your thing, there’s also a short wine list on offer and they do a mean negroni too.
Why Go
The Knave of Clubs is an instant classic, with a cracking atmosphere, a great drinks selection and a food menu that works perfectly for the setting – it very much feels like a proper pub, rather than one that’s really a restaurant in disguise. And speaking of restaurants, there’s still the NYC-inspired One Club Row to come on the floor above….
Key Information
Address | 25 Bethnal Green Road, London E1 6JX
For more information | theknaveofclubs.co.uk