The Dickens Inn Reviews

Absolutely fantastic location. Great looking pub with all the history & class packed into it. Top-class COVID-19 measures in place.

Sadly it all ends there. The Dickens Inn unfortunatley doesn't quite know how to manage the establishment when it gets too busy or when they've evidently taken on too many people. We were seated on the first floor and when we arrived at 2pm, everything was going fine. We would order from the table and someone would drop off the drinks within 10-15 minutes which is what the application highlights as the waiting time. Closer to 4pm, when the place was brimming with people, my friend ordered a beer and there was no sign of the beer come 4.45pm. We had a dinner reservation and went downstairs to signal this to the staff who actually had the beer ready & waiting at the bar but had no one who could pick it up. Eventually, he just asked for a refund on the beer and they were happy to process it.

How can you let in so many people during COVID-19 when you are fully aware that drinks & food can only be ordered through an app? Surely in the background you know that you only have staff that can cope with 50 people and surely you know that 45 minutes + for one drink is not acceptable? Feel sorry for the staff as this is clearly a decision from the top which has backfired heavily.

Fantastic food and great service. Went upstairs in the grill with my family and they allowed us to choose from the pizzeria menu as well. Enjoyed thoroughly by all of us, especially me as I had the festive burger which was delicious!

Good food and alcohol selection - only issue was that it closed too early!

No heaters in October and the food portions were small and borderline raw. Hope it was just due to being busy on a Sunday...

Very scenic bar with an excellent variety of english beers and drafts. Just a short scenic walk from Tower Bridge ( the pretty bridge everyone thinks is London bridge)

Had our xmas dinner here, food was great, staff really nice and a beautiful pub set in an old fashioned stone building....

Great location. Food stalls out the front with food that smelt heavenly. Good pint of pale ale and great seating area for a look at passers by. Didn't have any food but all looked nice. This place has character and charm and you won't be disappointed by the surroundings either. I understand it's used for wedding receptions, mainly because it's right in the middle of such a popular area. Will definitely return maybe evening time to see it from a different view.

Only visited to book daughters wedding hope it will be nice

Dickens Inn tell your cleaning contractor to pay their cleaners. Hard working people work hard to clean the restaurant day and night, they are barely paid minimum wage and yet not paid what they are due.

Awesome pub. Very nice staff. Beautiful location. Loved it

I have been to the Dickens Inn many times, but on this occasion we noticed that the tables had been rearranged. Our favourite window table now high bench with high stools. Bar staff got my order wrong. I asked for a pint of lager. A half arrived. This was rectified, but I was charged for 2 half pints, more expensive than a pint. Prices are high, but I expect this reflects the venue.

Great setting particularly on a warm sunny day but when it's busy it takes a good 30 minutes queuing before you get served.

Great atmosphere, service, tasty food and beautiful decor.
Definitely 5* from me!
I spent there my anniversary.
Highly recommend!

We absolutely loved the atmosphere here. Prices were steep for food but for drinking they are pretty good. Gorgeous location.

Tourist pub. Great location and beer garden but I would not recommend the food.

A fab pub in a great location. Great on a sunny afternoon.

The food here is trash and over priced. You pay a massive premium for the location. The staff look haggard from the copious complaints they receive. Pub quiz is good though (hard).

Absolutely love the Dickens Inn!
Around St Katherines Docks there are so many cut and paste chain restaurants, so it's great to go to a really authentic place that s steeped in history.
The pub on the ground floor is very good, and not ridiculously expensive. I haven't eaten in the pizza restaurant on the first floor, but it's usually family busy, which is probably a good sign. The grill restaurant on the top floor is very nice. Tasty and fairly priced. When we recently took my three year old, the guy was really nice, chatted with him and gave him some paper and pencils etc.

nice view. dock in the neighborhood really unexpected. Pub food is good, can't say anything about pizza and grill i guess they afe open at evening.

Nice old pub with a good atmosphere. A bit on the expensive touristy side, but still a beautiful place to go to.

Slightly rowdy pub in St. Katherine's Docks, at least today. Average selection of ales and imported lager. Food is available, and you can sit downstairs, upstairs or outside. It's a very large pub, which takes away some of the atmosphere you will find in smaller pubs. All in all it is a decent place for a pint.

Lovely pub, great food in the grill upstairs. Very friendly staff.

Worst place to watch football.
Took an entire half to get served.
One of hottest days of year and all windows and doors closed.
Totally not prepared for amount of people. Only interested in groups who have booked.

Always great atmosphere, just popped in before our meal

Lovely pub and great food and I will be going back.

It also has very helpful staff

The Dickens Inn is situated on the historic St Katharine s Dock. I feel that the pub could be amazing and a local gem but I feel it is let down by the staff, dirty tables and toilets that are in disrepair - my other half went to the toilet and the seat was completely broken - a bit unsafe really. It is a beautiful 18th century building, with beautiful wooden frames on the inside and has so much potential but unfortunately I just felt it was lacking that special touch. It was nice to sit outside the pub but I wouldn t have wanted to sit inside.

Nice location just off the Thames. Standard beer was pricey in comparison locally however.

A disappointment for such a great location. The meals are very basic and very expensive compared to any good pub in London. They also automatically add an optional 12.5% service charge onto the bill which makes the understaffing a bit hard to accept.

What a beautiful pub, we will definitely be returning

The grill part of this place is absolutely phoning it in. Charging above average prices for just about average dining. Plenty of better options nearby.

Nice and typical pub to eat and drink, in a great place.

Overpriced food for the size and quality. Long waiting times, took over half an hour for desserts to come out, only to be told that one of the desserts they didn't have. Was offered a different dish or a refund, chose the refund but again had to wait over 30 minutes to get this (would've been longer if we didn't take the initiative to find out what was happening with the refund as the team leader never came back). Lovely looking pub, but not worth your time or money.

Looks like a traditional pub. We liked the settings but when it came to the meals it was clearly not as outstanding as they claim it. They have an advertisement : best burger in London and seriously it neither looked like nor tasted like the best burger in town... Really disappointed of it.
Nevertheless, it was the good place to go with a buggy and a 4-years old child as we had enough space and place was not too crowded.

Amazing fish and chips, lovely servers, beautiful views of the Tower Bridge, and a great vibe inside the downstairs pub and also the upstairs grill house.

Came for lunch on a Sunday. The kitchen didn't open until 1.30pm! Food good but very small portions.

Nice pub, really love the atmosphere, music and beer. Guys, you are missing 5 stars because you are not serving food on the ground floor. Tried to get food but needed to book on advance, missing the opportunity to taste the food.

Very nice building with 3 excellent restaurants housed inside. Personally recommend the grill on the top floor and the baked camembert with home made real ale chutney. The view from the balcony if you are lucky to have lovely sunshine and get a table adds a pleasant environment to eat and have drinks with friends or that special someone.

Nice food, decent beer. We sat outside and the weather was good.

A great classic, authentic pub which is a refreshing escape from the busy central London, taking in the lovely ambiance of St.Katherines Dock.
Fantastic atmosphere with a great Olde worlde feel.
Despite this we did get some cold chips that were supposed to be chessey but rather a squirty cheese sauce, however they did replace them fairly fast for us.

Comfy chairs and drinkable wine kept us there for several bottles.

Beautiful pub in a prime London location. Nice selection of beers.

Nice traditional pub in the centre of London. Access to tower bridge is easy and a 10 minutes walk from the Tower of London

Restaurant on the top floor is good. Old school great service here and the food is nice. Bar on the ground floor is dire.

Great pub in the summer, cosy pub in the winter. Tried the pizzeria as well, simple and cheap food to fill up on.

The Dickens Inn is a nice place to visit especially on a warm, sunny day thanks to the surrounding area of the dock. On a weekend there is plenty of people watching to be done as the tourists wind their way around the streets. The ground floor (it's actually on the first floor) is the main bar area and as one might expect there is plenty of old wood and flagstones to go round. Outside at Street level there is plenty of seating to take in the views.



All in all it was an enjoyable visit and I would very likely return to try out the grill.

Poor service. We were sat for 20 minutes looking at the menu. After having to call a waitress over, we were told that they did not have any of the things on the menu that we wanted including a Sunday roast as the kitchen is being refurbished. We asked the manager, (her name is Elieana) why they did not tell us or have that they were not making any roasts on the website, she said "why would we when it is only for the next 4 weeks". When I said it would be nice for customers to know before travelling, she turned around and said excuse me sir, we do not think we need to update the website. Rude staff, won't be going back again.

This place is gorgeous. Good atmosphere and lovely views of St Katherines Dock

Oldest restaurant in town and right in the centre of the city yet very calm ambiance. It s historic nature attracts most of the crowd. Food was good and authentic. Must try.

Was one of my London go-to's but my last visit I think will be my last. It felt like walking in on an argument, the barman had a proper sulk on and ordering a drink was a huge inconvenience. Why we bothered staying for food, I don't know, but it has been nice in the past, sadly that has changed too

The venue is fantastic, just standing outside emotes incredible nostalgia for classic old inns that serve great ales and larger.
Even yesterday as it functions at a very small capacity due to covid it was still great. Very well organised, and food was served quick, good staff, cannot wait to return.

Great pub and restaurant, plenty of space inside and out.

This is my local. Large pub with 3 storeys (2 being restaurants) and a beer garden. Superb location on the docks. You can't really go wrong going there with friends for a beer and a bite.

Pleasant location. Staff friendly. Could do with better ale selection.

Great bar in a fabulous location for a summer's evening

Ok pub nice beer though music a little to load at times

The pub is absolutely wonderful and full of character. Its situated in a lovely location St Katherines Dock. Definitely a great place to come and have a few drinks.
Not a big fan of the food however. We ate in the Grill, and i'd say the food was distinctly average - not unbearable, but average. Personally, i feel this place is definitely a fab place to chill with some drinks - but i would go elsewhere for food.

Huge pub with good location in the docks. Very touristy though.

A really big old pub in st Katherine's dock. Great place to sit and have a drink. As you would expect it's not the cheapest place to have a drink but because of location you pay for it. I do love the old architecture and wooden beams it's quiet big too. Space to drink outside and loads of seats inside. They also do food but I didn't have any on this visit. Reason I didn't give it 5 stars is the really REALLY slow service and when you're inside the dodgy bar smell like it needs a deep clean.

Lovely boozer. Good selection of beer, ales,. Fantastic old building.

Stumbled into thier Thursday night quiz and great time. Great service and a fun atmosphere

Marvellous service and food will certainly go there again when in London again

Amazing place to have a drink or food with friends and more

What a beautiful building in magnificent surroundings. Went there with family, to the restaurant on the top floor. I had to negotiate for a long while to convince them to sit us at one of the empty tables. The guy in charge claimed "they were too busy", when it was only 21:00 lots of tables were finishing dinner, and there were lots of spaces available. They turned lots of people away.
The food was good, and we were served quickly after being seated.

Love this little gem. Lots of character and a wonderful to relax. You can feel a bit envious of the beautiful boats.

Nice cozy bar and restaurant. Loved the fish and chips!

Awesome service
Great Food
Recommend the Chicken Wings

Can get very busy and crowded, this leads to a lack of seating or when there are seats available uncleared tables. Would be a nice spot if it was not as crowded.

Nice looking pub and great range of ales on the ground floor. Pizzeria on the first floor and grill/roast restaurant on the second. Place is let down by having a very limited range of drinks on the second floor. Roasts are nice and generous portions. Book early to avoid disappointment though as they sell out fast.

Near Tower Bridge. The is such a historic location on a Marina. Great views good food and libations.

As in english Pubs usefull, order, catch and pay Your beer (or other drinks) at the Service desk. The pizzeria ist in The Fist Floor and The restaurant in the Seconds floor an Outsider in the Grund floor.

The location is awesome, the building very impressive but the interior and beer aren't quite what they used to be.

Avoid,food below standards and staff poorly trained ,good job it's a tourist pub and not needing repeat local trade

I just love it. Great location lovely staff and really nice food. It's one of the best places to eat around tower of London. Very picturesque :) sad to see the pizzeria go... Hopefully it will reopen

Brilliant pub, beautiful location and well priced. Lovely outdoor area in summer but cost inside for winter !

Nice view and good variety of beer. The food is also good, fish and ships are definitely a safe and good dish

A unique place, with good drinks and food in a lovely location.

1.15h waiting for some food... horrible dry curry arrives that looks and tastes 3 days old.