The Newman Arms

🚇 Goodge Street 🍺 £6.10 Big Penny Lager The Newman Arms is located in the heart of Fitzrovia in central London. The nearest Tube is Goodge Street, it’s a five minute walk to get here. If visiting, make sure you walk through Newman Passage, a covered alleyway to the left of the pub, once nicknamed Murderer's Alley. The pub dates back to 1730 and was once a brothel. If you look up to the top middle window of the pub, you’ll see a mural of a prostitute in a period costume. The pub was rebuilt in 1863 when it was licensed as a beer house. The Newman Arms appears in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four where it was the model for the "Proles" pub. It featured again in his Keep The Aspidistra Flying and in Michael Powell's film Peeping Tom. This is a cosy traditional pub that is set out over three floors. The main bar area is situated on the ground floor and has a panelled servery with a rustic feel. There are some small tables and chairs by the leaded windows and a couple of stools by the bar. If you head downstairs, you’ll find a low lit intimate room with comfy seating. If you head up to the first floor, there is a Georgian panelled room with a secluded booth. The beer selection was all Big Penny (formerly Truman’s) keg beers, except one Fullers cask ale. I decided to try the Big Penny Lager, my pint was decent, price point was average. There is no food served at present. I arrived just before 4pm on a warm Wednesday afternoon in September. The pub was quiet until a group of film and TV workers arrived for an afterwork tipple. The service was great, I was served by the pub’s manager who was welcoming, courteous and kind enough to show me around the pub. I love a central London pub with a bit of history and folklore attached. This is a charming and intimate pub that is easy to settle into. I enjoyed my beer, the setting and the welcoming hospitality. The @newmanarms is definitely one for your list. ℹ️ Info correct on visiting 18.09.24

Nice pub located in the heart of Fitzrovia off the busy streets. Came on a fairly busy Wednesday evening to avoid the rain. I did see on the menu that they had 2 for 1 cocktails. However when I asked the staff about their cocktails they seemed bewildered... So I asked for a simple cosmopolitan, more bewilderment. Bar man was fairly nice guy though and gave it a shot and it was not half bad. However, for the website to advertise this is not great. Nice inside though and pretty clean, basement had a musky smell to it but guess that's from the history of the building. I would visit again for a pint not a cocktail. Follow me on Google Maps for pub reviews.

The old English pub has recently had a make over, and unlike other pubs close by sells a range of beers from independent breweries as well as national brands. Seating is on three floors. Two small snugs are in the cellar as well as a small seating area on the ground floor. More seating is available upstairs where the pub also has bands. This pub has no TV screens, but music was playing at a level where you can still have a conversation. On my visit all available beers were keg. I was told that casks are available Tuesday to Friday. The pub is closed on Sundays and Mondays. For this reason a new cask was not put on when they ran out 6pm on Saturday.

Lovely little pub. Had a nice IPA and a pint of Pride. Gets very busy during the week but this time we were there early on a Saturday night and it was perfect; just 3 or 4 others.

A lovely, intimate pub - single room at ground level, an even smaller space downstairs, and an upstairs room that can be hired out. Take a look at the top floor middle ‘window’; a cheeky reminder that this building was once a brothel. I bet that alley could tell some stories! Friendly staff, a decent selection of beers, and a pleasant change from the more brash establishments nearby. Definitely would return.

Compact Fitzrovia boozer. Used to have a legendary pie room upstairs but now serves decent enough burgers. Good selection of Big Penny beers

Tucked away in a side street between Goodge Street and Tottenham Court road tube stations lies a cute pub in Fitzrovia. With a cosy and attractive interior, extremely friendly staff, a hearty food menu and great music, the Newman Arms was a great choice! Don’t be fooled by the tiny bar area when you first walk in either – it has a great atmosphere and the bar staff will make you feel really welcome. Not only that, they have an upstairs drinking and dining area and a downstairs snug area. If you are looking for a pub to sit down and have a beer in then you can definitely do it here! The food menu is exactly what you would want from a cosy pub like this. With hearty pies and bagels and scrumptious snacks it is a simple menu with down to earth prices. You will pay no more than £11 for a pie and no more than £9 for a bagel. We started with the Hummus with Harissa and Pitta (£4) and two different sausage rolls (£3.50).For such affordable prices these portion sizes were very generous. The hummus and pitta and sausage rolls could easily be shared but they are so good you may want them for herself! We loved the Sausage with caramelised onions and Ricotta and Spinach sausage roll which was so tasty! We were lucky enough to get a taster of the bagels too which were so delicious. You get two different options – the Smoked Salmon or the Salt Beef. The salmon was my clear favourite but the flavour of the salt beef was incredible! We sampled all three pies from the menu – the Chicken and Leek, Steak and Truman’s Runner Ale, and the Peppered, Mushroom and Stilton Pie. All come served with a decent helping of fluffy mash potato, vegetables and gravy! The pies were absolutely delicious and incredibly fresh and flavoursome given they are prepared on site by the chef. We loved them all but the steak was our favourite. For any stilton lovers, go with the Peppered, Mushroom and Stilton pie as the cheese flavour in the pie is very prominent! It is all thanks to the beer that this gorgeous little pub is open and thriving today. Truman’s Brewery opened the doors of the Newman Arms on 16th May this year and has never looked back! It’s also thanks to managing director James Morgan that the Truman’s Brewery name was revived. This brewery was actually founded back in 1666 and shut up shop in 1989. Thanks to James it re-opened and was available to Londoner’s again in 2010. So two British classics brought together and enjoyed by so many happy Londoner’s makes me very happy. Iin just the 8 years this brewery has been back open, it now has an award winning range of beers. During our visit we tried the Truman Raw Beer, the Bow Bell’s Pale Ale, and the Truman’s Pale Ale. All beers were so refreshing, hoppy, wheaty – all the flavours you expect from a great pint! My favourite had to be the Bow Bells – really citrusy, fruity and hoppy. The awesome bar staff are not just great at pulling pints – we also tried a couple of cocktails. We had the Garden Smash and one that wasn’t on the list, an old favourite of mine – the Tom Collins. So if you don’t see your favourite cocktail on the menu, they will be happy to make it for you. You can’t beat having some real British classics dating back hundreds of years being revived and brought into the 21st century. What I love about Truman’s Brewery is they have revived old classics and kept that traditional feel, but ensuring they are being innovative and forward thinking. You can find Truman’s not just at the Newman Arms but in Hackney Wick and London City Airport. I am pretty sure they will be popping up all over the place at this rate. Until you find one in your home town, pay a visit to the beautiful Newman Arms – out of your way or not, you’ll soon turn this in your favourite ‘local’.

Omg the beers here were so bad, mine tasted like hot fairy liquid and the other was so chemically. Maybe the pipes were being cleaned but I had the IPA and my mate the Pale Ale. We had one sip each and one of each others and left. This can’t be the beers they serve normally. Below is how much we had before we left