Why The Old Bell Tavern Is Worth Seeking Out
You may have come looking for The Old Bell Tavern because you’ve heard about its connection to Sir Christopher Wren, or perhaps you’re already exploring the historic pubs along Fleet Street and wondering whether this relatively plain little tavern deserves a stop.
This is primarily a bucket-list history pub. Don’t expect the labyrinth of Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese or the spectacular interior of The Black Friar. The Old Bell’s appeal is quieter: this modest Fleet Street pub was built for the workmen rebuilding St Bride’s Church after the Great Fire of London. St Bride’s own history attributes the tavern to Wren.
Have a look inside, find one surprisingly old object tucked near the back, order a pint—and before you leave, go see the church that explains why this pub is here.
Can You Find the 1603 Cupboard?
Head toward the rear of the pub and look for the old corner cupboard. Carved with axes and daggers, it carries the date 1603.
That makes it considerably older than the late-17th-century building around it—and probably the easiest historic detail to miss if you simply walk in, order a drink and take a seat.
You don’t need to turn the rest of the room into a scavenger hunt. The Old Bell has a central U-shaped bar, bare wooden floors, dark panelling and an elaborate colored window facing Fleet Street, but this isn’t one of London’s grand showpiece pub interiors.
Find the cupboard. That’s the little piece of history worth hunting down.
What’s the Pint Pick?
Order a pint of Nicholson’s Pale Ale from the handpull. The 4% session pale ale is The Old Bell’s regular cask beer, while the remaining handpulls rotate through guest ales.
Order your pint at the bar and pay when you order. If the card machine prompts you for a tip, skip it. Digital prompts are increasingly common, but tipping is still not customary when buying drinks at a UK pub bar counter.
Staying for something to eat? Try a pie. The Old Bell is promoted by Nicholson’s as a speciality pie house, so this is one pub where a traditional British pie actually belongs in the experience rather than simply filling space on the menu.
Before You Leave, Take a Look at St Bride’s
Before you head back out onto Fleet Street, look toward the rear of the pub for the door leading onto St Bride’s Avenue. Step through and you’ll emerge behind The Old Bell, right beside the church that explains why this pub is here.
The medieval church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and rebuilt under Sir Christopher Wren. St Bride’s records that the workmen had a hostel beside the church—The Old Bell Tavern—and says it was built for them by Wren.
There’s an interesting reason the transition feels so natural. The St Bride’s side was originally the pub’s main approach, before the later Fleet Street frontage changed the way most visitors enter today.
The pub you just left is not an untouched Wren masterpiece. Historic England dates the Grade II listed building more cautiously to probably the late 17th century and notes that it has been much altered.
But the connection between the two places is real. You’ve just had a pint in the tavern associated with the men rebuilding the church standing in front of you.
And while you’re here, look up at that extraordinary tiered spire. St Bride’s is famously known as London’s “wedding cake church,” and its distinctive stacked design has long been associated with the story of the tiered wedding cake.
That’s the real payoff to The Old Bell: not a spectacular room or a secret passage, but a pint in a modest Fleet Street pub with a direct connection to one of Christopher Wren’s great post-Fire churches.
The Old Bell — Quick Details
Address: 95 Fleet Street, London EC4Y 1DH
Nearest Tube Station: Blackfriars
Area: Fleet Street / City of London
Keep Exploring Fleet Street’s Historic Pubs
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese — Continue along Fleet Street and duck into Wine Office Court for a completely different historic pub experience, with old drinking rooms, vaulted cellars and some of London’s best pub folklore.
The Black Friar — Keep walking toward Blackfriars for the opposite kind of historic pub: an Art Nouveau showpiece packed with mosaics, mischievous monks and details worth hunting down.