Comptons

I love this place — great crowd. Have spent evenings there and met loads of new friends. Worth a trip when you’re in London.

I visited Comptons a few times during a solo trip to London back in the early 2000’s and was excited to take my husband there just recently. It didn’t appear that much had changed … and I mean that in a good way.
The drinks were good, I loved the eclectic atmosphere, and the DJ played a nice variety of dance music. It would’ve been nice to score a table near the windows on the second floor but maybe I’ll get lucky next time. We were happy to keep to our jet-​lagged selves so we didn’t mingle much, but the few people we encountered were pretty friendly … except for some drunk queen who kept elbowing my husband as he carried on with his friend on the landing halfway up the stairs. I had to step in and warn him to Back Off but that was the only glitch in the evening.
Still, I’d go back!

A large Soho bar with hardly any lighting apart from White Christmas tree lights EVERYWHERE!
This is a man’s bar. The one lady that walked in when I was there seemed to notice she was the only woman in a bar with 50 men. Rather amusing.
The music was reasonable for early evening and the polite bar staff were swift.
I’ve mostly been drunk here so it was great to arrive sober!

A gothic looking gay bar in Soho. I’m not too sure what crowd its trying to appeal to, there seems to be a very broad mix of age groups, men from twinks to bears and women too. The bar takes up about half of the floor space meaning on a busy Saturday night it feels like wherever you stand, you always end up being in someone’s way! A pint of Sagres = £4.80.

I like this place live in USA but this is the place you will find me everytime I am in town. The security is always great. I’ll give five for theme. And the bar staff are fantastic. You don’t have to tip but you are more than welcome to do so. (I do it because if it is a holiday they deserve extra cash

Tourist? No. Don’t go. The staff is friendly, but the patrons are snobby little London twinks. Even those who are over 30 and frankly, too old to be there, are snots. The uniform is some sort of Abercrombie ensemble (you must wear a shirt that loudly displays Abercrombie & Fitch)…I’m an American and let’s face it… You don’t wear A&F after the age of 28. Especially not after 30. I’ll repeat, though… The staff was nice! This place is the only time I’ve come across non-​welcoming English people. Will not go back and made me very unimpressed with the London gay scene. (I left and went to a much more friendly place nearby… I believe it was called The Arts… it was a downstairs pub, anyway…)

i’m a huge fan of this bar — it’s soho — local and tourist — always friendly — always a good time. when i am in london — it delivers.

With Barcode sadly missed, Comptons is now my local gaybar though I feel a bit out of place on account of I still have a full head of hair and everyone else is a beardy-​baldy. Still at least it’s a proper pub rather than disco-​dolly video bar with non-​stop Kylie (mentioning no names). They used to a great spot of Sunday Lunch too but not sure if that’s still the case.

«Meh» is about right. We went three different times: Thursday, Friday and Sunday. The only specials are on Monday night, apparently, so prices were on par with NYC, except the beer selection sucked and they have exact measurements on the liquor pours. The crowd was a lot of guys standing around making agressive eye contact, but never even saying hello. There were trolls in the restroom staring… and staring… and staring. It wasn’t terrible, it was just expensive and boring.

Very ruff and ready. Quite the place to go if you want to find yourself a papa bear. Other than that, it’s ok, but nothing special.

Come to Comptons for a gay old night, no seriously, it will be gay, and fabulous!
I can here for a quick pint after work one evening to meet a friend of mine. With pint in hand the pair of us scoured the bar for eye candy… tumble weed. This pub is awesome, it a gay pub but it’s also an old man pub. On a street of sex shops and 24 hour food places its a twisted slice of reality. The other great thing about this pub… no queue for the ladies!
It’s Soho prices, with a friendly crowd of older bears and not so secret silver fox suits. Nice for a decent pint but nothing to write home to your mother about!

Comptons was a place I used to frequent regularly up to a year ago. The problem is not the people, who are friendly and courteous, as is the staff, but that it gets very crowded with little opportunity to sit down. It’s not a funky pub so I like to expect a little more comfort. But, if you like an older gay crowd this is the place for you… just don’t expect to automatically get a seat.

Très bonne ambiance. Un des bars référence de Old Compton Street.

A bar truly for men who like their men manly, Comptons of Soho is a vital part of the gay scene, being one of the oldest bars in Soho.
Not the prettiest of bars, it attracts a predatory older crowd of bears, militants and the unkempt who position themselves downstairs for cruising or upstairs if their after a quiet chat or are already coupled up.
Monday night sees pints at under £2 drawing the crowds in though prices throughout the rest of the week are reasonable. There are Sunday roasts offered, predictably, on Sunday, though I’m not sure I could bring myself to eat here as the potential seediness of the pub and its visitors would put me off.

If you like your pubs busy then your like Comptons. since it first opened and was managed by Lady Compton herself gay boys have been packing this water hole out night after night.
Like most establishments in the middle of Soho don’t expect the drinks to be cheap but you will be surprised that its actually cheaper then many others bars in the area.
The clientele are slightly older then say Ku Bar or Village and if you like your men butch and hairy then your feel right at home. Be sure to get there early though as its full up from five on wards.

For those not in the know or who believe all gay people are like ‘that one off Corrie’, Comptons, one of the most established and popular gay bars in Soho, might come as a bit of a suprise.
A traditional pub split over two levels, this is a place where men go to meet men. Serving an affordable range of beers and spirits the service is fast, the crowd is older and quite cruisy but most definately not of the screaming queen variety.
This is one bar that is busy throughout the week and you can take your drinks onto a section of the pavement should you want to keep an eye on passing trade down the main gay street in London.
Not to everyone’s tastes but it is a well run, simple place for guys who know what they want without the attitude of other places.

Situated in the heart of Soho’s ‘Gay village’, Compton’s has been an integral part of London’s gay scene for 20 years and is now something of an institution.
This large, traditionally-​styled pub is one of the few gay venues in central London to sell real ale, and it even has a ‘Cask Marque’ award for how well it is kept. There are two bars, one on the ground floor, and one upstairs (no real ale — downstairs only — and more limited opening times).
The pub also does limited food (eg Saturday post-​clubbing breakfasts, Sunday lunch). There’s a special offer on drinks on Mondays (£1.50 a pint) and also regular events — see website for details.
The clientele, apart from being gay and male, is extremely varied — from City suits through youthful clubbers to gay skinhead types. Be warned: in the evenings it is very, very cruisy and very, very busy. Not one for the faint-​hearted, or if you like to sit down (there is limited seating upstairs you can try and compete for…).
Service in my experience varies a lot — it depends on the individual as to whether they are cheerful and efficient, or bored and queeny.
Oddly, although you can’t move for the testosterone, there are usually a few women there accompanying their gay friends, presumably enjoying the fact that that, for once, no-​one is going to hassle them!