French House

Lovely little pub. It’s definitely tough to hang in there with a group due to the size, but it’s still worth going to. They won’t serve pints and they don’t like mobile phones, but the drinks aren’t expensive for central London. Staff work hard to get everyone served as quickly as they can. Clientele are a mix of all ages and types.

Loved this pub! Our trek into SOHO to meet an ex-​pat friend brought us here for after work pints. I gotta admit this pub was PACKED! But instead of the volume of people becoming a deterrent it actually adds to the ambiance and experience.
The crowd of regulars is what makes up the majority of French House’s patrons and after work you’ll be hard pressed to find a set inside. Thankfully you can take your pint outside to their little standing room only patio. The patio is only wide enough for 2 – 3 people to stand side by side (read: Crunched together) but runs the entire length of the pub.
Thankfully, the ledge is there to rest your beer and the hooks allow you to hand your belongings while you socialize. The pints of London Ale were great but the French Cider was what really stole the show here. Served in a 500ml (0.5L) bottle, the flavour was fantastic, a great item to share and deffinitely boozy enough to make it worth whatever price we paid!

Its a cool place with a lot of history. the breton cider is a real reason I come here!

This has become our «local» when in London. Friendly staff, interesting customers.

French House is easily my favorite bar in London. It’s not really the kind of place you expect to go to when you’re an American in the UK, but who cares? It’s cozy, unpretentious, full of friendly and interesting people, and serves the best cider. Oh, and it’s reasonably priced. French House is a real gem among tons of mediocre competition in Soho, but please don’t go there because I want it to stay that way.

Popped by for quick drinks with friends, and I quite loved this place!
It felt like a cute and cozy French pub with interesting photos and intimate environment. We sat on the first floor (above ground level), where it was slightly quieter and lower key as well.
House red was good. Service was just average — we had to go order and bring our own glasses back to the table.
The space can be quite tight, so not the best place if you have a lot of things with you!

I like this place. Some other people here called the customer base «eccentric.» I guess that is based on clothing or tats. I thought it seemed pretty preppy. Well I didn’t come for the people I came for the history. It certainly has one… French Resistance and Chuck DeGalle drank little mini-​drinks here while planning their an invasion the Americans and Brits didn’t want him in on. That’s cool but the bar and neighborhood are even better.

Of all the places I’ve been to in Soho, this was probably the first bar I visited. Nothing funnier than ordering a pint and thinking to yourself, «Wow. that’s pretty affordable.» and then have it served in a half-​pint (aka child size cup)… a French thing?
It’s a traditional (closes at 11pm) and tiny place… gets pretty crowded by the bar (aka cozy and intimate) so it may test your patience. Lots of great beer. the guinness was good, but not the real stuff :(
Although it doesn’t look like anything French, my buddy who took me says that apparently the place did at least house or serve as a meeting point for the French resistance in London, hence the name…
All in all, it’s a pretty cool and chill hangout spot… I didn’t try the restaurant, but heard good things… so I’ll have to save that for a followup review

Wanted to experience this legendary soho haunt. There’s no doubt the place has a fantastic atmosphere and an unrivalled history but it also has the RUDEST staff I have ever encountered! We couldn’t have a conversation without being told to ‘keep it down’ repeatedly which then escalated to, who I presume was the owner, giving what can only be called an ’ ultimatum speech’ about our behaviour, embarrassing us in front of patrons. What I noticed… if you’re under 40 don’t bother going in as you are constantly patronised to the point where we were asked to leave. It’s a pub, in Soho, nothing more to say. Not what it’s made out to be I’m afraid!

I was really early for a dinner date, so I wandered up and down Wardour Street looking for a place to get a drink where I would not feel out of place on my own and reading a book (which ruled out quite a few packed pubs).
I strolled into French House because I could spot a few empty tables tucked in the back corner from the street. Right away, I was struck by the fact that the entire bar seemed to be engaged in a rather loud and jovial conversation with the two bartenders.
I interrupted order a small glass of house red (£3.50) and sat down. I was happy to see I wasn’t alone in my bar book reading — another patron soon bellied up at the bar and pulled out her novel. Meanwhile, it seemed that everyone who arrived and left knew the bartenders by name. Nice to find such a locals favorite in such a touristy area.
Funny enough, as I was literally reading other reviews regarding the friendliness of this place after checking in, I was soon asked by the next table what I was reading. This turned into a good hour of friendly, silly conversation. Just what I needed.

Unpretentious. Strict on the NO TELEPHONE CALLS inside. French wine. What else do you want to know? The place is cool, chill and cozy. Highly recommend it for a no frills quaint spot for a pint or glass of your favorite poison.

The best ‘just another pub’ in Soho. I am not exactly sure what’s the magic of this place, but there is definitely some. And it is not just about their ‘no kids allowed’ policy followed by discussion with the bar staff how scary children are and being informed that toddlers are children in age of 2 — 4 yrs. But it is the truly friendly casual, no non sense pub, with clean toilets and of course delicious cider and lager and more delicious cider and lager… Great break during heavy duties day, to go just for ‘one’ or actually for almost any occasion.

Admittedly, my experience of French House was very different than the average one. On my French friend’s birthday he decided to gather everyone here for a pint to start the night. However, he failed to realize it was Pride, and all of Dean Street was a complete zoo full of people. So, the pub itself was packed with people, and we stood outside to enjoy a few pints and a few shots and then everyone else carried on when I went home because I really like sleeping.
However, I did take a walk through the pub, and ordered my drinks inside, so I can make a small commentary on my experience: aside from the name, I’m pretty sure it’s not necessarily a french place; there’s very little space inside, though I imagine that on a cold winter’s night, it’s a very charming place to tuck into; they serve mostly half-​pints, though on special occasions like Pride, they go big for the masses.
Great location, nice spin having a French focus, and a nice and quick enough barstaff. Pretty good, as these things go.

Absolutely superb. A tiny little place that I must have walked past a hundred times without noticing. Once inside though, it just oozes character.
I’m not sure that I’d like to try and get served on a busy weekend night, but things were OK during the afternoon when I visited.
The staff are really friendly and the cider is to die for. Loads of pictures adorn the walls and the place is just dripping with atmosphere.
Totally worth a visit. Totally worth a detour to make a visit.

Not too impressive… you can’t get a full pint of beer, first off. Only half pints. Which means more frequent attempts at pushing your way through the crowd to get a refill at the bar. Really crowded, too loud to have much of a conversation… eh, there are better places to get a brew!

Great little pub with a French vibe. Go for the crisp Breton cider and the weird amalgamation of old photos adorning the just this side of decrepit walls.
Be warned about the bar staff though! There at least one surly bartender there. It’d be great to think it was part of the boozer’s Gallic vibe, but unfortunately this lass is British. Oh well.
Anyway, the Dean Street addy ensure elbow rubbing. So expect this place to be packed most open hours. This makes for mild annoyances but also fantastic eavesdropping opportunities as you sit and sip your cider.

mmmmm cider. It doesnt get much better in Soho that a lovely refreshing bottle of cider in a small half pint glass.
I’ve frequented this little spot many a time in the city and it never disappoints. There’s always a lovely atmosphere.
The décor is plentiful, something in every nook and cranny, a feature in a pub that I am very fond of. The space downstairs is small and cosy. Not always easy to get a table or a place to stand. But when the weather is warm as it was the last 3 visits of mine, I got a nice windowsill spot outside.

An old & favourite haunt of mine. I first came here as an art student
in 1961 & was delighted & astonished to see two giants of the art world at
the bar: Francis Bacon & Lucien Freud.
They were often there in those days: there or at Muriel’s Club up the road (now gone)
The black boxer, Chicago was always at the end facing you in this picture
& patron, Gaston Berlemont took great care of this young art student —
kissing my wrist as he poured me into a taxi home. Great food upstairs too.
Paradoxically, an excellent AA Group meets at St Anne’s opposite.
(I’ve added another pic of the crowds to show it midday in summer like most pubs in London’s West End, very crowded)
(for more info see
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a storied Soho pub with not a française in sight. turns out, back in the day was beer-​HQ for exiled free french forces headed by de Gaulle. whiled away time here with drinks and chitchat till text from Polpetto that table was ready.

For years I worked in Soho and failed to check this place out. I guess the reams of people spilling out of the doorway in an evening put me off. The bar is tiny, you see. However, I did get the chance to have a drink here last week, during the day. The place had several punters perched on stools and we sidled up to the bar for a whisky and amaretto (not together, of course). There is a sing above the bar stictly prohibiting mobile phones, which is nice.
The décor is inviting — I like a pub to look pub-​like and it is very cosy. But night-​times do get very packed.
The 4 stars is for afternoon drinking — recommended.