Inside City’s latest Irish pub: London’s poshest Guinness served here

The Square Mile’s latest Irish pub, London’s poshest, serves steaks with a Guinness jus

From the polished mahogany bartops to the Prince-Charles-pulling-a-pint photos, pubs tend to trade on their ubiquity. No one wants to think about design credentials when they go for a pint. Or do they?

The Horsemen & Fitzgerald’s, a new City watering hole, is making Brits question what they come to expect from a pub. It is fusing a traditional boozer with an All-American concept.

While The Horesemen is a straightforward pub, the other part of the venue, Fitzgerald’s, is a country club-themed dining room. Pass through the velvet curtain to go from shouty City traders to quiet luxury: in Fitzgerald’s, think white tablecloths, vintage jockey outfits framed on the walls, stirrup straps on the banquettes and miniature models of men on horseback on the walls.

The idea is to have one area where you can go for a pint and then somewhere more civilised to retreat to afterwards.
The concept feels refreshing. It is practical – I’m one of the City workers who wants two elements of my evening all under one roof without having to travel anywhere else – and fun, the American vibe feeling decently escapist.

Executive Chef Esteve Prats Grau’s “Kentucky-to-Dublin” menu is based on the belief that those two food cultures have “more in common than people realise.” I take that to mean “comfort food is nice, isn’t it?”, a topic upon which both the Irish and Americans tend to agree.

Inside the Square Mile’s latest Irish pub: London’s poshest Guinness

We start with Kentucky Popcorn, taut little things, fried well, with a hedonistic bourbon glaze. You can order these at the bar in The Horsemen too; they’d be great companion pieces to a few pints. Fitz’s Onion Rings are cut of a similar cloth: decent comfort food, with a surprisingly spicy mayo cutting through the fatty batter. The Irish Beef Tartare had a treated yolk – I think some tomato might have made its way into it – which softly sweetened the meat. A plate of crisps to scoop up the flesh was a nice touch.

There’s a very good pastry chef in the kitchen. The Lamb Shank Pie is generously stuffed with meat and housed in brilliant pastry. It is crumbly but with a firm enough bite that you don’t feel like you’re eating a slab of butter, as seems to be the trend in so many London kitchens.

The Kentucky Fried Chicken is underfried and overly greasy, even with help of the pickle and salsa verde. We dunked lumps of chicken and pie into an Irish stout sauce designed for the steaks. We’d ordered it on the side for an extra hit of The Emerald Isle.

Old Fashioneds and Vesper Martinis

The Derby Tart, with dark chocolate, pecan and bourbon, avoided being too sweet, and the pastry, again, is sublime. The Warm Apple Cake with white chocolate ice cream demonstrates the kitchen’s ability to do more refined cooking.

We washed it down with old fashioneds and Vesper Martinis (there’s a lengthy Irish-American whisky menu). Guinness Zero was out of stock, which is unideal for an Irish bar in 2026, especially one promising London’s best stout. However, top marks must go to the lovely GM, Lucy, who offered to buy us some from the shop. We didn’t accept, although after spending a few hours in this environment, which strongly channels the aesthetic of Lana Del Rey’s Chemtrails over the Country Club album, I did briefly consider channeling my inner diva and taking her offer up.

This is an Irish pub offering something different: the chance to pair Thirsty Thursdays drinking culture with a posh dinner out.

Go to thehorsemenlondon.com

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