I'm a big fan of surprises, how about you? The Spread Eagle was a pleasant surprise, a pleasant surprise sat smack bang in the busiest part of Oxford Street, London. The surprise with The Spread Eagle is the fact that's its very much a local pub, it's a small town pub in a very big city.
To clarify The Spread Eagle is not and never has been a hotel, but it was considered more viable to have the word hotel put into the title. The Spread Eagle first opened in 1818 at a time where pubs opened and closed at an alarming fashion in this district of London. While all the other pubs that have emerged around around The Spread Eagle, this has stood the test of time.
I first came to know about The Spread Eagle in 2002, I was working for Debenhams and during a sudden snow downfall I found myself trapped in London. This was not an exclusive situation to me, many others in the store were stuck in the same situation. In my infinite wisdom I suggested we all went for a drink and waited for the trains to return to normal, and the roads to clear. One of my colleagues suggested we went to "The Spread", I was up for a drink on Mars because I really at the time had no clue how I was going to get home, somehow the prospect of alcohol improved this.
As we left Debenhams we crossed the road directly opposite the store, tucked up a small side road was the Spread Eagle. The pub looked very much from the exterior as if it was literally stuck 100 years in the past. Upon entering the pub I felt like I was in the staff canteen back at the store as it was filled with dozens of staff from Debenhams. In fact The Spread Eagle was deemed ad the Debenhams pub.
The pub itself is based over two floors approximately 30 feet square per floor, it's a very traditional looking pub. The décor consists of dark oak furniture, red and brown pattered carpet, terracotta colour walls and a ceiling of dark oak wood. It's a very gloomy pub, but this is part of its appeal. There are lots of dark corners to go off into should you want to be alone with someone. For those wanting to be a little more where the heart of the action is the bar area is more illuminated. The bar is well stocked with a vast array of whiskies from across the world, the best selection of Rum I have ever seen is also kept here. But the whisky was the crunch for me, all those rare whiskies that nobody else has are here, but most importantly the best price Lagavulin.
There are two things that make The Spread Eagle stand out from any other pub in the centre of London. Firstly the atmosphere is fantastic, you could walk into The spread Eagle alone and fall into conversation very easily with like minded people. One night I had the most amazing conversation with a cult movie enthusiast, it transpired we shared lots of favourite movies in common; the power of the pub and its intimate atmosphere quickly brought others into the conversation and it became almost like a theme night of cult movie fans. Another night politics rose its head and again a similar occurrence happened. You'll never find a "yob" in The Spread Eagle, they don't seem to pick this pub up on their radar. The second great thing about this pub is the staff, although the main stays of the pub have been there for some time even the new additions seem to have been given an intelligence test. If you cannot relate with the customers on any level then that person is useless to this pub. I went into the Spread Eagle for the first time this year since 2003, I was greeted by an unfamiliar face who was most pleasant to the eye and to talk too. But out of nowhere a Polish voice asked the question "Do you want a Lagavulin with that?" Three years from my last visit and a member of staff who suddenly loomed up from behind me not only remembered me but what I drank. And please bear in mind this is a pub in the busiest part of Oxford Street, London. To me this sort of service is just amazing, and hard to find anywhere let alone in London.
The pub is not really a eating pub, but it does offer a variety of food; from burgers to Caesar salad. Food is only served during the daytime and the most expensive item on the menu is about the £10 mark. The food is of great quality, very tasty and vary Moorish. The food is also served with quite good speed, I guess this is due to the pub being in London and aimed at the hour long lunch diner.
There are only two downfalls as I can see it with The Spread Eagle, the toilets and the music. There is no space for more than two in the toilets which are roughly the size of an under stairs cupboard, this often makes for a very uncomfortable situation. Also the toilets are located far apart, the ladies is in the basement, while the men's is on the first floor. The stairs to the basement have also been known to cause an accident or two with very narrow steps and intoxicated women. When I last left The Spread Eagle in 2003 Eric Clapton Unplugged was playing, when I returned a month ago the same CD was still playing. As much as I enjoy Eric Clapton, a change of music would have been appreciated.
One final thing to address about The Spread Eagle, it is catagoric fact that the pub has the cheapest ales in London. You'll easily pick up a pint of there special ale for £1.50 as well as a range of other well known ales for almost Working Men's Club prices, at under £2 a pint.
If your shopping in Oxford Street I'd strongly recommend a visit to this amazing pub; if staying in London or living in London a night out here is highly recommended. I have yet to meet someone who did not enjoy this pub, and for most it holds a lot of strong great memories.
The Spread Eagle is located half way along Oxford Street opposite Debenhams, almost tucked down a side street. You can reach the pub from Bond Street tube station. Simply walk out the station take a right then take the second right (which is just as Debenhams appears on your left). You cannot miss it.
