“I'll be lyrically recommending this place for a while to come"

Anthony Lord (21 06 2010) - www.fluidlondon.co.uk/The_Poet_E1.Bar-Restaurant

The first thing that hit me when I walked in was the décor. It's consists of chandeliers, a mirror ball, silver busts of poets, and purple velvet curtains, giving The Poet an arty glam feel, not what I expected.

The bar is on the left when entering and it's rather a long one, which is great during busy times because it means getting to the bar quickly. The drinks on offer include a sselection of beers and lagers, seven choices of champagne, and a bunch of cocktails and shots. The majority of wines on the list are available by the glass, which is always handy for the post work wind down.

The food at The Poet, due to the business district location, has a strong focus on lunch. Pub classics dominate, while the weekly specials spice things up. Our lunchtime feast came from that week’s specials board - shrimp skewers for me, tasty; and herby chicken for my friend. The menu is similar in the evenings, but sharers dominate.

While sipping on our coffees, the table next to us paid up and handed the waitress a gold card. Intrigued, we later asked the waitress about the card. Apparently, The Poet operates an exclusive free customer loyalty card scheme where points can be collected with every food and drink purchase, and redeemed whenever needed. For every £1 spent, a point is collected - the equivalent to 7 pence, or a 7% return. Now if I worked around the Liverpool Street area, I would definitely sign up for one of those. I would make sure all our corporate functions were held there, and cleverly hand over my loyalty card every time we booked. Thus providing me with plenty of free food and booze. Marketing departments in the Liverpool Street area, take note!

After coffees, we were keen for a game of pool, but the table was being hogged by two suits having a lunchtime brainstorm session. Instead, we were shown downstairs to the basement because it’s recently been converted into a bar with sofas and flat screens (ideal for the World Cup and other sporting events). I reckon it would be a great spot for my next birthday party as it's also been soundproofed; that's all I'll say about that.

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"Honest, wholesome food around Liverpool Street" 

by Leila Hawkins, 23rd February 2010 - www.allinlondon.co.uk

Situated a few minutes walk from Liverpool Street station, the Poet Bar & Kitchen offers honest wholesome food at lunchtimes to local workers as well as providing liquid respite to punters in the evening.

We tucked into the goat’s cheese and red onion tartlet with rocket leaf and the salt and pepper squid to begin with, which arrived with a pot of sweet chilli sauce. The squid was well cooked and tender, and as presumptuous as it sounds, much better than what I’d expect from a pub. The tartlet’s slithers of the sweet red onion were smothered in delicious goat’s cheese, yum.

For the mains I was torn between a pie, fish cakes or a pork casserole. Winter food beckoned, and eventually I opted for the casserole. Tender pieces of pork, carrots, haricot beans and parsley in a stew were accompanied by French stick bread to mop up the tasty sauce.

Being on something of a diet, my friend opted for the feta cheese with roasted Mediterranean vegetables, however I couldn’t help but wonder quite how many calories she was saving by eating a large piece of creamy baked feta, sat atop a plate of courgettes, peppers, aubergines and red onions. In spite of it’s naughtiness we agreed the feta was really quite special and not a morsel was left.

We enjoyed a bottle of Siglo Rioja with our meal, which went down so well that for dessert we couldn’t resist the cheese platter with another glass of red to wash it down with. Slices of Brie, Cheddar, goat’s cheese and Stilton arrived with crackers and pickle.

Food at The Poet is good value and hearty, our meal came to around £50. They also operate a loyalty card system where you acquire one point for every 7p you spend. Points can then be used to get money off drinks or meals, with no minimum or maximum number of points needed.

The staff were friendly, bubbly and attentive, giving the place a very pleasant vibe. I was assured the evenings were busy; luckily this Tuesday lunchtime there was no shortage of tables, particularly after the 2pm back-to-the-office rush. Overall, good value and pleasant for a daytime meal; I’d imagine the evenings are a much more boisterous affair.

HSBC Finance Christmas Party

The Poet Bar offered an amazing service from start to finish with great organisation and excellent staff behind the bar, attentive waitresses ensuring that our glasses were filled throughout the evening and catering for 40 for a 3 course sit down meal. Food was excellent and highest quality offering a range to choose from including vegetarian.

The location of The Poet Bar is very close to London Liverpool Street station making access to trains and taxis to get home for everyone easily accessible.

Above all everyone who attended the party had a great night and have all returned since for pub lunch or just to have a drink in a great atmosphere.

December 2009

The Poet is a large lively bar in the heart of the City and to the west of Spitalfields Market that has a great drinks selection, comfortable dining and a relaxed, friendly atmosphere. Enjoy lunch and a drink with friends and colleagues, or an after work social in this welcoming environment that offers more than your average City bar.

A large range of well chosen beers, wines and spirits are stocked alongside excellent real ales and a selection of two-for-one cocktails available every day. Quality pub food is on the menu all day, with a variety of competitively priced dishes to choose from. Mains can include sausage and mash or steak sandwich with chunky chips, plus a variety of light starters and delicious desserts available either side. The every popular two for one curry day is on a Tuesday and on Wednesdays there's a generous 50% off your total food bill!

WIthin easy reach of Liverpool Street and Aldagte East stations, The Poet is the pefect lunch time retreat or after work bar. 

November 2009