PubsandBeer
Royal Oak (Harvey's Brewery)
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| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Lewes Castle Brown Ale |  | 1 |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | | 3 |
| Harvey's - IPA | | 1 |
| Harvey's - Porter | | 3 |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | | 2 |
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | | 1 |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) |  | 2 |
| Harvey's - Bonfire Boy | | 2 |
| Harvey's - Olympia | Not Tried | 0 |
| Gun - Scaramanga Extra Pale Ale | Not Tried | 0 |
| Harvey's - Royal Oak IPA | Not Tried | 0 |
| Harvey's - Star of Eastbourne | Not Tried | 0 |
| Harvey's - Southdown Harvest | Not Tried | 0 |
| Harvey's - Christmas Ale | Not Tried | 0 |
Stephen Harris
Visits Details
31 May 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit. Raucous as always amid Wednesday quiz time.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | 4½* Almost unmatchable condition |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | | Lovely condition. Getting near end of the Old season but pub still has several more casks in the cellar |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Lewes Castle Brown Ale | 4.80 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
24 May 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit in midst of Wednesday quiz. Wrong Wednesday as it should be last of month for London Drinker pick up - my miscalculation.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Lewes Castle Brown Ale | 4.80 | | A lovely drop |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
29 Mar 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit. Steamy inside, noisy with a quiz and humid so just a quick half.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Porter | 4.80 | | Even more refreshing given the humidity inside the pub |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
21 Mar 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Early evening visit.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Porter | 4.80 | | Excellent condition, difficult to better |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
04 Mar 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit. Nicely relaxed in back room.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | In fine form, quite zesty |
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | 4.50 | | First rate - lovely subtle hoppiness |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Olympia | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
25 Jan 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Mid evening visit.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Porter | 4.80 | | Good but a slight feeling of being a little fresh |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
09 Jan 2023 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening meeting in upstairs room until close.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | | New cask just on, a tad fresh |
| Harvey's - Bonfire Boy | 5.80 | | Bordering on 4* |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Christmas Ale | 7.50 | Not Tried |
05 Dec 2022 (Magnus Greel)
Lunchtime and fairly quiet so we purloined the vacant rear bar for our annual Friday Evening Group Xmas get together albeit much earlier these days with most of us retired. The Lebanese meze lunches folk were tucking into in the front bar smelt and looked delicious..
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | |
| Harvey's - IPA | 3.50 | | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | | |
| Harvey's - Bonfire Boy | 5.80 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Star of Eastbourne | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Southdown Harvest | 5.00 | Not Tried |
30 Nov 2022 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit. Noisy quiz in operation, lots of London CAMRA bigwigs in a meeting upstairs.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Bonfire Boy | 5.80 | | Broke the £5pp barrier |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Star of Eastbourne | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Southdown Harvest | 5.00 | Not Tried |
28 Sep 2022 (Philip Pirrip)
Evening visit.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Old Ale (or Sussex XXXX Old Ale) | 4.30 | | The best Harvey's Old I have had in many a year |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - XX Dark Mild (or Sussex XX Mild) | 3.00 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Gun - Scaramanga Extra Pale Ale | 3.90 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Royal Oak IPA | 3.50 | Not Tried |
About the Royal Oak
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
 | 11 |
| 138 |
| 107 |
 | 33 |
 | 4 |
The pub is found in Borough, Central London, SE1 4JU.
Harvey's first tied pub in the capital. Corner pub in Tabard Street, near Borough Underground station. Feels like an oasis from the bustle of London Bridge / Borough High Street. Two bare-boarded rooms in a pub with a central bar and an off-sales hatch. Superb John Harvey Room upstairs may be used for meetings and functions and is freely available. Lots of dark wood and cream walls. 4 handpumps on each bar counter so 8 in all. Comfortable atmosphere. Also has comprehensive selection of Harvey's beer in bottles. Became a managed house after the departure, to retirement, of long term tenant licensees in January 2019. Local CAMRA branch Overall Pub of the Year 2023 and 2025, having been runner-up in 2022.
We have visited this pub 165 times, seen 54 different beers and tried 31 of them.
Postcode: SE1 4JU