A popular Broadgate haunt has been crowned the best pub in the City of London, in a welcomed boost for the capital’s hospitality scene.
Mr Fogg’s City Tavern, which is part of Inception Group, the hospitality group owned by Charlie Gilkes, was given the title earlier this month at the National Pub Awards.
The Victorian-style London pub is named after Phileas J. Fogg Esq, the fictional 19th-century explorer who went around the world in 80 days.
The Tavern is open seven days a week serving everything from traditional British food to punches and beers.
Mr Fogg’s City Tavern – Photography by Johnny Stevens.
It is one of 10 Mr Fogg chains across London, with other sites in locations such as Mayfair and Soho.
Gilkes told City A.M.: “We are thrilled that Mr Fogg’s City Tavern has been named the best pub in the city at the national pub awards.
“We opened this venue in Broadgate Circle this January and have been delighted by its reception and can’t wait for our first full summer of trading with our large Guinness Garden now open.”
Inception Group, founded in 2009 by Gilkes and Duncan Stirling, also owns a number of other popular venues across London, including Control Room B, a 1950s-themed bar at Battersea Power Station in London.
The company operates over 13 experiential venues across London, including the brands Mr Fogg’s, Bunga Bunga and Cahoots.
The news will provide a glimmer of hope for London’s hospitality scene which has suffered amid a slowdown in consumer spending and rising overheads.
A report in Time Out published earlier this month said over 3,000 pubs, clubs and bars across London have closed since 2020, as the sector remains one of the slowest to recover since the lows of the pandemic.