O'Neill's Irish Pub / Restaurant

Covent Garden / Soho, London –

Located in the always vibrant Chinatown section of Soho, O’Neill’s is a bustling Irish pub that offers visitors homey grub, live music, and more draft beers than Ireland has potatoes.

A late liquor license and classic rock music six nights a week means the bar draws a steady stream of stout lovers and Stones fans ready to get sweaty on the dance floor.

Packed to the rafters with local workers and pub denizens who want no part of London’s exclusive club scene, the O’Neill’s crowd might not know Louis Vuitton from Louis Pasteur, but they are happy to share a shepherd’s pie and a pint of Guinness with a new acquaintance.

The décor is just as low-key as the clientele, with beige walls, basic wooden tables, beer banners, and the requisite Emerald Isle kitsch creating a comfy, unassuming atmosphere.

Later in the evening, the crowd shifts its focus from the downstairs bar to the second floor, where bands take the stage to belt out Who and Kinks classics, before passing the baton to the in-house DJ, who keeps the increasingly rowdy music lovers bopping long into the night.

A classic pub with a modern twist, O’Neill’s provides an upbeat respite for West End revelers who prefer festive pubbing to manic clubbing.