The Punch Bowl Bar / Pub / Restaurant

Mayfair / Knightsbridge, London –

Set deep within Mayfair, a neighborhood best known for its plethora of private banks, The Punch Bowl is an unassuming bar that happens to be owned by the less-unassuming film director Guy Ritchie.

Movie buffs hoping to find a joint styled after Ritchie’s signature fast-paced films, however, will be sorely disappointed – the cozy pub is far more reminiscent of a countryside tavern than a place for Brad Pitt to punch stuff.

Inside the white-washed building, which has housed a bar since the 1700s, photographs of the royal family, landscape paintings, and a large portrait of Winston Churchill take up much of the wall space, while vintage lanterns hang from the mustard yellow ceiling.

Hollywood friends of the owner are still known to drop in, but patrons dining at the heavy wooden tables are more likely to be local suits than celebrities, and while the energy can be lively, it’s rarely tabloid-worthy.

Despite the venue’s English inn ambiance, its wine list is dominated by French labels, and the wealthy bankers and upstart young professionals who fill the upper and lower dining rooms enjoy cross-cultural European fare like mint risotto and herb-crumbled lamb.

A throwback to the quaint country pubs of old, but with a high-end polish, The Punch Bowl continues to be a Mayfair institution, regardless of who owns it.