2. Dover Castle, Weymouth Mews

The Dover Castle in Marylebone is a Samuel Smith’s pub. Sam Smith (no, not the singer) is a low-profile brewery located in Yorkshire, northern England, renowned among many craft beer fans.  The late beer writer Michael Jackson (no, not the singer) praised the brewery’s brown ale as the “richest, maltiest, and nuttiest of all.”

The Dover Castle has an old club feeling, not a dance club mind you, but a place where folks can enjoy a game of backgammon and a pint. If you’re looking to do the moonwalk or sing karoake, you’re in the wrong place.

The Dover Castle, 49 Weymouth Mews, London, W1. Tube: Regent’s Park