Right around the corner from Piccadilly Circus, you'll find The Devonshire
What can you tell us about The Devonshire?
Easily one of the biggest openings of the Autumn, this pub sees legendary London landlord Oisin Rogers (ex-The Guinea) and Charlie Carroll (founder of Flat Iron) teaming up to open a Soho pub. It's a traditional pub downstairs, but on the upper two levels, you'll find their wood-ember grill restaurant. For that, Ashley Palmer-Watts (ex-Fat Duck and Dinner by Heston) completes the team-up as the third co-founder of The Devonshire, taking charge of their grill menu.
Where is it?
It's on the edges of Soho, just steps away from Piccadilly Circus, on the corner of Sherwood and Denman Street. Opposite, you'll find Brasserie Zedel and The Piccadilly Theatre (you can use their enormous Moulin Rouge sign as a beacon to help you locate the pub).
Where should we go for a drink first?
You should come here, of course. Even if you're heading upstairs to the grill for a meal, any trip to The Devonshire should include at least one drink in the main pub, either before or after dinner (or, of course, both). If you like a pint of Guinness, that should be your first port of call - the Guinness here is among the very best in London and will only get better. That said, they do an extremely good, ice-cold martini here, so that should be worth a look too.
A very nice (and extremely cold) martini.
And there's more to the pub?
While the main part of the pub is a large, surprisingly roomy affair, there's more to it than that, even before we get to the grill upstairs.
Literally behind the bar (you'll need to get permission/be asked to come across), you'll find not one, but three snugs. Other than a seat up at the bar, we'd probably say that these are the best seats in the house. Ideally, you'll want the snug that's closest to the bar. Thanks to some swivel windows there, it's very, very easy to order a fresh pint without even leaving your seat.
We think these are the tables to grab - if you can - one of the three snugs behind the bar.
But that's not it. When the team were in the process of fitting out the pub, they also managed to acquire one of the buildings next door. That's let them make the pub even bigger with a hidden extra room, once again only accessible via the bar/invitation.
With a Gilbert and George print on the walls, this is the other hidden room behind the bar.
So what about the grill? Where's that?
You'll find the grill on the next two floors up, where things have a more traditional restaurant set up. On our visit, only the first floor was open, with the second floor hopefully opening before the end of the year.
Upstairs on the first floor, you'll find the restaurant (note the huge grill at the end of the room)
The second floor isn't up and running at the time of writing, but here's a sneak peek of what it looks like.
If you can, you'll want to grab one of the tables by the window as they're particularly great for watching the crowds go by in Soho.
At the back of the first floor, you'll notice the absolute behemoth of a wood-ember grill, which is one of the most striking elements of this room. As Palmer-Watts himself says, "It's far more challenging to cook using wood embers than with charcoal, which is probably why almost nobody does it, but for me, the extra flavour is worth the effort - it's something else."
That impressive wood ember grill, with Ashley Palmer-Watts on the left keeping an eye over things
So what about the food?
Ashley has been working on the menu since February 2023, and it's being billed as one that is "revisiting British pub classics". In charge of the kitchen as head chef is Jamie Guy, who was previously the right-hand man to Mark Hix.
At first glance, there's a pleasing straightforwardness to the menu with classics like pea and ham soup, smoked salmon on soda bread and lamb hotpot on the menu. But, as anyone who dined at Dinner by Heston while Ashley was in charge would expect, an awful lot of work has gone into these dishes behind the scenes.
The menu is a three-course affair, with the mains giving you a choice of something direct from the grill or something from the kitchen, like their suet pie. With that in mind, here's what we had on our visit.
Scallops, bacon and malt vinegar (£16) - We've had a few scallop dishes over the years, but this comes right at the top of them at the moment - just a beautiful combo of flavours.
"Pile of langousitnes" - £36. In a sign of just how much work goes into these dishes, these have an emulsion that's made of langoustine butter, prawn stock, butter, cream mayonnaise, lemon juice and white soy (something that's also used in their lobster sauce). It transforms the langoustines.
Lamb cutlets (£28) - after grilling, these cutlets have a mix of rendered lamb fat and infused mint brushed on to take them to the next level.
Sourcing is a big thing at The Devonshire. This is an Iberico pork chop (£24) that happens to be taken from the farm of Brett Graham (The Ledbury)
One of the things landlord Oisin Rogers particularly wanted to see on the menu - a suet pudding. This is a beef and Guinness (of course) suet pudding (£26).
And here's how it looks when you break into it. Very, very good.
Sides are also worth a shout-out - the duck fat chips (£6) are incredible but it's the buttered carrots (£5) that are next-level.
Anything else to highlight?
Along with the grill, you will be able to order food in the pub downstairs (along with Tayto crisps). Snacks there include a bacon sandwich and their own homemade sausage on a stick for £2.
What about desserts?
Much like the rest of the menu, the dessert list features real classics, but all done phenomenally well. Here's a taste.
Grand Marnier souffle (£16) - Flambéed tableside, we'd say this is an absolute must, even if you decide to share. There's a deep Grand Marnier flavour that carries all through this impressive souffle.
Bread and butter pudding (£8) - a classic dessert impeccably done.
This is something that wasn't actually available on the night, but we managed to try when we popped in for an early look around. It's a chocolate mousse recipe that Ashley has been perfecting for months, with the chocolate sprinkled on top being a genius touch. A warning, this will ruin all other chocolate mousses for you.
What about wine?
The wine list is a two-pager, but there's a fair amount crammed on there. Prices start at £29 a bottle (a Spanish 2022 Macabeo) which is extremely reasonable for Soho, with a fair bit available in the £30-40 price point too. We were recommended the Hungarian 2019 Kovac Nimrod Monopole 777 Pinot Noir which was a pretty perfect match for much of the meal and we'd definitely pass that recommendation on.
Anything else to come?
Along with the opening of the second floor, the pub also has a terrace with views down into Soho that will be incredibly popular once the weather calms down a bit. So that'll be something to look forward to in the spring months.
Oisin Rogers up on the terrace, which will come into action next year.
Overall thoughts
With such a power team behind it, The Devonshire had a lot to prove - and it's easily met the very high expectations. Days before it was even officially opened, the pub was packed and serving perfect pints of Guinness...until it ran out due to the demand. It'll be a pub we will personally come back to again and again. Pair that with the grill restaurant turning out exceptional food and it's clear that something truly great has opened in Soho. Highly recommended.
More about The Devonshire
Where is it? 17 Denman Street, London W1D 7HW
How to book: Book online
Find out more: Visit their website or follow them on Instagram @devonshiresoho
Hot Dinners ate as guests of The Devonshire. Prices are correct at the time of writing.
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