Cosy pubs for winter: ten of London’s best for cold nights at Christmas

This is quite true, too, at the Star & Garter (62 Poland Street, W1F 7NX, 020 7287 2635), also in Soho. A diminutive space of dark wood and robust beams, the tables are well used, scuffed but merrily so, and old copper pots hang from the ceiling any which way. It is a small pub, an unassuming refuge, and that’s the draw: one of those busy places for a post-work pint, or the ideal antidote to a busy day of Christmas shopping.