Where to drink around Soho Square, and what each is good for

Here is the first thing to know: Soho Square is a garden, not a drinking street. The square has 30 buildings, 16 of them listed, and a mock-Tudor hut in the middle, but no pub on its perimeter that we would send you to. The good news is that the drinking is a short stroll away, on Carlisle Street, Dean Street, Greek Street and Frith Street. Here is what each is good for.

The Toucan, for Guinness

19 Carlisle Street. A small, Guinness-minded bar a step from the square's southern side. CAMRA calls it a homage to Guinness. It started in the basement in 1994 and later spread upstairs. There is no cask ale, and nobody is fussed if you ask for a lager or an Irish whiskey instead, according to Londonist.

The building is Grade II listed, dating from 1735 to 1737, and Jimi Hendrix is reputed to have played in the basement. It also turns up in the film Last Night in Soho. Crowds spill onto the street when it is busy, and upstairs seats are like gold dust, so go early or take your pint outside like everyone else.

Order: a Black Velvet, which is Guinness topped with champagne. Guinness and cider is the cheaper pour, and the Irish whiskey list is long.

Crown & Two Chairmen, for the proper corner pub

31 to 32 Dean Street. A busy corner pub a short walk south of the square, with bar food through the day, Sunday roasts and lunchtime table service on the first floor. There is a Chairmen's Lounge upstairs for when the bar is packed.

The name has a story: the pub was the Crown until 1736, then reputedly renamed for two sedan-chair men who stopped for a drink after delivering Queen Anne to a portrait studio opposite. It is also dog-friendly, per the pub's own X account.

Order: one of the weekly-changing cask ales, or a Doom Bar, and the Sunday roast if it is a Sunday.

The Coach & Horses, for Soho lore

Greek Street. Known to generations as Norman's, this is the Soho institution of the lot. It was the weekly haunt of the Private Eye office and appeared in Jeffrey Bernard's Low Life column in The Spectator. The Michelin Guide describes it as full to bursting with an eclectic mix of drinkers, and The Nudge mentions singalongs around the piano.

Order: a pint, and a spot near the piano if you can get one.

Bar Italia, for the late one

22 Frith Street. A café-bar rather than a pub, ranked number 18 in Time Out's best bars in London. It is listed among Soho's late-night options by Oxsight, which makes it the place for a coffee or a nightcap when the pubs have called time.

Order: an espresso, standing up, then decide what comes next.

Three Sheets and Swift, for cocktails

Three Sheets, 13 Manette Street. Time Out ranks it number 31 in its best bars list, and Hot Dinners lists it among the best Soho bars, noting the Soho outpost is a little bigger than the Dalston original. It sits at the Charing Cross Road end of Soho, a few minutes south-west of the square.

Swift, 12 Old Compton Street. Hot Dinners says the original Soho site is still the best, and that the upstairs bar is walk-in only. Book small bars ahead where you can, and try one street back from the main strip if the queues put you off.

Order: a cocktail at either, and for Swift, head upstairs if you are walking in.

The Blue Posts, if you will walk

22 Berwick Street. About ten minutes from the square. The Nudge says the Palomar team renovated the 250-year-old pub, and Michelin calls it a good quick afternoon pint, with jazz nights and drag-queen karaoke.

Order: a quick afternoon pint, or time it for a jazz night.

When to go

Friday and Saturday carry the most energy in Soho, with Thursday similar but calmer, according to Oxsight. For the Toucan, go as it opens to bag an upstairs seat. Come out of Tottenham Court Road station, cross the garden, and the rest is a few minutes' walk. Check each venue for current hours before you set off.

Sources: CAMRA on the Toucan, CAMRA on the Crown & Two Chairmen, the Michelin Guide to Soho.