Photo: Chris Walker Creative
The Horseshoe: Darts in Clerkenwell, London
The Horseshoe is a proper old Clerkenwell boozer that happens to be one of the best darts pubs in London. It sits on a quiet backstreet off Clerkenwell Close, has been a pub since at least 1748, and is the unofficial home of the City of London Darts Association. There are nine boards in total, two downstairs and seven in the upstairs function room, and you can throw for free. The crowd is a genuine mix: media types, City workers, old regulars and visiting players, with no hipster polish to it. Worth knowing before you head over: it only opens Monday to Friday and is shut at weekends, and the upstairs boards get block-booked by league teams on weeknight evenings, so a quiet afternoon or a later night is your best bet for a casual game.
Contact
- Phone 020 7253 6068
- Website Visit site ↗
- Address 24 Clerkenwell Close, Clerkenwell, EC1R 0AG
Opening hours
- Mon 12:00-23:00
- Tue 12:00-23:00
- Wed 12:00-23:00
- Thu 12:00-23:00
- Fri 12:00-23:00
- Sat Closed
- Sun Closed
Good to know
- Darts
- Wine list
- Kitchen
- Dog friendly
- Beer garden
- Wi-Fi
- Sports screened
The darts setup
Nine boards in two spots. Two sit downstairs in the main bar, so you can play within reach of your pint, and seven more are racked up in the refurbished function room upstairs. That upstairs count is unusual for a London pub and is the reason CoLDA leans on the place for league nights and its Grand Prix Handicap Opens. There is no automatic scoring or fancy booking app here; it is chalk, a traditional board and whoever is next. Casual play is free. If you want the upstairs room for a group, ask the bar, as it doubles as their events space and books up for league fixtures.
The darts scene here
This is a league pub first and a tourist stop second. The City of London Darts Association, which runs the main central London league with several hundred players from total beginners to county standard, treats The Horseshoe as its spiritual home and hosts open tournaments here. That means the upstairs boards are regularly all booked out, particularly Tuesday to Thursday between about 17:00 and 20:00. The upside is the standard and the welcome: it is the kind of room where young lads in media end up throwing next to old regulars and visiting Europeans, and nobody minds if you are new to it.
Good to know
Open Monday to Friday only, noon to 11pm, and closed at weekends, so plan around that. It is a free house with four hand pumps and a couple of changing cask ales alongside the usual lagers, wines and soft drinks, at fair prices. The kitchen does pizza plus lunch and evening meals, roughly noon to 14:30 and 18:00 to 21:00 on weekdays. There is a small hidden garden, sport on the TV and it is dog friendly. One step at the entrance and no accessible toilet. It is about 500m from Farringdon station, an easy walk.
Common questions
- Is darts free to play at The Horseshoe in Clerkenwell?
- Yes. The Horseshoe is a traditional free house and casual darts on its boards is free to play. There is no per-game or per-session charge for a knockabout.
- How many dart boards does The Horseshoe have?
- Nine in total. Two are downstairs in the main bar and seven are in the function room upstairs, which is unusually high for a London pub.
- Do you need to book darts at The Horseshoe?
- Not for a casual game; you can walk in and play if a board is free. The seven upstairs boards do get block-booked by league teams, especially Tuesday to Thursday between roughly 5pm and 8pm, so afternoons or later evenings are easier for a quiet throw.
- What are The Horseshoe Clerkenwell's opening hours?
- It opens Monday to Friday from noon to 11pm and is closed on Saturday and Sunday. The kitchen serves food roughly noon to 2:30pm and 6pm to 9pm on weekdays.
- Is The Horseshoe good for beginners and groups?
- Yes. It is a welcoming, no-frills pub that mixes seasoned league players with first-timers, and the City of London Darts Association caters for everyone from absolute beginners upward. For groups, the upstairs room with its seven boards works well, though you should check availability with the bar as it is also their league and events space.
- Where is The Horseshoe and what is the nearest station?
- It is at 24 Clerkenwell Close, Clerkenwell, London EC1R 0AG, on a backstreet off the Close. The nearest station is Farringdon, about 500m (a short walk) away.
Other darts bars nearby
- The Horseshoe (Clerkenwell) Clerkenwell / Farringdon (Islington), EC1
- Brewdog Clerkenwell Clerkenwell
- Old China Hand Clerkenwell, EC1
- The Golden Lion, Camden Town Camden Town
- The Roundabout (Old Street) Shoreditch Shoreditch
- The Roundabout Shoreditch Shoreditch