A well-loved pub in the heart of the City of London has served its last pint for the time being, closing its doors at the start of the week as work begins on a six-figure refurbishment.
The Phoenix on Throgmorton Street welcomed its final customers on Monday, October 5. It is expected to reopen towards the end of the month, when regulars will be greeted by a smart new interior.
The revamp is designed to lift the whole experience — whether visitors are settling in for dinner, meeting friends for drinks or catching live sport. A fresh colour scheme, modern décor and more comfortable furniture are all part of the plan.
The layout is being reworked too. An upgraded bar area and additional fixed seating will make it easier to welcome groups of all sizes, from midweek after-work crowds to larger weekend gatherings. At the front of the building, new lobby doors and refreshed signage are intended to give the pub real kerbside appeal.
Tucked away on Throgmorton Street, a short walk from the Bank of England, The Phoenix has long been part of the furniture of the Square Mile’s drinking scene. The building has poured pints under more than one name over the years — it once traded as the Hog’s Head — and today it forms part of the Metropolitan Pub Company’s estate.
Throgmorton Street sits in the thick of the financial district, lined with offices whose workers have kept its bars busy for generations. In that world a good pub is more than a watering hole: it is where long weeks are rounded off, birthdays are marked and colleagues become friends.
Like many of the City’s great pubs, The Phoenix lives by the rhythm of the working week — a dependable haven for after-work drinks and meals, blending traditional touches with a more contemporary style. That balancing act is exactly what the refurbishment aims to protect, with the promise of the same classic pub charm given a modern twist.
There is plenty to look forward to beyond the new paintwork. Once the doors reopen, the pub plans to lay on a full calendar of entertainment throughout the year, and it is currently recruiting new front-of-house team members ahead of the relaunch. Anyone keen to join has been encouraged to apply via the link shared on the pub’s pages.
Progress updates are being posted on the pub’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, and the team say they are eager to welcome customers back to a refreshed, more inviting setting just in time for the autumn season.
The timing is no accident. Autumn is traditionally one of the busiest periods for the pub trade, as shorter days and colder evenings send Londoners indoors in search of a cosy corner — and a freshly refurbished local is well placed to make the most of it.
The six-figure spend is the latest sign of confidence in London’s pub trade, with operators across the capital investing heavily to draw drinkers back. West Hampstead’s Black Lion has taken a strikingly similar path, closing for its own six-figure refurbishment ahead of an October relaunch.
The picture is not uniformly rosy, however. Even as some pubs splash out on makeovers, others are finding the going tough — Maida Vale’s landmark Warrington Hotel recently called last orders, at least for now.
For City workers, though, the message from Throgmorton Street is a cheerful one: their local is only pressing pause, and it will be back before long — smarter, more comfortable and ready for the busy run-up to Christmas.
The Phoenix is expected to reopen towards the end of October. Until a confirmed date is announced, regulars can keep an eye on its social media channels for the latest news from behind the hoardings.
