top 10

Ye Olde King's Head

Claim
marker

116 Santa Monica Blvd (at Ocean Avenue)
Santa Monica, CA 90401

marker
(310) 451-1402
Incorrect info? Correct your listing
Photos
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Ye Olde King's Head - Santa Monica, CA
Reviews
( 11 )
( 15 )
( 1 )
( 2 )
( 5 )

Best

I had my birthday party here in November, they reserved the dart area and brought out some great lil bites. Always a good place to go with friends. -e

Worst

Haven't been to Ye Olde King's Head in a few years. Since I was in Santa Monica last weekend, I thought I'd give the othe old place a try for dinner. Rude service, very slow to ...

Great Birthday Party Place 3/23/2011

I had my birthday party here in November, they reserved the dart area and brought out some great lil bites. Always a good place to go with friends. -e more
Reply | Report abuse |

Spew n Chips!!! 11/8/2010

I am ENGLISH, born and bred in London,,, have lived around the world for around 20 years now and CRAVE good fish n chips wherever i am! I went to the Kings Head this Sunday and ordered the fish n chips and a cuppa rosy (tea). I was really hungry so wolfed it down, I followed this with the rhubarb crumble and a cuppa. The fish was ok, the chips decent (more to follow) the tea was like dish water, We Brits do LOVE a cup of tea, decent tea, but this was embarrassing. The crumble didnt crumble it was horrible. Now here comes the bad part and i have warned you ,,, For the next hour and a half the fat the fish was fried in kept repeating on me until I had to projectile vomit around half a gallon of spew much to the horror of by passers in the Hollywood Hills!!!!!!!!!! I DO NOT have a weak stomach or anything, I have been on a few survival courses (PARA REG) where i have eaten things that just the smell of would have made you puke. First time I have thrown up (without copious amounts of beer involved :)) since i was 6 years old!!! Bottom line yes you can watch the footy, yes you can get a Stella, yes you can get English bits n bobs, all well and could but the food is nothing your Mum would EVER turn out. I never give reviews, this is a warning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! more
Reply | Report abuse |

Great Football Pub! 9/27/2010

Great English pub food and a pint of Stella! Every time I'm in Santa Monica from Atlanta, I have to go to the King's Head for my football fix and great meat pies LOL, I've yet to be disappointed by this great pub. Great service, excellent food, and beer wish there were more place like this in the USAi more
Reply | Report abuse |

Best Fish n' Chips 6/8/2010

One of the best Irish pubs in the westside! Order the king sized fish 'n chips, you will not be disappointed! They have great beer on tap from Guinness to Boddingtons. Service is excellent, space is ample, and a great restaurant to host a party. Pros: food, darts, service, beer Cons: price more
Reply | Report abuse |

manchester city 8/31/2009

manchester citys games are all important!! more
Reply | Report abuse |

Poor Service and Over Priced 7/25/2009

I went to the pier for my birthday and thought I would splurge at this place. \r \r I ordered the Queen's Fish and Chips, which consists of one piece of fish and fries and tartar sauce. The price $13.99. A little bit steap for no side!! My companion ordered Chicken Cordon Blue, which came with Mashed Potatoes, a spot of Gravy and Brocolli and Carrots, for $14.99, which I thought was a better value.\r \r We dined inside. A woman with a British accent took my order. Brought the order and never once checked to see I we needed anything. I was tempted not to leave a tip, except that the busboy did ask if we wanted anything and filled our water glasses. \r \r The food, at least the fish and chips were alright, but not worth the $13.99. I would not go back becaues of the price and the total lack of service!!!! Pros: Food was OK Cons: Poor Service more
Reply | Report abuse |

Definitely check it out 11/15/2008

I had the pleasure of trying Ye Olde King's Head for the first time last night. The Shrimp Marie Rose (appetizer) was a little bland. The Vegetable Samosa more than made up for it. YUM!! For dinner, I had the Chicken Mushroom Pie?to die for. We wrapped up our scrumptious meal with a Pear Triffle and some soothing teas. I couldn?t have asked for a better dinner or a more relaxing atmosphere. I will definitely be back. Pros: food, atmosphere Cons: service was a little slow more
Reply | Report abuse |

Food worth the bad service? 10/18/2008

The food is great here, especially the fish and chips or the curry, but the service is absolutely horrible. They do not really make an effort of coming to your table. After you order, the customer has to be the one to call them over. The bus boys tend to be much more polite and helpful than the waitresses, in my experience the smallest thing will offend the waitress and she'll be short with you for the rest of your time there. Despite this, my friends and I absolutely cannot resist coming here for their food. As long as you do not expect the best customer service, I'm sure you will have a good time. I should also add that they have a ""rule"" on their menus, which do not allow you to share fish and chips with anyone at your table and if you do, they charge you extra. I do not know if this is even allowed in the first place. Pros: Food, Location Cons: Customer Service more
Reply | Report abuse |

Not what it used to be 5/21/2008

Haven't been to Ye Olde King's Head in a few years. Since I was in Santa Monica last weekend, I thought I'd give the othe old place a try for dinner. Rude service, very slow to be served my meal and the quality had certainly gone down the tubes, friend ordered the fish and chips, and I had a steak and kidney pie. The fish was overbattered and overcooked, chips were certainly not freshly cut and fried, tasted more like a frozen variety. My pie was below exopectations, mostly a tasteless gravy and not much in the way of steak or kidneys. I found out the ownership had changed a few years ago, that could explain the decline in qualtiy at this old standard. Gave the shop next door a try for some tea, way overpriced........I'm going to one of the other shops in Santa Monica, on Wilshire Blvd next time I need my tea fix. more
Reply | Report abuse |

Terrible and rude service 11/27/2007

Terrible service. I came here with a friend early one night, at 5. We were seated all the way in the back room, and the hostess seemed cold and dismissive. So did the waitress. We ordered one king sized fish and chips to split, 1 DISH!!! We ended up waiting more than an hour. All the while, other people were seated, a party of 8 was seated, a party of 4, and they all ordered many dishes. They all got their food within 15 minutes, even those that ordered fish and chips, while we waited an hour for our one dish which we ordered at least half an hour before all of them. Our water glasses were never refilled. With no apologies or explanations, (it would have been nice if our waitress came over and explained to us why we were being ignored), when our food finally came, I told her that we had been waiting for more than an hour for our one dish and wanted to know what happened. She merely chuckled in a patronizing way, and said ""i don't think it was an hour"". I said yes, it was, we came in at 5, and now it was 6:10. She said it was a slow day. I told her everyone in the room had gotten their food within 20 minutes after being seated after us. She said in a horribly condescending tone ""Well I don't know what you want me to say"". I was flabbergasted.\r \r RUDE. RUDE. RUDE. avoid the fat lady with the belly. Pros: fish and chips, or so i thought Cons: rude staff, untimely and irresponsible more
Reply | Report abuse |

Don't eat here 8/14/2007

It amazes me this place gets such high reviews. When we ate there it was terrible.\r \r 1) Service was extremely slow (waited 20 minutes for our first drinks)\r 2) They don't know how to cook a steak. I ordered a medium steak and it overdone.\r 3) Fish and chips were dry and inedible\r 4) They screwed up french fries. How do you screw up french fries?\r \r This place is, at best, marginal bar food. If you want to hang out in a smoky, noisy pub and eat mediocre fried food then you might like this place. If you want a good meal in Santa Monica look elsewhere. Pros: Black and Tan was good Cons: Food, atmosphere, service more
Reply | Report abuse |

Maybe it was a slow week for treacle pudding? 5/12/2007

I'm a British Expat feeling the need for some old fashioned fish and chips and a pint of draught cider. They had a wide selection of draught beers and the menu was full of great British fayre. The person on the table next to me had a steak and kidney pie that smelt lovely. Although his veggies looked overdone.\r \r Food: The chips were not traditional British chips, just the regular frozen variety found in markets everywhere. It was topped with a huge piece of battered cod. The cod turned out to be a small piece of cod encased in a batter that was solid and over an inch thick. Sawing through caused it to crumble into little pieces. The cod wasn't able to hold it's shape, it crumbled too. It was accompanied by a lovely tartare sauce that tasted home made. No vegetables, traditional peas or even a small salad, just a sprig of parsley.\r \r Dessert was rice pudding, tinned but warm and a treacle pudding with custard. The rice pudding came out in a glass trifle dish on a glass plate, it tasted ok. The treacle pudding was served on a dinner plate with a strange pattern around the edge. It looked as though they had been to a garage sale for their settings. The plate allowed the custard to develop a skin and get cold very quickly. And the treacle pudding was a dry, stale, square with a slightly sticky crust. It was so stale it had the the same aftertaste you would find in a soggy, stale cookie. I can't imagine what they were thinking serving something that had clearly lain around for quite some time.\r \r Service: This was slow and tired despite the patio having just four parties. Glasses of water arrived after dinner. I also noticed that, despite the fact that most of the tables were empty, she made a party of three move over to share one small table suitable for only two diners, then pulled the tables apart to allow a couple to use the other table. Made no sense at all.\r \r All in all it was a very disappointing meal. Pros: Wide selection of British Draught Beers Cons: Food, disappointing and tired more
Reply | Report abuse |

Fun place to play darts! 11/24/2006

I came here one Friday night with a bunch of buddies and had a blast! Their beer selection is excellent and they have darts which are fun. Their bathrooms could afford to be tidied up a bit. more
Reply | Report abuse |

the best british pub... 10/25/2006

All the people that work at YOKH is actually from England. This place knows whats going on. Good beer. more
Reply | Report abuse |

The fish and chips are deeeeeeeeeeelicious!!! 9/7/2006

Wow, I'm blown away by the fish and chips here...they've also got the best rhubarb pie.\r Service is absolutely wonderful. Watched a bunch of the world cup soccer games here. Really crowded but the servers seemed in on all the fun and they kept the food and drinks all flowing. Good food, fun atmosphere. Pros: Guinness on tap, best fish and chips! more
Reply | Report abuse |

A Friday night review. 8/9/2006

Every bar has its days; this review is only a reflection on Friday, since that's the only day I've been:\r \r The crowd was a lot older (I'm 22), but interestingly mixed. We knew this Brit pub was legit when I heard Brit/Aussie guys talking. The crowd was friendly and seemed like they all knew each other. A whole bunch were playing a round of darts. The white Russians I had were ok-strong. I'd like to come back happy hour and try the food. Overall, just an average Friday night. Pros: friendly crowd and bartenders, local feel Cons: horrible music, older crowd more
Reply | Report abuse |

Love the fish and chips! 6/25/2006

I had the queen size fish and chips, and it was great. Nothing pretentious like what other restaurants are trying to make the dish into (no Japanese fusion please), just traditional British fish and chips. It's almost as good as the one I've had in Bath UK, a hole in the wall place where all the locals go to. I am going there again today to watch the world cup series. Pros: Fish and Chips! Cons: Parking is confusing, don't park right across street, super expensive. more
Reply | Report abuse |

A jolly good time! 5/18/2006

This place was fantastic! I had my birthday dinner here last weekend with about 12 people, and they were more than accomodating. Our table was set up for us before we arrived, and we were sat immediately. My girlfriend brought a cake, and they even served it with candles, sang, and gave me a souvenir card with a polaroid! Our waitress, Deb, was excellent. She was very nice, attentive, and made sure we were all having a good time throughout the entire night. The food is great! A very traditional British menu- the fish & chips were the best I've had outside of London! The atmosphere is very cool - you feel like you could step outside and see Big Ben... very authentic. All in all, it was a great time and I will definitely go back! Pros: Food, Atmosphere, Beer selection Cons: Nothing more
Reply | Report abuse |

Taste of Britain, more than you'd budget? 5/25/2005

Having lived in London for a year and just having returned for the third time, it's nice to know that the King's Head is so close. The pub food is generally good (just as it is in the UK) and will give you a sense of what that food is like (filling!). Everyone is always friendly - you may be invited to join in a game of darts or chatted up by a true Brit. Beer is a pretty good selection but PRICEY - 5.50 a pint to be exact, and there isn't anything you can't find if you look for it elsewhere. Go for the hospitality, the friendly people, good food if you eat it, and the nice beer variety, but don't expect a normal bar tab at the end of the night! Great spot, a vital part of the touristy section of Santa Monica, nevertheless. Cheers! more
Reply | Report abuse |

User review by nancy689 3/16/2005

Try the King's head burger..it's beyond juicy; one of the best burgers I've ever had! more
Reply | Report abuse |
< Previous 1 2 Next >
Menu for Ye Olde King's Head


Summer SALE!!!:
15% OFF all yearly plans
Use year15 at checkout. Expires 1/1/2021

Authentic teas, pints and fish and chips at this lively British pub by the beach.

Owner Message

  • The internationally known British Pub and Restaurant has flourished through several expansions. The restaurant serves daily specials like Sunday roasts, fish-and-chips, burgers, bangers and more, inside a comfortable and casual setting. The Pub is traditional with its own social life. Its popularity for a "pint-stop" is almost legendary. People come from all over for happy hour, soccer games, Trivia Night, karaoke and of course, the warm comfortable atmosphere that is second to none.

    The British tradition continues next door with Ye Olde King's Head Gift Shoppe, offering PG Tips, Cadburys chocolate, Heinz baked beans, Jewelry, fine wines, cheeses and other wonderful gifts.

Editorial

  • In Short
    This well-appointed, laid-back pub is full of accented expats who traded London fog for California sunshine. The menu features traditional British pub and teahouse fare. The...

  • 9/8/2004 Provided by Citysearch
Additional information
  • Hours: Mon-Thu 9am-10pm Fri 9am-12am Sat 8am-12am Sun 8am-110am
  • Payments: Visa, American Express, Master Card
  • Neighborhoods: West LA, Downtown
badge