britannia arms pub

I only go to the Brit on Tuesday's for Trivia Night. The quiz master, Jan, is really wonderful. Great personality and fantastic range of questions. The fish and chips are excellent and the rest of the food is at least very good.

Please note I am only reviewing this place as a frequenter of the late night scene here. It's near my apartment, so after a night out with friends, the Brit is usually our last stop to dance off the last few cocktails. There's typically a good DJ on weekends, lots of people making fools of themselves, and the usual creeper single guys in the back. I have only been here for food/drinks once, and it was what you would expect from bar food. they ARE unique in that they have some good imported beers on tap and in bottle. I have also run down to grab a beer before and watch the game. Its casual, relaxing, and a great place to dance away an hour on the weeekends.

Maybe in the dark this place is OK but we went for lunch and could see the inside. Very yucky. It seems like a hangout for the down and out from yesteryear. The fish and chips (house speciality) were greasy and not all that good adn service was non existant. Would have left except we had a Living Social half off coupon. It wasn't even worth the half off.

Had a great bartender, Morgan, who was really on top of it! We dined there, I recommend the fish and chips. The beer selection was great. It's nice to get away from the standard bud light and such. They serve Mendocino Brewing Company beer. The doorman Kevin was real nice too. Overall great experience.

Fun atmosphere and delicious fish and chips! Great place to go with friends on the weekends.

I ate at "the Brit" in Cupertino last night because they participate in a Passport Corporate Dining program. I was accompanied by three friends. I have enjoyed dining at two other Britannia Arms in the bay area prior to this visit - ALL OF THE EXCELLENT AND HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.I will group my comments into 3 sections: the environment, the food, and the service...The Environment:Upon entry we were greeted by a pleasant lady who told us to sit anyplace... There were about 10 guys sitting in this pub, watching television. There was THE SAME US football game on EVERY SCREEN in the place, save one - that had billiards on it. The place was mostly empty and no one was eating there... The kitchen was observed from our table through and open door and was silent... I am from a small town in Ohio and this pub is pretty much what we would find IN our town... My friend was from Grand Valley, Ontario, Canada and he stated that "it is like something you would find in Orangeville." Of note, a well meaning DJ showed up and invited the small crowd that was there to participate in Karaoke...The Food:This was probably the most disappointing part of the experience. The waitress asked us if we wanted any drinks - I promptly ordered Strongbow and my friend ordered a Guinness which was immediately served. We were then offered starters. I asked for "4 Pickled Onions" and was rejected with "what are those?" by the waitress... I opened the menu and showed her them (at $1 each) and she went off to the kitchen returning promptly saying "we don't actually have those." Thus, we were relegated to potato skins - which were very good...The main courses however were another disappointment... Corned Beef and Cabbage.I had "Corned Beef and Cabbage" which was essentially reheated corned beef slices, boiled potatoes, and steamed or microwaved cabbage... They were not actually prepared together and had none of the customary flavors associated with corned beef and cabbage... The potatoes and the cabbage were completely unseasoned... This type of preparation would be most appropriate for a hospital or nursing home - not a place offering "authentic british food".Shepherd's Pie.One of our party had Shepherds Pie... This was actually beef - sauteed in onions with potatoes and cheese on top. There were no peas, carrots, or other flavors associated with shepherd's pie... Chicken Pie.There were no complaints about the chicken pie.Tea.After dinner, I asked for tea... I asked for "PG Tips." and the waitress replied "what's that?"... I asked her what kind of tea she had and she replied "Lipton". Desert.Rice pudding and Toffee cake were EXCELLENT. The Menu and Food in General.The menu states food that is not available. Further, it is different from the other Britannia Arms I have visited in the area in that it only has one type of fish - the Almaden location offers Cod OR Halibut. The desert also lacks the "Deep Fried Mars Bar" that is popular at the other locations.The ServiceThe service was ok, in that the waitress was prompt and attentive (there were no other patrons). She however possessed no knowledge of british pub food other than her guidance to my friend "Chips are Fries"... She did not know what pickled onions were, nor did she know anything about the two popular british teas, offering us "Lipton" instead... I was overcharged... I had to go tack to the waitress and point out that my card was part of the Passport Corporate Dining program (which they participate in) in order to get one free meal - her only reply was "oh yeah."OverallThe mains food is tasteless and flavorless, and had my friends not been in a good mood would have deemed it inedible. We ordered "british comfort food" and were served what resembled "hospital food" (american hospital food that is), poorly prepared. The desert was excellent, as were the potato skins... You would be well advised to go to Britannia Arms Almaden or Downtown for a much better taste of british food... However, if you only want to watch an american football game - and drink, this would be a fine place to visit...

The worst meal of my life. We normally frequent another British pub in Cupertino and were talked into trying "the Brit". The Fish and Chips started out promising, large filets with a light batter. However, halfway through the meal, the grease was unbearable (cheap oil maybe?). My wife ordered the Sheperds Pie. It had a scant amout of grey meat and was also swimming in grease. She could not even finish her meal. The inside reminded me of a country pub in southern England, pretty drab but lively with sports, darts, and pool. The wait staff was friendly.