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The Elephant Inn, Finchley
Review
About
One of the best local pubs in North London, The Elephant Inn guarantees a warm welcome for regulars and visitors alike. Enjoy great beer and super Thai food in a friendly atmosphere.
Features
CUISINES
Bar, Asian, Thai, Pub
Meal types
Lunch, Dinner, Brunch, Drinks
Special Diets
Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options
FEATURES
Accepts Credit Cards
American Express
Digital Payments
Discover
Free Wifi
Full Bar
Highchairs Available
Mastercard
Outdoor Seating
Reservations
Seating
Serves Alcohol
Street Parking
Table Service
Takeout
Television
Visa
Wheelchair Accessible
Wine and Beer
Location
Street Parking
Does this restaurant offer free wifi?
Order delivery
Save this restaurant
Hours
Closed now
• Opens at 12:00 PM
Sunday
12:00 PM - 10:30 PM
Monday
12:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Tuesday
12:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Wednesday
12:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Thursday
12:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Friday
12:00 PM - 12:00 AM
Saturday
12:00 PM - 12:00 AM
Contribute
3.8
150 reviews
Excellent
78
Good
24
Average
9
Poor
15
Terrible
24
ullabee
London2546 contributions
Sep 2024 • family
After our favourite Thai restaurant in North Finchley had changed hands, and the food standards deteriorated, it was time to revisit the Elephant Inn. The restaurant occupies the upper floor with f the pub and is decorated in a rather traditional Chinese Oriental style.
The menu is typical, with all the normal dishes and a few more unusual ones. We ordered a couple of starters, papaya salad and fish cakes. Both dishes were nice, although we all thought they could have been a bit spicier. The same applied to our main courses: a vegetarian curry and a veggie stir fry, and two beef dishes. Well cooked, very tasty, but lacking a bit of chilli. The coconut rice was lovely. All in all, a good substitute for the North Finchley restaurant.
We didn’t have any drinks, so our total bill incl. a 12 pc service charge was a very reasonable £94. And our friendly, chatty, happy waitress deserves special praise - it was a pleasure to interact with her. We will definitely return.
Written November 28, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jesal Patel
London20 contributions
Mar 2024 • family
I visited earlier this evening (booking at 17:30 for 2 hours), for Mother’s Day with my wife and daughter.
I have a few remarks to make:
I made a call to change to the timing as I had to travel unexpectedly to my parents in Birmingham but was told it was fully booked and couldn’t change the time. When I returned the restaurant was mostly empty with many tables unoccupied…
The service was appalling, which is not even the single waiters fault. It’s Mother’s Day, a busy day for your industry and you chose to put a single person who was trying his best to serve the whole restaurant? It took nearly 15-20 minutes for our drinks to arrive, and I was putting the pressure on to order mains after. Could see other customers also feel the same.
I asked for two coke zeros but was not informed it would be pepsi max, not a big deal but please make that clear to customers because many actually do not like pepsi max, served in a glass, from a tap rather than a bottle. The waiter did not inform me it would be Pepsi max and agreed to the Coke Zero. Again most likely not his fault because he was a single person on the floor.
Last thing when I went to pay I asked the waiter about a gift that was promised when booking for Mother’s Day… he did not know about it did not check and just said ‘errrr no’ - firstly for management if you’re promising these things please fulfil them… my friend visited earlier that day and also had the same to say the above. I’m not usually a person to complain but when taking a £30 deposit, actually not even a hold, but taking £30, you’d expect better than this…
The food was nice, but could be improved where I got a spicy dish with 3 red chillis, which was rather mild. Just a disappointing experience overall which I can’t really add much about the food now.
Written March 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn Finchley
Firstly, my apologies for the delayed response on this review. I am sorry to hear that your Mother's Day meal was ruined. Our restaurant is a different business, so there seems to be some training that has been missed there from the pub side to the Thai restaurant waiters; I will aim to amend this so that your next visit will be much smoother.
Our apologies again and wishing you all the best. Ellese, Deputy Manager
Written May 12, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
ullabee
London2546 contributions
Sep 2022 • none
Whilst I love the upstairs Thai restaurant, a recent visit to the main pub on the ground floor left a lot to be desired. I met a few neighbours for a drink, and they had selected what they probably thought was a quiet part at the back of the pub. Unfortunately we were not far from the pool table, and the group of players made our life a misery - there was endless shouting at the top of their voices, and generally rowdy behaviour. Not a nice experience.
As usual, one orders drinks at the bar. Like a lot of hospitality venues they seem to suffer from staffing problems, but I waited patiently. However. very annoying was the fact that as I was ordering, the young woman behind the bar told me she had to go and do something else, and just left me standing there. Eventually someone else turned up. I asked which red wines were available by the glass, and was given a choice of two - surely this can't be right? Most pubs have a decent selection of wines these days.
So, while I might go upstairs for some decent Thai food, I will not be easily persuaded to return for drinks.
Written November 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn F
Hi Ursula,
Really sorry to hear you didn't enjoy your time with us, the pool table is located in the sports bar which is known to be the loudest part part of our pub with the football paying etc. The lounge (on the other side of the pub) is alot quieter which seems more suited to you. We do actually have a wine menu which should have been given to you, apologies on that note, this will be brought up in the next staff meeting.
Should you wish to give us another chance (and sit away from the sports bar to avoid the noise) Please do pop in!
Thanks,
Dani
Written November 8, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
philcooperuk
19 contributions
Jul 2023 • friends
Regularly eat and drink here after playing tennis in mid week
Great Thai food at reasonable prices. Tried several options on the menu and all have been excellent.
Fullers real ale always maintained in tip top condition unlike most other pubs in this part of London.
Great service by Ben, Tess and all the staff.
Written July 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tim W
North Finchley3 contributions
Aug 2023 • family
We had booked a table for a birthday dinner as we fancied some Thai food in a pub atmosphere. However when we entered the girl behind the bar wasn't remotely interested and wandered off. The place was empty except for one couple. We told another member of staff we'd booked then sat at a table and chose some food from the menu. A member of our party went to the bar to order. She waited a while at the empty bar and despite being asked to serve us the barmaid didn't bother. So we left.
Written September 21, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn Finchley
Apologies for the delayed response. You'll be happy to hear that we've had a recent restructure of the team and are striving towards providing exceptional service for all of our guests. Please do come back again soon and get chatting to our friendly team! Thanks, Ellese
Written May 12, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Barry P
7 contributions
Mar 2023 • none
We ordered two pints of real ale and were charged £13.10, the most expensive pint of real we have ever had including Fuller pubs in central London. How can they justify £6.55, when I queried the staff they just sgrugged and were proud of the fact that irt was the most expensive pint we ever bought.
The food was basically Iceland food and deep fried, the soup was so bad we had t osend it back and when they refunded us the ygave us a dodgy torn five pound note which we now cannot redeeem.
This is one of the worst pubs I have been in in a long long time, please avaoid.
Written March 23, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jphn wellington
London1 contribution
May 2022 • friends
We were really looking forward to a nice meal and it wasn't quite like that. Staff on the shift brilliant and barmaid Ami was rude and aggressive we had book on a Elelphant inn 3rd party website.
60 Thai food and drinks is extremely fantastic but felt embarrassed and bar maid Ami absolutely rude and aggressive
Won't be going again...
Written May 29, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
poppi
North Finchley24 contributions
Apr 2022 • none
They must have changed the chef, food came at different times for the group, one had already finished eating while others waited in vain. What was on the menu was not what we got on our plate, lots of things missing. Waited over half an hour for underwhelming food. Sad sad sad .... wont come back again and suggest others try another place to eat.
Written April 14, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn
Hi Poppi,
I am so sorry for your bad experience at the Elephant Inn. This is not our usual standards and we are definitely aiming higher than that. I know this is not an excuse but chefs had to work with only 2 wok burners and serve about 50 people that came that day for lunch and missed one of your dishes from order.
As my kitchen manager spoken with you regarding missing baby corn in one of your dishes, apologised and explained that delivery missed the ingredient we brought extra portion of stir fry vegetables and basket of crackers to rectify our mistake.
Hopefully that singular incident won't put you off and we will get have a chance to prove ourselves.
Kindest Regards,
Written April 18, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
ullabee
London2546 contributions
Aug 2020 • none
This is a long overdue review of a visit during the Eat Out campaign in August. We had made a booking, just as well as the Thai Kitchen restaurant which is located on the first floor, above the pub, was full to capacity. We were seated in a side room, possibly a function room - a lot quieter and not much atmosphere, but with much better scope for social distancing.
The restaurant is run by a Thai chef and his family, and it shows. The menu featured all the Thai favourites. Because the kitchen was extremely busy and short staffed the waitress had to ask if they could make som tum for us. They did, and I can honestly say it was one of the best I've ever had (including in Thailand), properly made with the addition of cabbage leaves, crisp green beans and a fabulous dressing, simultaneously hot, tart and a bit sweet. The stir fried veggies and the Panang curry with tofu were also excellent. I don't often order Pad Thai, but they do a few variations of this dish and I couldn't resist the very spicy Crystal version, wonderful! Four plates are normally too much for us, but we devoured the lot, it was so tasty.
Service from an older lady was professional, maybe a bit brisk but still very polite and kind. Before the Eat Out discount our bill with a couple of beers was a very reasonable GBP42 (before tip). We hadn't been to this place for years. All those great meals we've missed out on! We will definitely be back more regularly when restaurants are open again and it's safe to go.
Written February 1, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ullabee
London2546 contributions
Jun 2021 • none
Having had a superb meal here last summer, we took a relative for dinner in June after restaurants reopened. This time it was fairly quiet and we had a nice window table.
Our guest being non vegetarian, we ordered a few different dishes this time. The grilled tiger prawns were very tasty, nicely marinated, but they were not the huge tiger prawns you expect in Thailand, more like king prawns. Som tum was tart and sweet at once, and refreshing. The stir fried spicy aubergine was less spicy than expected, and maybe a little hard. Pad krapow with tofu was a lovely noodle dish, and the Panang chicken curry was just as good as the veggie version we had in the past. Coconut rice with a pronounced coconut flavour was an excellent accompaniment. As our guest had never tried our favourite Thai dessert, we ordered Khao now mamuang, sticky rice with mango and coconut. The rice was nicely sticky as expected, and the mango almost as good as in Thailand; but the coconut sauce was replaced by coconut ice cream. Different, but delicious, too.
We had a reasonably priced bottle of an Italian red Nero d'Avola which complemented the food quite well.
This time, service was by a very sweet and helpful Thai waitress. Our bill was GBP94 including the 12 pc service charge, not bad for three people with wine. We'll be back.
Written August 25, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ElephantInn
Hi Ursula!
Thank you so much for the fantastically detailed review of your experience with us. We're thrilled you enjoyed the food and hope to see you again soon!
Take care,
Vanessa
The Elephant Inn
Written August 26, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Queendee
37 contributions
Apr 2024 • couples
Great pub with amazing jazz artists on a couple of Sundays a month. The draw to go to this pub is the high standard of music, the Thai food available and the friendly, efficient staff. Worth travelling to and parking after 6.30 fairly available in the area
Written April 9, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn Finchley
Thank you ever so kindly for this wonderful review. We look forward to seeing you again for our next jazz night this upcoming Sunday! You are welcome here at The Elephant Inn any time you like. All the best, Ellese
Written May 12, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Girish Tailor
London6 contributions
Jun 2023 • solo
This is a friendly venue. They have board games, books and have also run a pool tournament! They serve traditional Thai food and provide entertainment by way of jazz music, comedy and pub quizzes.
Written July 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Daniel M
1 contribution
Jul 2022 • none
The Thai food is good but what is it about England that customers have to interrupt their meal by being obliged to re-order food and drinks at the bar in the middle of eating? It really mars the enjoyment of the experience.
The bar manager, Vanessa, has a pretty curt and abrupt manner bordering on plain obnoxious. This attitude clearly feeds through to some of the other staff who are at best, non-attentive and at worst, discourteous. At times it feels as though the customer is their as a hindrance.
For sure, many of the bar staff, Vanessa included, would be best advised to pick a new career because hospitality and customer service is clearly not their forte.
I won't be returning again.
Written July 17, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elephant Inn F
Firstly, my apologies that you did not receive good service on this occasion. I will certainly investigate as this is highly unusual.
As for your enjoyment of the meal I am very pleased you like our Thai food. You may be interested to know that we have a lovely Thai Restaurant upstairs. The restaurant is all table service so doesn't take away from your dining experience by going to the bar.
We do hope you visit us again for a second chance.
Written July 21, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Richard G
1 contribution
Nov 2022 • none
I would like to echo Hollbo's comments earlier in the year in May
This is an excellent pub with good beer and service. I couldn't ask for better
You'll usually find me here on a Wednesday evening playing cards, but I also like to come here occasionally for one of their excellent Thai meals with my wife on a Friday or Saturday evening.
I'm not a football supporter, but as there are rarely any screens in the lounge bar, you can usually escape from the TVs in the Sports bar for some peace & quiet
The quiz on Mondays is also very good and the occasional live music weekends is welcomed. Unfortunately I live in Muswell Hill where there are no decent pubs, only over-priced restaurants, otherwise this would be my local
Well done Bart!
Richard
Written December 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LondonSsh
Hertfordshire63 contributions
Jan 2023 • friends
Came for lunch with friends. Found one member of staff really friendly but another was surly and verging on being rude. She didn’t say a word as I ordered drinks, couldn’t even raise a smile and came across as someone who wished she wasn’t there!
However, the food was good.
I also noticed that there was a table of five or six elderly people playing dominoes. They didn’t eat or order anything to drink. I’m assuming that the pub is operating as a place where people can be in if they can’t afford to heat their homes?
If this is the case, well done to the management!
Written January 27, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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