When renowned sign-writer Ged Palmer began hand-painting the lettering on the front of The Shaston Arms in mid-September, Soho’s locals got animated. “They were saying, ‘Oh it’s going to be a pub!’ and ‘It’s still going to be called The Shaston Arms!’” says the new owner, Joe Grossman.
Back in June, rumours swirled that the beloved Ganton Street boozer, which opened in 1999, had been shuttered to make way for something fancier. But Grossman – who founded Patty & Bun in 2012 and took over the acclaimed Waterman’s Arms in Barnes in 2023 – is clear with his intentions. “First and foremost, it’s a proper pub. You can grab an informal bite at lunch or you can take a table in the back for dinner, or you can just roll up with your mates after work and have a great time.”
The bijou boozer couldn’t be altered too much, as it’s part of a listed terrace. “It’s quite higgledy-piggledy, but that’s part of the charm to me,” Grossman says. Instead, it’s been lovingly refitted, with a burgundy gloss ceiling, restored original wallpaper, mirrored booths with ribbed glass panels, artworks and trinkets sourced from the Sunbury Antiques Market in Kempton, plus a new hanging pub sign also hand-drawn by Palmer. “It’s Soho – there’s a pub every five metres. But not that many that feel like you’re walking into your local.”
Early on, Grossman’s Patty & Bun popped up at what was then The Endurance on nearby Berwick Street, and he still has a branch on neighbouring Kingly Street, so the Shaston has long been a favourite meeting place. “As soon as I heard that this icon was available, I needed to do whatever I could to try and get hold of it. It’s just such a wonderful spot. Hopefully we’re going to have a lot of the old regulars back in there; every day we’ve got people popping their heads in.”
At The Waterman’s Arms, which was recently listed in the Michelin Guide, the team, led by head chef Sam Andrews, “do butchery in-house, fish cooked over the coals – it’s large format”, Grossman says. The plan for food at the Shaston is similar – “taking the same quality of produce and the same approach, but doing it in a smaller format”. Andrews, formerly of Ducksoup, is returning to Soho to lead the kitchen.
“It’s a small menu that will change quite regularly, but we’ll always have something veggie, always have a fish, always have a steak – food that works really well in a drinking environment.” On the most recent menu, dishes included onion rings fried in beef fat served with whipped cod's roe, scallops with curry leaf and mashed potato, and delicita squash with walnut salsa rosso. And that includes Sundays. A full lunch service, running from midday to 4.30pm, is planned. For drinks, there’s a tight but focused wine list and beers from Hackney’s Forest Road alongside some bigger names.
The dining area at the rear of the pub is separated by heavy velvet curtains (“Never closed – you want to see what’s going on”) and takes some cues from another Soho icon. “Upstairs at The French House you really feel like you’re in this magical little world, so that’s really been a massive inspiration for us.” Tables here will be bookable, but the rest of the pub remains first-come-first-served. “From the Shaston you can really see the world go by, and a lot of Soho’s characters,” Grossman says. “And as long as it’s not raining, we don’t mind standing outside.”
The Shaston Arms
4–6 Ganton Street, W1F 7QN
Hours:
Mon to Sat midday–11pm
Sun midday–8pm
