Mac Rating: 5.00 | Votes: 1 | Date: 20/06/2026 18:27:00

A rock-and-roll saloon bar in Tufnell Park, north London, Aces & Eights pairs a street-level bar serving cocktails, craft beer and handmade pizza with an intimate basement music venue. The downstairs room, which seats around 50, occupies what was once the strongroom of a Barclays Bank, now fitted out as a speakeasy-style space with a corner stage, drapes and a dedicated green room. The main bar runs a classic rock jukebox and late-night DJ sets on Friday and Saturday, while the basement hosts live music and regular comedy nights and is available for private hire, album launches and shoots. Equipped with a full PA, backline and DJ kit, the cellar venue has built a reputation as an under-the-radar room for both touring and emerging acts on the north London circuit. Aces & Eights sits at 156-158 Fortess Road, a short walk from Tufnell Park station, in a residential stretch dotted with neighbourhood bars and restaurants. Its mix of bar, kitchen and gig space lets it function as a local pub, a pizza spot and a small live venue at once. For visitors the appeal is the combination of well-regarded pizza and drinks upstairs with an atmospheric basement stage below, a format that has made it a fixture for grassroots music and comedy in the area rather than a large-scale concert hall. During the Camden Fringe the basement operates as a festival venue, hosting stand-up runs and small-cast theatre alongside its regular gig calendar, helped by flexible seating, a basic lighting rig and a small projector and screen. The bar's rock-and-roll theming, from the jukebox to the saloon styling, sets the tone, and its handmade pizza has drawn repeated praise from visitors. Fortess Road, between Tufnell Park and Kentish Town, is a low-key residential stretch, and the venue works as a neighbourhood local that happens to hide a well-equipped small music room downstairs.