Hello,
Sorry to intrude on this trend but I have learned quite a bit and wanted to make sure I understood correctly. In montreal, pubs are likely microbrewery serving "casual chic" food.
I understand there is a difference between pubs and "gastropubs"? So what i'm used to is in fact London "gastropubs", althought microbrewery are rare, I think. Our plan was to choose a pub on the spear of the moment, which I now understand is the worse we could do - pubs are not good, and we might not find any restaurant to eat?
We are coming to London July21 to 25, with a budget of 50-75 Pounds for 2 (including drinks if possible), and are going to be staying in Southwark but will likely be spending our evening on the other side of the water. We would rather not have to "set in stone" our day by making a reservation but we feel the food is as much part of the experience than sight seeing.
TPAYT are you only checking to reserve the night of your arrival just to be sure to have a smooth night when your tired?
Is it necessary to make a reservation in the experience of London accustomed?

LLOry: >>and we might not find any restaurant to eat?<<

No chance - there are hundreds of pubs and thousands of restaurants in London. There are everything from Michelin starred restaurants to casual cafes in every neighborhood. Finding a place to eat is never a worry. Reservations are necessary at a great many places, but certainly not even a majority if you mean casual dining - which your budget would indicate.

There's a big difference from one pub to the other. Some have excellent food and great surroundings, others are more for drinking with some fried stuff alongside the beer. We have a few favourite pubs where the food is good, and do book in advance if possible (if they take bookings). You'll find a place to eat, certainly if you don't mind queuing for restaurants that don't take reservations. If there's somewhere that you really want to go to, then book ahead.

Don't suppose that any pub you wander into is going to have good food.

If you want decent food at a pub look up the Good Pub Guide and reserve a table in advance at their recommended pubs in London (note if they are recommended for food or drink first).

The average pub serves burgers, meat pies, fish and chips, sausage and mash etc. Most of them are average.

www.thegoodpubguide.co.uk

I did a search of London with an Advanced search for Food Awards and it came up with 29 options.