A CAMRA Heritage Pub for its outstanding interior; Art Deco features date from 1938, a part of an office and flat development with characteristic detailing and metal windows, what many inter-war pubs looked like before modern changes. The John's Mews entrance leads into a small wood-panelled lounge, whilst the corner entrance leads you into a larger bar decorated with artwork, but no longer with original lino flooring.

The back room features a number of original private booths and there are two in the front bar added more recently. Now calls itself under the abbreviated Duke but (of York) features still on the pub sign. In nearby Doughty Street can be found the Charles Dickens Museum, the author's only surviving London home.