please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
A welcome addition to the Central Croydon pub scene, particularly since the end of the Beer Circus.
Six ales on handpump with Dark Star Hophead a regular @£2.55, plus two from the Hog's Back range on gravity, quality of ales consistently good.
I'm generally in here on an early weekday evening and it always seems fairly civilised yet lively, with plenty of staff on duty serving quickly and efficiently.
|
The Green Dragon Beer Festival starts on the 22nd of October for two weeks, an unmissable event!
|
The range was Hophead and Equinox from Dark Star, Two beers from Westerham and two from Hog's Back on Saturday.The Real Ales I tried were perfection. this pub goes from strength to strength.10/10 at least !
|
Only heard about the Green Dragon in the past few weeks and as a trip to Croydon was due I gave it a whirl. I was impressed with the beer quality and choice. The food was good value and the service fast and friendly. Will make it a regular call when I'm in the area.
chick - 14 Aug 2008 09:23 |
I Agree with the previous comments regarding the good range of beers, friendly service, etc. Just to add that they have live music upstairs, and although the small bar there wasn't manned when I went, there is another set of toilets at the rear - great news for those who can't manage the trek to the loos in the vault!
|
Northlondon, the drawback here is the toilets ,I believe they are so subteranean that they are on a tube line somewhere, I have now perfected my water retaining abilities to the standard of a camel. People do look astonished as I rush into the Dog and Bull screaming "Gangway !". Sadly the other issue is the lack of a garden, in Summer this is a much needed facility.The beer is usually good and the fried breakfast is cheap and plentiful.
|
Great ales & staff, really good service & on the ball as far as keeping any undesirables out. Makes for a nice atmosphere, shame no garden & the toilets are in the old bank vault so don't hold on til the last minute! Pub award well deserved, a must 4 anyone in Croydon!
|
Popped in for a quiet lunchtime pint of Dark Star beer in Croydon's Pub Of The Year 2008. The Hophead was in good nick, and later I was tempted by the Summer Meltdown. Good stuff. Also available were Shepherd Neame Spitfire and Jennings Cumberland Ale. And there were two Hogs Back beers, Summer Ale and Hop Ale, waiting to be served later direct from their casks. The Green Dragon is serious about its ales.
A fine pub - and there's 15% discount for Camra members amongst others. Well worth a visit.
Cheers
|
Aromas Over Tongham , that's the breweries version but they only brew the stuff, i've seen the results!
|
The A over T is often called various things, I think it stands for acrobats and tumblers. It always has that kind of result.
|
Today I had the pleasure of meeting Alph River and one or two others , Hophead was generally agreed to be on the best form ever. the A over T ( Hogs Back) had the expected affect on old Hooky, even at a half serving it catches up with you !
|
A new menu has just started, so far I am not encyclopedic on its contents but I believe it is fair to say that the Winter meals have been removed and replaced by Summer items, I had the Ploughmans which I shared it was three quid well spent, I had a choice of Ham, Cheddar, Brie and another item.
|
Visited today with members of Croydon Real Ale Preservation Society (read the acronym). Dark Star Mild For May, Everards Sunchaser, Spitfire, Brains Milkwood all on draught and Hogs Back A Over T on stillage. Also had a barrel of Brooklands Star Gold but it wasn't on.
Mild was a little cold but the A Over T was scrumptious.
Good pub, good beer, worth a visit.
|
Visited the 'fest friday. One of the pool tables has been moved this year to accommodate the stillage, meaning the staff don’t have to run up & down stairs for each fest order, as was the case last yr. I think they advertised 30 beers, and they had a very good representation last wk – 16 on stills, 4 on handpump, and 2 more on stills behind bar, all at £2, and my GD disc card even took another 30p off that great price! Well done.
|
Large pub with music going on and cabaret upstairs on Wednesdays. Beer was Foxs Nob among others - in good condition.
|
Four handpumps and two stills but only Spitfire available yesterday. I note that a fest starts today, but no choice of beer on a Sunday is poor.
|
I visited this pub today ( the Hophead was on TOP form ), On Monday (21st April ) they start their Beer Festival, beer will be £2-00 a pint, they are also promising that it will be spring ! Nah ! great beer that's cheap is possible but they will not be able to control the weather ! Or will they ........?( cue Twilight Zone music).
|
Tonight the announcement was made that The Green Dragon is Croydon & Sutton CAMRA Pub of the Year 2008 - a worthy winner.
20 or 30 CAMRA members drank a couple of barrels dry, and ate mounds of sarnies celebrating this great pub's deserved place as one of the top venues in Croydon.
The Hophead, Bath Ales Gem, Elgoods, Butcombe and Hogsback beers straight from the cask made excellent drinking.
Looking forward to the Beer festival starting 21st April...
Cheers,
|
They now have Dark Star Hophead on. It may become a permanency if sales are good. I had a few yesterday and thought that it could not be bettered. After the sad loss of the Beer Circus this pub has " stepped up " to become central Croydon's leading Real Ale pub. Three other guest beers ( Bath Gem was one ).
|
We drank the Winter Ale until midnight.
All is good.
What a star this pub is.
Cheers,
|
This has to be one of the nicest friendlyiest places to visit in Croydon.
It caters for all kinds of people from music fans to football/rugby fans. All people mix well together to appreciate this wonderful place!
The food menu is pretty average but the homemade specials are fantastic!
There's live music on Tues and Weds, Friday night DJ playing all the best indie ska and cool classics! And on Saturday night too. Saturday sports day always showing the main games of Football or Rugby. Live Jazz and great home cooked roasts on Sundays.
Huge amounts of well looked after ales, varying on a monthly rota with the regular well kept Spitfire and London Pride.
Esther has made this pub great, she once did it to the Ship now she crossed the road an did it again!
I also hear there is a garden on it's way which should be there before summer!
The staff are friendly and will make you feel at home and are more than good at making your visit enjoyable.
Definatley worth a visit!
|
Yesterday's visit was unlucky coz they were apparently rammed over the weekend and had sold out of Oakham Inferno, London Porter & both the beers on stillage (inc Old Growler?), so we were left with Pride & Spitfire but the latter was on good form. Got a good view of City's sad cup demise, so balloons to that! Perhaps I was given that discount loyalty card out of sympathy for (to paraphrase Colin Schindler) 'my life of misery & despair', but it's real money off, so thanks.
|
The Green Dragon leads the pack in Croydon. Real ale of superb quality, and a young customer base make this place a top choice, especially when there's live music.
Esther makes this pub buzz. Do it. Go there.
Peace & love,
|
This pub attracts a young but civilised clientele. Good range of real ales. Live bands upstairs on Wednesdays.
|
The real ale, food and staff rate ten out of ten, believe me that is rare in Croydon ! CAMRA members can avail themselves of the Green Dragon card which gives 15% off drink and food but does not include any offers. The improvement in this pub is astonishing,Esther is working damn hard to ensure that it continues. I have to give a TEN particularly as the rest of Central Croydon's pubs are light years behind.
|
Big open pub which would not ordinarily be my preference but this place is keen on beer & that certainly gets my vote. Went in ystdy for their autumn ale festival (til 05Nov if stocks last) and was impressed with the choice of 20 beers, all at £2 ppint! The guys on the bar were knowledgeable & enthusiastic, even tho they had to leg it upstairs each time they got an order from the selection on stillage up there. Four handpumps & 2 stills downstairs &, apart from the 'fest, I believe they try to order a more adventurous rotation than is the Laurel norm. Good luck to 'em.
Lots of TVs, so I expect it gets hammered on a big match day.
|
Spent a most congenial couple of hours here on Halloween sampling brilliant beers from the selection Esther's chosen for the current beer festival which lasts until the weekend. Twickenham Naked Ladies was a favourite, and the Olde Trip was good too.
I couldn't resist a pork tomato & chilli sausage served with onions and ciabatta for only £1.50. Really good.
An eclectic mix of customers gave the place a broad appeal, such that neither mature drinkers nor younger clients would feel alienated. (As has been already noted by TWG!)
I'm impressed, and so were the others in the group I was with.
Cheers
|
Great food, including tasty specials.
Great beer, both bottled and draught - plus an eclectic range of ales. And they do beer festivals!
The staff are intelligent, helpful, and obviously passionate about their pub.
There is sport on big screens, plus pool and darts. And there is a thankful respite from the musical dross that permeates so many Croydon pubs. Here Djs and live bands explore and experiment with a wide range of styles and genres.
All round good atmosphere and friendly crowd.
anonymous - 31 Oct 2007 05:46 |
the rehabilitation of this pub into polite society continues! Efficient, friendly staff help of course. Keep up the good work, Esther!
|
This establishment has been known to me in both its current and previous incarnations as a Hogshead (or should that be the hopelessly miscued "Hog's Head" since Laurel took over?!) for some years and yet inexplicably I appear not to have rated or reviewed it.
By way of rectifying this, I'm happy to report that despite seemingly being under the same ownership of the dubious Laurel Pub Co, this pub has seen something of a renaissance since it changed its name to the Green Dragon (the original GD used to stand in a fine building on the site of what is now the Black Sheep Bar - at last some recompense for that loss!), and I suspect this could well be down to the company allowing the manageress a fairly free hand as to how to run it.
Having redecorated the interior almost annually in regressively poor taste, and wound down the once proud selection of cask ales to a mere 3 ubiquitous options, the pub now sports a range of at least 5 beers (they have even reinstated the stillage at the rear which dispenses Hog's Back TEA - a real rarity in these parts), and although it retains essentially the same layout as before (a large pub with various nooks and crannies including pool table and games machines), the decor is now far more appropriate. Even the food looks somewhat less plasticated than it had become in the darkest Pig's Cranium days.
Consequently the Dragon now attracts a broader mix of customers, spanning differing ages and backgrounds, and has not become a repository for any anti-social types. Of an evening perhaps the younger clientele dominate, as a DJ and live music is sometimes offered, but this doesn't detract from the pub's overall quality and indeed adds a much-needed resort for such things; it is nice to be able to see some live band or listen to a DJ whilst supping on good beer. Moreover, I always find the service to be superb.
Well done guys; I hope you can maintain the balance that you have struck so far.
|
"Haha, if its going nowhere why is it packed every friday and saturday night" - anonymous.
Well, because EVERY crap drinking shed in Croydon is packed on a weekend, obviously - have a look around! People don't have troubles then, because they're getting pissed to forget the trouble of living in the world's ugliest suburb! Like the Wildheart's sang "Why do we stay here? Nobody knows - it's not the scenery"! Good live music policy, so alleviating the drudge, nice one.
|
This is the best pub I have ever been to! Everyone is so friendly it has a olde pud feel while being modern. Everyone knows everyone and it is one of the few places where you can still get service with a smile! The food is good as is the range of drinks and the atmosphere is brilliant. The djs are good and very entertaining plus all the live music providing up and coming artists a forum to showcase their music.
Show me a better pub!
|
Hey. These guys know how to keep drinkers happy. The food's also excellent. And a couple of the bar staff are quite hot (couple of them aren't).
Good beer, good food, good music, good company.
I could live in there.
And there's a petition to get a 'beer garden' up and running so if you're passing get in there and sign it.
|
This is one of the better pubs in croydon, its always busy with people having a great time, all sorts of different people out for a no hassle good time.
Combining great food, pool tables and live gigs and DJs, one couldnt ask for more.
The staff are great, but not mindless drones, if you treat them with respect they'll look after you, if you don't well you deserve nothing better.
Reading the other reviews of the user that posted the negative comment, it does seeem that he is quite negative about most places he has been, each to their own ...
|
Haha, if its going nowhere why is it packed every friday and saturday night, different types of people happily enjoy a drink together, no troubles.
Also the bar staff are nice! And if you have ever worked behind a busy bar, you would know that it really hard work!
anonymous - 26 Jun 2007 17:26 |
We have tried this place on FIVE occaisons since moving our business to Croydon. Each time we could not belive it got worse. SERVICE VERY POOR. FOOD DREADFULL. STANDARDS DIRTY. This place is going nowhere. I hope you read this AREA MANAGER and sort the place out. Try starting with new staff who give a S**T!
|
Went to this pub once. never again, full of "chavs".
anonymous - 3 Jun 2007 09:30 |
Used to (very occaisionally) go into this place when it was the Hogs Head. Bland, characterless, same old, same old chain pub. Haven't been there again in 18 months.
Just came back from a brief lunchtime session, and was amazed at the transformation. Not a physical one, mind (apart from the green paint job outside) just a completely different feel to the place. Good beer (guest for today was T.E.A. from Hogs Back in Tongham), well kept and a splendid array of bottled as well.
OK, there is still quite a range of the usual Eurofizz and alchopops, but this is central Chavtown after all (even Graham down at the Beer Circus has a few J2Os in the back of the fridge!!). Chefs specials on the menu were mouthwatering in description and better on the palate (£3 for a HUGE ploghmans with some of the ripest Brie I've had in a good while).
Love the Book exchange btw, and look forward to a spirited game of Kerplunck some night soon.
Outstanding work folks, and may be back later today for the Heavy Metal night.
|
Great Pub. Always wanted to come into this pub and I wasn't let down. it is a nice open pub with a local atmosphere. Bar staff are really friendly and fellow drinkers are too. Nice pool tables which are well kept and not bad at 2 games for £2.00. Drinks are average price for Croydon. Had a good drink in here after a busy day at college and I will be returning. Great PUB!!!
|
fab pub, my fave to go in croydon, if you can sit down that is. good beer, and good food for quite cheap, soup and a sarnie - £3!!! amazing. go there.
|
Easily one of the top three bars in central Croydon, if you want a range of decent music (ie not pumping house), live bands, pool, good beer and a good cross section of people of all ages. NOT a Hogshead any more and better for it. Esther has made real efforts to make this pub your local, with bands, pub quiz, friendly barstaff (some from her days at the Ship). She is really keen to get live music on and we got a Canadian friend of ours a gig there - really well supported, he said it was one of the best gigs he's ever done in the UK. Not your usual chain pub and well worth supporting.
|
Wicked pub, i used to work there when it was the hogs head. The manager Paul is a legend, and the other staff seem pretty good at their job, i think they def need the gimpmaster back tho!!
|
Has the dark and beguiling Hogs Back Rip Snorter on cask here which might be a good thing....
The feel of a chain undoubtedly so not brimming with character.
There was a very drunk man in here gurning like Charles Hawktrey when me and a comrade went in here.
A fair range of ales and a broad range of lagers.
|
Went there to see a band the other week. Downstairs was busy with bright young thingsn and the service was so slow I eventually went upstairs and got served straight away. The band was called Runner and that's what I did after three numbers and another drink. It all struck me as average. I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary about this place, but maybe I wasn't looking in the right places.
|
The wait for a drink gets on my nerves sometimes (even on a weeknight), but this is still one of the best pubs in the area. Clean, well kept, good beer, and well maintained pool tables.
|
Yes it's still a Hogshead, but in it's favour it has one of the best managers around(Esther) and good staff generally. It can take a while to get served during the week, but that's only a testament to it's popularity and also because the chain are always looking to tighten budgets i.e. the limited staff numbers on those days. The doormen are polite and i have yet to see any trouble in there.
Live bands, open mic nights, quizzes & DJ's abound and the clientele are an interesting mix for Croydon.
All in all a cracking drinking establishment.
Motty - 25 Sep 2006 19:20 |
Although the re-furb doesnt make the place look that different, it has a more polished look somehow
But it has kicked more life into this place. Was in here last night, and they had a live band on. First of all, I hadn't been upstairs in years! Seemingly reserved for private parties for years, it makes it more spacious now. The band wasn't bad for an amateur act, and although the pub was loaded for young drinkers, it can't be faulted for that...
I enjoyed the atmosphere, and the fact that it was a battle for a table on entry, although this could get annoying on planned return visits, its a testament that this pub is one of the more popular venues in Croydon
A good place to spend an evening, unless admittedly your after a quiet chat...
|
The refurb was awesome, the new look of the place is great it really is. This pub is one of the nicer pubs in croydon, great atmosphere and gets a nice gathering of people in on a monday (and the rest of the week with the new entertainment lineups).
Have eaten there a few times and is very nice. Nothing bad to say about this pub at all. Friendly staff and what i have seen, nice customers.
|
new management. Still a chain, still hogshead. nothing to be excited about. There are better options nearby
anonymous - 20 Apr 2006 13:30 |
Glad to see the upstairs room being used for live bands. Deltastone were good on 24th Jan. Nice atmosphere.
anonymous - 3 Feb 2006 16:24 |
Really enjoyed the Kitty Hudson gig last night, hopefully have more live music there in the new year.
|
Agree with the comments about the management. We had a problem with our food once and the guy was incredibly apologetic and gave us the meal on the house. Always very cheerful and eager to help. Venue is kept clean and has plenty of seating. It can take a little while to get served on busy nights, but at least they remember the order in which you get to the bar. Good choice of beers. Worth a look-see.
|
Great Management, smiley friendly staff, table drink service for the lazy (me), lovely old bank building so nice high ceilings. Atmosphere superb and a regular drinking spot for the Thursday Night Wine Society.
Nathalie Crewes - 2 Sep 2004 15:09 |
skip nav