The Bridge House Tavern, Penge

When the Bridge House reopened in 2008 it was great - a real breath of fresh air for Penge. But in recent months it has really started to go downhill. Don't know if they've changed owner, manager or chef (or all of those) but it is definitely not what it was a year or so ago. The food is more expensive and nowhere near as good - my fave dish was their Thai Green Curry, but when I had it a couple of weeks ago it was swimming in oil. The beer (the real ale at least) is almost always served short measure unless you explicitly ask them to fill the glass and it is virtually impossible to read the pump clips due to the poor lighting at the bar. I haven't (yet) had any particular problems with staff rudeness but the ones they have now are definitely a pretty disinterested (or perhaps demotivated) bunch. I am moving out of the area in a couple of months - two years ago I'd have been very sad to be leaving my 'local', but not so now.

23 Aug 2013 15:09

Hat and Feathers, Clerkenwell

Over-priced and terrible service, but popular in the summer due to the huge outdoor area, which is ususual given it's location. At some point someone is going to build a block of appartments or offices on the outdoor bit and when they do ....

9 Oct 2009 12:26

The Old Fountain, Old Street

A 'proper' pub in an area where many have disappeared in recent years (either turned into trendy bars for students/yuppies, or converted into flats). Great beer, very relaxed, with a small beer garden to the side for smokers. There were rumours last year that it was going to close but luckily they seem to have been unfounded (so far).

9 Oct 2009 12:21

The Britannia, Clerkenwell

I love the Britannia! Friendly, unpretentious, good beer (but not full of real-ale anoraks), used by ordinary people who know how to have fun without having a fight. In short, it is what I would call a 'respectable working class pub' - somewhere I would happily take my old mum and dad for a drink on a Friday night (when they have live music), confident that they would enjoy themselves and feel 'at home'. Given it's location I was really pleasantly surprised to find this pub - with the odd exception most of the pubs in this area are either complete 'dives', trendy yuppie places, or full of city boys.

9 Oct 2009 12:14

The Bridge House Tavern, Penge

Firstly, ignore any reviews prior to March 2008. The pub was closed for a while before that after changing hands, was done up and is now nothing like the previous incarnations of the Bridge House Tavern. So what's it like now? Well, you have to remember this is in Penge, which has not been known for its great pubs. So the 'new' Bridge House is a real bonus for the area. Indeed it's the only pub my wife - who is not normally a pub person - will go in. Okay, the food is a little over priced, and the staff (like so many bar staff these days) have not mastered the skill of serving more than one person at a time, so you sometimes have to wait. But it has a nice atmosphere, the beer is generally good (for real ale drinkers they have Youngs plus one guest beer) and it is certainly very different to any other pub in the area. It's probably not the sort of place you would go out of your way to travel to from a distance, but for me and my friends and neighbours it is a great local.

9 Oct 2009 12:05