Nightingale E11

London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
East London: Other locations – Wanstead

The Nightingale, London E11

Traditional pub (Enterprise)
51 Nightingale Lane E11 2EY
T 020 8530 4540
Open 1200 (1030 Sat)-2400 (0100 Fri-Sat). Children welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 5 (Wells & Young’s, 4 guests) Cask Marque, Other beer 3-4 bottles, Also Malts and specialist whiskies.
Food Extensive good value pub grub menu, Wifi. No disabled toilet but flat access.
W Irish music, Th quiz.

The former extent of Epping Forest can be traced today through the scattering of green spaces across suburban east London that are still managed by the City of London in its role as Conservator of Forest lands – a collection of patches, some of them tiny, that for various reasons had resisted development up to the passing of the parliamentary Act protecting the Forest in 1878. One such obscure patch is the curiously named Mob’s Hole, once known as a thorny haunt of highwaymen and harlots on a woodland lane but now a little recreation ground amid a tangle of residential streets in suburban Wanstead.

Overlooking the green is the Nightingale, a lovely old pub that adds a splendid splash of colour when its hanging baskets burst into life, as attested by a string of Redbridge in Bloom awards proudly displayed around an attractive snug in the immaculate interior. This is one of those front parlour pubs, managed by the same family for well over 20 years, and spotlessly clean with green padded furniture, rouched curtains, an old fashioned serving hatch for the back bar and displays of cartoons, celebrities and Irish-themed artefacts.

Such is the laid back, welcoming atmosphere that it pulls in regulars from all over east London. A surprisingly extensive menu includes sandwiches, “sizzler” plates of seafood and chicken, a variety of curries, staples like pies and steaks, children’s portions, a range of vegetarian comfort food and, according to one of the regulars, “the best chips in Wanstead”, all at keen prices. Courage Best as the regular cask beer nods to the pub’s former owners, while the well kept guests are likely to come from better known breweries like Adnams, Black Sheep, Everards, Greene King or Thwaites, with a range of styles that often includes a mild. Bottled Singha is the best lager choice. A genuine gem that’s well worth the effort of finding.