Fox W7

London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Other — Hanwell

Fox, London W7

Traditional pub (Independent)
Green Lane W7 2PJ
T (020) 8567 3912 W thefoxpub.co.uk
Open 1100-2300 (2230 Sun). Children very welcome until 2100.
Cask beers 5 (Fuller’s, Sharp’s, Taylor, 2 guests), Other beers 1 keg, 1 bottle, Also 8 wines, a few malts.
Food Imaginative pub grub and mediterranean-style food, Outdoor Beer garden, Wifi.
Th quiz, monthly markets (last S), occasional weekend live music, beer festivals, darts.

The next village west of Ealing on the Uxbridge Road where it crosses the river Brent, Hanwell dates back at least to the 5th century but developed thanks to its transport links: coaching inns flourished in the 18th century, while  the next century brought the Grand Union Canal and then the Great Western Railway. In 1901 the arrival of a tram connection to central London spurred its growth as an affordable suburb. The first purpose built lunatic asylum in Britain was founded just outside the village in 1831 — the site is now part of the massive general hospital, Ealing Hospital, built in the late 1970s. In the 1850s the Central London District School for poor boys moved here from Norwood in south London, later counting Charles Chaplin among its students.

The canal, having first followed the Brent from Brentford, parts company with the river here to climb 18m through a flight of five locks. Operating these is still thirsty work and many of today’s boaters, like their predecessors, must be glad of the proximity of the Fox, a handsome and well-preserved pub dating from 1848 that sits just back from the waterway. As its name suggests, it was once a meeting point for the local hunt and still preserves a rural quality, among allotments at the end of quiet Green Lane, a former drove route. Though signs on the exterior doors recall former division into different bars, the interior is now a single space wrapped around a horseshoe bar, comfortably and traditionally furnished with benches tucked into pretty bay windows. The extensive outside yard is home once a month to a popular food and craft market, and there’s a family friendly feel to the place.

A serial winner of the local CAMRA branch’s Pub of the Year, the Fox usually offers five cask beers. The three regulars are standard fare — London Pride, Doom Bar and Landlord — but the guests are likely to come from small and often local-ish breweries, with Itchen Valley, Rebellion and Red Squirrel particularly popular. Fuller’s Honey Dew in keg and bottle is another choice. Home cooked food has a healthy Mediterranean flourish with plenty of salads and veggie options as well as traditional pub grub, at reasonable prices. A pleasant, welcoming and well looked after gem that’s ideal for walkers, cyclists and boaters exploring the canal, this could only be improved by a few more guest beers.

National Rail Hanwell Underground Ealing Broadway (then bus) Bus Half Acre Road (numerous Ealing Broadway) Cycling Grand Union Canal towpath, link to LCN+ 41 Walking Capital Ring, Grand Union Canal Walk