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"A necessity if you're a beer geek travelling to London town" - Beer Advocate
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"A beer guru" - Popbitch.
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 The Union Tavern, London W9. Pic: Fuller’s. London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Other locations – Westbourne Park
Contemporary pub, specialist (Fuller’s)
45 Woodfield Road W9 2BA
T 020 7286 1886 w www.union-tavern.co.uk tw union_tavern
Open 1200-2300 (2400 Fri-Sat, 2230 Sun). Children welcome until 1900.
Cask beer 6-9 (Fuller’s, up to 8 London guests), Other beer 10 keg, 60 bottles (London, international), Also Some specialist spirits.
Food Shortish enhanced pub grub menu, filled baps, meat, Outdoor Canalside terrace, Wifi.
Beer tastings, Meet the Brewer, Wed quiz, Thu-Fri live music, board games, functions.
Far from feeling threatened by the recent emergence of a new generation of small brewers in London, the capital’s one remaining historic independent brewery, Fuller’s of Chiswick, has shown confidence and foresight in actively celebrating and supporting it as a key member of the London Brewers Alliance. In June 2012 it further affirmed its support of the local brewing renaissance by reconfiguring one of its best sited pubs, the Grand Union (also previously known as the Pelican and the Carton Bridge Tavern), as a showcase for London’s brewing treasures, with some world craft beers thrown in for good measure.
Fuller’s cask beers, with contemporary creations like Bengal Lancer and Wild River alongside benchmark traditionals like ESB, line up on the ten handpumps alongside the products of Beavertown, East London, Redemption, Windsor & Eton and the very local Moncada.
Camden Town, Kernel and Meantime beers will likely be on the keg taps, plus if you’re lucky W&E’s Republika lager, alongside quality imports from the Czech Republic, Germany and the USA. Bottles from London brewers – London Fields and Redchurch besides Fuller’s own noted specialities – feature on a well chosen world list also including crafty Brits like Dark Star, Oakham and Summer Wine, Euro classics from St Georgen and Rodenbach and a few from brewers like Struise and Nøgne-Ø to keep the bloggerati happy.
The brewery’s experience as a pub operator shows too – they’ve created a welcoming, clean and contemporary space with the considerable bonus of a lower level that opens on to one of London’s loveliest waterside terraces, right beside the Grand Union Canal, so you can idly watch the narrowboats drift by as you enjoy your perfectly served pint of London’s finest.
Insider tip. If you’re lucky enough to own your own boat, ring ahead to book a free guest mooring right beside the terrace.
Underground Westbourne Park Cycling LCN+ 45, Shepherds Bush link, Grand Union Canal towpath Walking Grand Union Canal Walk, link to Jubilee Greenway
 Ales and Tails, Twickenham TW1 (London) London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Twickenham and Hampton Hill
Bar, specialist (Lost Society)
29 York Street, Twickenham TW1 3JX
w www.alesandtailsbar.co.uk f alesandtails tw alesandtails
Open 1700 (1200 Fri-Sun)-2300 (2400 Fri-Sat, 1700 Sun, closed Mon). Children welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 6 (changing mainly London guests), Other beer 8 keg, 40+ bottles (London, international), Also 11 wines (including English wine), cocktails, specialist spirits.
Food Quality British menu, Outdoor Small balcony on street, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Meet the brewer, beer tastings, occasional live music and performance.
Twickenham strengthened its claim to beer connoisseur’s attention still further with the launch in August 2012 of this imaginative new venture from the people who brought you Citizen Smith and Powder Keg Diplomacy. Initially a pop-up bar, it later closed for a month and has since reopened as a permanent purveyor of craft beers, specialist spirits and cocktails, most sourced from the UK with a focus on London.
The prime central site was once an American-themed diner style joint called the Ranch, and the old seating with its padded booths and stools has been partially retained, though potted plants, vintage lampshades and candlesticks add a fin de siècle note shared with sister bar PKD. The menu is a long way from diner fare, boasting quality stuff made from British ingredients at gastropub prices – slow braised pig cheeks, smoked haddock and the like.
The cask beers are usually from London brewers, with Brodie’s, By the Horns, Sambrook’s and the local Twickenham brewery among the suppliers. The owners also contract a house beer under their own Lost brand, and there are occasional interlopers from the likes of Liverpool Organic. Beavertown, Kernel, Meantime and Redchurch might be on keg, alongside Hacker Pschorr and Ireland’s Porterhouse Porter, making a rare appearance outside its brewer’s own pubs.
London and London-linked breweries appear among the bottles too – Windsor & Eton’s Republika lager and a selection of Kernels are often stocked, and this might be one of the few places to sample Twickenham’s original cask Naked Ladies alongside the Belgian bottled version brewed by Alvinne. Bear Republic, Dupont, Summer Wine and Thornbridge are other names to reckon with.
Between this and the Sussex Arms up the road, Twickenham is on its way to becoming as much a byword for beer lovers as it is for rugby union devotees.
National Rail Twickenham Cycling LCN+ Kingston, Isleworth, Hanworth, Links to NCN4 Walking Thames Path, River Crane Walk
 The Aleksander, Twickenham TW1 (London) London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Twickenham and Hampton Hill
Contemporary pub (Independent)
277 Richmond Road, Twickenham TW1 2NP
T 020 8892 9277
Open 1200-2300. Children very welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 3 (Twickenham, Sharp’s, local guest), Other beer 8 keg, 14 bottles, Also 24 wines, specialist spirits.
Food Wood fired pizzas, gourmet sandwiches, Sunday roasts, Outdoor Beer garden, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Fri/alternate Sun live music, Sun food market, board games, skittles, major big screen sport.
Unbelievably, this pretty and picturesquely sited pub almost became a convenience store when former owner Young’s sold it to Sainsbury’s, but a restriction on the covenant proved too bothersome an obstacle and the pub was saved by new landlord Roger, who took over in August 2012. The rustic but elegant corner building gazes across green parkland towards the imposing façade of Marble Hill House, a Palladian villa now managed by English Heritage, the grounds of which sweep down to one of London’s prettiest stretches of riverside. The pub boasts its own little country estate in the form of a leafy beer garden, which deserves to be popular with strolling families on warm weekend afternoons.
Roger is keen to offer a range of quality beer – Doom Bar and locally brewed Naked Ladies are the regular cask offerings, with the guest often supplied by localish breweries like Dark Star, Sambrook’s or Surrey Hills. O’Hara’s Celtic Stout and Brooklyn Lager offer alternatives to the mainstream on the keg taps, while Anchor Porter, Affligem abbey beers, Paulaner wheat beer and a choice or two from Thornbridge enliven the fridges. Wood fired pizzas, fresh pasta and locally made artisanal ice cream are among the highlights on the menu.
Pub trivia. The pub has been known previously as the Marble Hill and the Rising Sun but takes its current name from the landlord’s young son.
National Rail St Margarets Bus St Stephens Church (numerous Twickenham, Richmond) Cycling Link to LCN+ Richmond and NCN4 Walking Thames Path
 The William Webb Ellis, Twickenham TW1 (London) London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Twickenham and Hampton Hill
Contemporary pub (Wetherspoon)
24 London Road, Twickenham TW1 3BR
T 020 8744 4300 w www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/pubs/the-william-webb-ellis
Open 0900-2300. Children welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 10 (Fuller’s, Greene King, Sharp’s, Twickenham, 5 sometimes local guests) Cask Marque, Other beer 2 real ciders, usual Wetherspoon kegs and bottles, Also Usual Wetherspoon wines and hot drinks.
Food Reduced Wetherspoon menu, Outdoor Rear terrace, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Big screen sport including rugby.
Such is the interest in good beer in Twickenham these days, it seems that even the local Wetherspoon makes a special effort. The substantial former post office building that is the William Webb Ellis actually bears the company’s more youth-oriented sub-brand Lloyds No 1 and boasts some stylish design features including a striking circular fireplace, but it’s more like one of the mainstream pubs in the chain, especially in its support of cask beer.
London Pride, Abbot, IPA, Doom Bar and local brew Naked Ladies are regularly offered here, and guests might include local options from Hepworth alongside interesting stuff from breweries like Hawkshead, Vale or small Cornish brewer Wooden Hand. Unsurprisingly considering the location, major rugby matches are screened and there’s plenty of memorabilia on display to intrigue the fans.
Pub trivia. Allegedly William Webb Ellis invented the game of rugby when he picked up the ball and ran with it during a football game while a student at Rugby school in 1823 – though the account is disputed by serious historians. Webb Ellis later became an evangelical vicar, and died at Menton on the French Riviera.
National Rail Twickenham Cycling LCN+ Hampton Wick, Brentford, link to NCN4 Walking Thames Path, River Crane Walk
 The Catford Bridge Tavern, London SE6 London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
Southeast London: Other locations – Catford
Contemporary pub (Antic)
Station Approach, Catford Bridge SE6 4RE
T 020 3066 2060 w www.catfordbridgetavern.com tw catfordtavern
Open 1600 (1200 Sat-Sun)-2400 (0100 Fri-Sat). Children very welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 4-7 (Changing unusual including local guests), Other beer 4 keg (Kernel, 3 British/international guests), 10+ bottles, Also 3 cider/perries, specialist whiskies, 18 wines.
Food Short but imaginative gastroish menu, Outdoor Tables on street, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Quiz, occasional beer festivals and beer events, bar billiards, retro arcade games, functions.
The ambition and confidence of pubo Antic in rescuing and refurbishing this landmark Brewers’ Tudor pub right next to Catford Bridge station surely match those of the original builders in creating such a sprawling pile in the first place. Formerly known as the Copperfield, the pub had acquired an unenviable reputation and was closed late in 2011 by the local police after issues with drug dealing, noise and violence. Antic reopened it in March 2012, following a spruce up that’s revealed a spacious and relaxing interior with ceiling beams, floorboards, a mix of reclaimed retro furniture and the pubco’s trademark collections – billiard cues, kitchen cabinets, tennis racquets and ties.
One of Antic’s particularly beer friendly venues, the pub serves up local cask beer from the likes of Dark Star, East London, Ha’penny, Kent and Redemption alongside choices from more far flung but well reputed and unusual names – Blindman’s, Devilfish, Grain, Ilkley, Magic Rock, Moor, Thornbridge and the like. Further choice is available on keg – with Cotswold lager and guest kegs that might come from Ilkley, Kernel, Meantime or Sierra Nevada – and from a bottle fridge stocked with beers from Anchor, BrewDog, Harviestoun (the rather special Ola Dubh), Magic Rock, Mikkeller and Williams Brothers. Look out too for the cooked bar snacks, charcuterie plates and main dishes that stretch to river trout with mussels, cider and samphire or Jerusalem artichoke and couscous salad.
Disturbingly, this successful restoration of a genuine community amenity is already under threat of closure. Antic leases the pub from Punch which in turn leases it from a property company that wants to convert it to a potentially more lucrative convenience store. Neither Antic nor Punch supports the application but unfortunately Antic’s tenancy agreement means it can be required to vacate at any time. Both the local community and the operator are campaigning to keep the pub – more information including how you can help at www.catfordbridgetavern.com/save-the-tavern.
Update. The pub did in fact close temporarily for a few weeks in November-December 2012 but has since reopened following protection as a local asset by Lewisham council.
Pub trivia. Despite the local fame of the giant cat sculpture that adorns the local shopping centre, the name Catford is derived from ‘cattle ford’, where cattle were driven across the river Ravensbourne. The pub stands at one end of the bridge which succeeded the ford and is handy not only for the two adjacent stations, originally built by competing railway companies, but for the much improved green space of Ladywell Fields through which the river runs northwards to the Thames.
National Rail Catford Bridge, Catford Cycling NCN 21, LCN+ 22 Walking Waterlink Way
 The Park Tavern, London SE9 London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
Southeast London: Other locations – Eltham
Contemporary pub (Enterprise)
45 Passey Place SE9 5DA
T 020 8850 8919 w www.parktaverneltham.co.uk
Open 1200-2300. Over 12s welcome until 1600.
Cask beer 8 (Adnams, Sharp’s, changing sometimes unusual guests), Other beer 1 keg, 5 bottles.
Food Sandwiches and home cooked pub grub lunches, Outdoor Rear garden. Disabled toilet.
Board games.
In an area that offers slim pickings for lovers of pub excellence, the Park has become something of a beacon since it was restored and reopened by new owners in 2007. Tucked away on a narrow lane behind the High Street, it retains the handsome external appearance of an old fashioned Truman’s Pub with immaculately preserved branding and tiling.
Inside, the Victorian drawing room decor (decorative plates, pot plants and tidy fireplace) and civilised atmosphere, with a no swearing rule and Classic FM playing gently on the stereo, almost suggest you’ll be better off ordering a cream tea than a pint. But as the row of well used handpumps at the bar attests, this is most definitely a pub.
Those pumps dispense regularly changing brands from Adnams and Sharp’s, and guests from the likes of Harveys, Marston’s, Ringwood, Wells & Young’s and localish suppliers like Dark Star and Hepworth. There are a few interesting if not particularly unusual bottles too, like Chimay, Duvel and Goose Island. Notably female friendly and something of an undiscovered gem.
Visitor’s note. Nearby Eltham Palace was the childhood home of Henry VIII, but was lavishly rebuilt by the Cortauld family in the 1930s as one of the most important art deco buildings in England. Now cared for by English Heritage and open to the public, it’s also noted for its extensive gardens.
National Rail Eltham Cycling LCN+ Shooters Hill Walking Green Chain Walk
 Sylvan Post, London SE23 London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
Southeast London: Other locations – Forest Hill
Contemporary pub (Antic)
24 Dartmouth Road SE23 3XU
T 020 8291 5712 w sylvanpost.com f Sylvan-Post tw sylvanpost
Open 1600 (1200 SSn)-2400. Children very welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 4-5 (Unusual often local guests), Other beer 3 keg, 10 bottles, Also 1 cider, 16 wines.
Food Short but imaginative gastroish menu, Outdoor Tables on street, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Table football, monthly live music, quiz, functions.
When Forest Hill post office fell victim to cost cutting measures relocating some local services to WH Smith branches in 2008, there were concerns that its old purpose built site on Dartmouth Road would become yet another bookie. But instead it eventually became a pub, reopening in February 2012 as part of the Antic group with a new name that puns on the area’s woody past.
The new owners haven’t had to import too much of their trademark quirkiness here – instead, rather delighfully, reminders of the building’s former use have been incorporated into the redesign. The surfaces on which customers once filled out postal orders and car tax applications are now high tables for vertical drinking, and there are two very snug snugs in the rather forbidding old strongrooms, while framed telegrams decorate the walls.
This is a youthful place with an imaginative craft beer offer, including cask from locals like By the Horns and Redemption or more experimental producers like Arbor Ales or llkley. Kegs from Cotswold, Meantime and Moor are supplemented by bottles from Brookyn, Cooper’s, Schneider, Sierra Nevada and the occasional local offering. A regularly changing menu might include pan fried whole bream or summer vegetable broth. Now the top recommendation for the area, first class, special delivery and all.
National Rail Overground Forest Hill Cycling LCN+ Deptford, Penge, Crystal Palace Walking Green Chain Walk
 J J Moons, Ruislip HA4 (London) London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
West London: Other locations – Ruislip
Contemporary pub (Wetherspoon)
12 Victoria Road, Ruislip HA4 0AA
T 01895 622373 w www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/pubs/j.j.-moons-ruislip-manor
Open 0800-2300 (2400 Fri-Sat). Children welcome until early evening if dining.
Cask beer 9 (Fuller’s, Greene King, Wells & Young’s, 5 sometimes unusual guests) Cask Marque, Other beer Usual Wetherspoon kegs and bottles, Also 2 ciders/perries.
Food Wetherspoon menu, Outdoor Tables on street, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Usual Wetherspoon promotions and occasional major big screen sport.
In many respects a bog standard local Wetherspoon converted in typical style from a former Woolworth store in 1990, J J Moons raises its head above the crowd through a greater commitment than usual to cask beer that has earned it a local CAMRA Pub of the Year award. London Pride, Abbot, Ruddles County and Courage Best are the regulars, but the other handpumps explore the pubco’s guest list to the full, thanks to a keen manager who, unusually, has been there since the beginning. Good choices from Adnams, Blindman’s, Nethergate, RCH and Roosters were on when I called. There’s also a programme of community events and charity fundraising, and some stained glass and a fireplace to enliven the standard issue furniture and finishes, especially in the more pleasant raised dining area at the back. The pub benefits further from being right opposite the Tube.
Underground Ruislip Manor Walking Links to Celandine Route
 The Bohemia, London N12 London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
North London: Other locations – North Finchley
Contemporary pub (Antic)
862 High Road N12 9QH
T 020 8446 6661 w thebohemia.com tw AnticBohemia
Open 1600 (1200 Sat-Sun)-2300 (2400 Thu, 0100 Fri-Sat, 2230 Sun). Children welcome until early evening.
Cask beer 6 (Sharp’s, 5 changing often local guests), Other beer 3 keg, 12 bottles, Also Specialist whiskies, 18 wines.
Food Short gastroish/pub grub menu, additional fine dining menu planned, Outdoor Front terrace, Wifi. Disabled toilet.
Wed monthly knitting, Sun monthly quiz, occasional live music, board games.
Beyond the North Circular in the furthest northern reaches of the London postal district, beside a main road junction known as Tally Ho Corner from its days as a stop on London’s stagecoach network, stands south London-based pubco Antic’s furthest outpost yet, and it’s one of the best in a high performance bunch. It’s a huge place that has been an O’Neill’s, a furniture shop and a supermarket, but now that Antic’s architects have stripped things back to the high exposed roof beams, it looks like it might once have served as a church or community hall.
A sheltered front terrace leads into a quietish lobby area with school-style tables, beyond which is the extensive main bar space, where a motley collection of tables, sofas and comfy chairs on a mosaic floor basks in the light of windows high on the wall. Work on the place is ongoing since opening in August 2012 and it is set to get even bigger – bookcases stuffed with the pubco’s trademark junk guard a space further back where a more upmarket restaurant section is being created, and the extensive basement is destined to become a performance and DJ venue. Meanwhile the kitchen serves up clipboard menu fare – heritage tomato salad, Brixham crab burger, steaks and the like.
London and nearby breweries like East London, London Fields, Redemption, Sambrook’s and Westerham feature heavily besides Doom Bar on the handpumps, alongside good choices from breweries like Bath and Buxton, all at good value prices. Specialist kegs are familiar names like Blue Moon and Früli, but there’s more interest in the bottle fridge, including Kernel beers, Schneider Weisse and Aventinus and rare sightings of the beers Hepworth brews for Shoreditch bar the Strongroom. They’ve even found bottles that share the pub name – the decent enough Bohemia Regent from the Czech Republic. Handy for well regarded local arts centre artsdepot, and enough to send you into rhapsodies in its own right.
Underground Woodside Park, East Finchley Bus Tally Ho Corner (263 East Finchley, High Barnet) Cycling LCN+ 5 89, link to 6 Walking Link to Dollis Valley Greenway
 The North Pole, London N1 Canonbury and Barnsbury
Contemporary pub (Butcher & Barrel)
188 New North Road N1 7BJ
T 020 7354 5400 w www.thenorthpolepub.co.uk f thenorthpolepub tw thenorthpolepub
Open 1100-2300 (2400 Fri-Sat, 2230 Sun). Children welcome until 1900.
Cask beer 7 (changing usually local and unusual guests), Other beer 12 keg, 30 bottles, Also 3 real ciders/perries, 30+ wines, gourmet soft drinks.
Food Pizzas and meat-focused enhanced pub grub, Outdoor Rear terrace/beer garden, Wifi. No disabled toilet but all on one level.
Tue beer and meat promotion, occasional beer-themed events, pinball, bar billiards, retro video games, board games.
Butcher & Barrel pubs usually offer a few good beers, and the company is also linked to the owners of the marvellous Sussex Arms in Twickenham, but the North Pole is the first in the chain deliberately designed and marketed as a craft beer venue. In a slightly out of the way but now relatively prosperous corner of Islington near the Regent’s Canal, the former North Star was reopened as the North Pole in July 2012 following a lavish and very successful refurbishment – the oddly shaped bar area is now clean, bright and cheerful with light wood and pot plants, and there’s a very attractive wood decked terrace at the back.
Regularly rotating cask beers carefully chosen by cellar manager Shaun come both from local brewers like By the Horns, East London, Redemption and Windsor & Eton and well respected craft suppliers like Buxton, Magic Rock, Oakham, Redwillow and Titanic. Keg offerings also rotate although Innis & Gunn, Harbour, London Fields and Meantime are regulars alongside imports from Anchor (their gorgeous benchmark porter when I called), Flying Dog and Schneider. Ask for samples if you’re unsure. Bottle drinkers will likely find beers from Bristol, Nils Oscar, Nøgne-Ø and Struise, or even Pabst Blue Ribbon if you must. With good if very meat heavy food from the open kitchen, this is a friendly, civilised place that feels a bit more grown up than some venues with similar lists.
National Rail Essex Road Underground Angel, Old Street Bus Baring Street (271 Essex Road, numerous Old Street) Cycling LCN+ 8 16, Regents Canal towpath Walking Links to Jubilee Greenway, New River Path
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Cask  This pioneering new book explains what makes cask beer so special, and explores its past, present and future. Order now from CAMRA Books. Read more here.
London’s Best Beer  The fully updated 3rd edition of my essential award-winning guide to London’s vibrant beer scene is available now from CAMRA Books. Read more here.
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