Park Tavern SE9

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