London’s Best Beer, Pubs and Bars updates
Central London: Notting Hill
Windsor Castle, London W8
Traditional pub (Castle/Mitchells & Butlers) National heritage pub.
114 Campden Hill Road W8 7AR
T 020 7243 8797 W www.thewindsorcastlekensington.co.uk
Open 1200-2300 (2230 Sun). Children welcome until 1900.
Cask beer 5 (Adnams, Sambrook’s, Timothy Taylor, 2 sometimes unusual guests) Cask Marque, Other beer 7 keg, 3 bottles, Also 3 real ciders, 26 wines, seasonal homemade soft drinks.
Food Upmarket pub grub, Outdoor Large beer garden, No disabled toilet but flat access.
Wed wine club.
It’s sometimes said that this pub got its name because you could see the real Windsor Castle from here, if it wasn’t for the houses in between. Given the geography this seems unlikely, but back in 1825 when the pub was built, its commanding position atop Campden Hill, surrounded by open fields, might well have reminded people of the castle. The fields are long gone, but the pub still retains something of a rural character, and you’ll certainly know you’ve climbed a hill to get there if you approach from the south. The effort is worthwhile, however, as this is one of London’s loveliest heritage pubs, barely changed since before World War II.
The squat, sturdy looking building is often draped in a rich carpet of greenery. Inside, partitions with low hatches still divide the nicotine-encrusted drinking area into three spaces, named on the door glass as the Campden Bar, the Private Bar and the Sherry Bar, and the fittings and much of the furniture date from a 1933 refit, though the carved mahogany bar back is a Victorian survivor. The ambience keeps faith with the decor – there’s no recorded music, no TVs and no gaming machines, yet far from being a museum piece the pub feels lively and lived in, with a mixed, friendly and relaxed crowd. At the back, you’ll find one of the prettiest and most capacious pub gardens for miles.
There’s a good beer range too. Broadside, Landlord and Wandle are cask regulars, with guests that might come from Box Steam, Cottage or Marston’s. Sierra Nevada Pale and Franziskaner wheat beer enliven the cask selection while Budvar, Cooper’s and Innis & Gunn are in bottle. Dishes such as rare breed sausage and colcannon, chestnut and wild mushroom risotto or pepper steak pie are well priced given the area, with a value fixed price deal. This is the edge of Kensington and Notting Hill, with Holland Park a short wander away, so there’s a whiff of wealth about some of customers – but not to the exclusion of others. Remarkably, the place is run by a big pubco – but on this occasion they’ve had the good sense to allow the pub’s own unique character to shine.
Underground Notting Hill Gate Cycling LCN+ 45 Walking Holland Park paths
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