Pub

• Test Driving William IV - a perfect example of a good pub dining room

  

  We should all be so lucky to have a pub Dining Room like the William IV in our neighbourhood.

• Rake is the next residency to take over at The Compton Arms

  

  So far, the hit rate at Islington pub The Compton Arms for picking extremely interesting chef residencies is out of the park. They started with Schmaltz by Chris D'Sylva who went on to open Dorian. Then it was Four Legs who now run The Plimsoll and Tollington's. Most recently it was Tiella which has been universally loved by all the critics.

  That means we sat up and paid attention when we found out who was taking over

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• Nancy Spains are opening their next Irish pub in the City

  

  Their first pub opened in Shoreditch only earlier this year, but a second Nancy Spains is already on the way (and we now wouldn't be surprised if more were planned). 

  It's taken over the space that was once City pub, The Wine Lodge (which appears to have been closed for over five years). As before, it's run by Kerry-born brothers Peter and Nicholas O’Halloran and they'll be

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• Test Driving Godet - a wine bar/pub that could be the future of London's boozers

  

  Islington now has a second boozer turned wine pub to check out. We went to see what Godet on Essex Road has to offer.

• Red Lion & Sun pub owner takes over the Angel Inn in Highgate

  

  There are plenty of restaurant operators who like to keep all their businesses close to each other - think Tom Kerridge in Marlow or Rick Stein in Cornwall. Now, up in North London, popular pub landlord Heath Ball is hoping to follow in their footsteps. Heath owns the super-popular (and our own personal favourite drinking hole) the Red Lion & Sun in Highgate, but has just taken on a new pub less than 200 yards

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• Test driving Greyhound Inn, a Suffolk pub with a menu which reads like a dream

  

  Deep in the heart of Suffolk, you'll find this country pub with a truly excellent and inventive menu. We went to try out the Greyhound Inn.  

• Godet wine-focused pub comes to Islington from the Binch team

  

  Binch wine bar in Hackney has been a local favourite since opening back in 2021. Opened by Frenchman Sylvain Bertozzi the small bar and bottle shop is certainly one of the best wine bars in East London. Now news reaches us that Bertozzi is looking to expand to nearby North London, opening a bar on Essex Road.  

• The Red Lion & Sun is selling Pol Roger in tankards, just like Churchill used to drink it

  

  Champagne flutes and saucers are so yesterday. As of this week, one of North London's loveliest pubs is serving a very special Champagne in tankards instead.

  As The Red Lion and Sun's publican Heath Ball explains, the whole thing came about after one of his friends shared an article about a pub in Adelaide, Australia, that serves Krug by the schooner and sells the most Krug in the country.

  After

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• The Peacock is Islington's latest new pub

  

  Islington has recently got a "new" pub on the high street, in the shape of The Peacock. It's opened up in a space that was once Wetherspoon pub The Angel, itself followed up by an independent pub The Junction. Now it's been taken over by the Urban Pubs & Bar group. They have some interesting sites under their umbrella and they happen to own the Salt Yard group.

  So there's reason to expect something relatively decent food-wise here,

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• Jeremy Clarkson is opening The Farmer's Dog pub in Burford in the Cotswolds

  

  Updated 21/8/24 with opening date and pub name

  Having had his plans to run a restaurant at his farm scuppered by local planning restrictions, presenter Jeremy Clarkson has responded by buying a pub instead. Announcing the news in his weekly column for the Sunday Times Clarkson said he's just bought The Windmill - a pub/wedding venue just outside the picture-postcard town of Burford.

  The

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• London's best pub gardens for foodies

  

  We look at some of the best pub gardens in London, where the alfresco space is more than matched by a great food menu.

• Test Driving The Waterman's Arms - excellent riverside dining in Barnes

  

  The Waterman's Arms is a riverside pub in Barnes with an excellent team behind it. We went for a lunch overlooking the Thames to try it out.  

• The Hound is the next JKS pub, opening in Chiswick

  

  9/7/24 - Updated with opening details

  It's no secret that a lot of pubs are closing across the UK at the moment. However, we are seeing some of those snapped up and brought back to life. There's the upcoming The Pig's Ear (once The Chelsea Pig) which is being reopened by the

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• Test Driving The Hero - style and substance at this gorgeous Maida Vale pub

  

  The Pelican team have scored another huge success with the opening of The Hero in Maida Vale. We pulled up a chair for a pint and a pie to see what this gorgeous new pub has to offer. 

• The Black Dog in Vauxhall gets namechecked in Taylor Swift's new album and very, very busy

  

  Updated with merch info 22/5/24

  Up until last Friday the staff of The Black Dog on Vauxhall Walk were probably mostly concerned with making sure everything was geared up for their popular Sunday roast. But all that changed when Taylor Swift dropped the second of two albums featuring a track specifically named after the South London boozer.

  The track, widely thought

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