London Pub Tour 27 - Knightsbridge: Bunch of Grapes, Tattersalls Tavern and Paxton's Head

I decided to pay a visit to Knightsbridge and pop in the last set of pubs outstanding from the area on my London pub tour. My first stop was down Brompton Road in the direction heading away from Hyde Park and past Harrods, it was The Bunch of Grapes (SW3 1LA). This corner pub on the very busy tourist area was surprisingly not full of tourists. The pub was packed with no seats to spare with drinkers everywhere and only the occasional diner. There was a separate upstairs dinning area which I didn't checkout so perhaps all the tourists were up there...

The pub has a large rectangle bar in the centre which takes up quite a look of the space in the pub. Seating with tables are all around the sides of the bar, with some room for additional tables at the rear where the pub opens up slightly and where I stood to drink. There were some nice old paritions with glass between some tables, and parts where the outside of the bar points inwards. There was a limited bottle selection and the ales on offer were all GK (Glory, Abbot, IPA and the seasonal Grubber) repeating across the 8 hand pumps, so I plucked instead for a lager. There was a selection to choose from (San Miguel, Guinness, Hop House, Stella, Staropramen, Fosters, Peroni and Hells) but I ended up getting the Hells at £5.60.

The Hells was the usual standard and did go down a treat after a busy week at work. As the pub was packed I didn't hang around too long and made my way out the rear exit and back up past Harrods to my next stop Tattersalls Tavern (SW1X 7QA). The pub itself is just off a main road and is built into what feels like a modern office block. It certainly feels like a modern pub being an open plan pub on one floor. There were quite a lot of people outside drinking though although its a small one way road it was busy along with the surrounding buildings being close and blocking out light, which is one of the main reasons for drinking outside.

The bar is along the back wall and facing out into the open plan layout, though I feel that the amount of space here was about equal ro the Bunch of Grapes, as the space had been used better. There are two rows of tables which were all occupied, and sadly left only standing room in the pub. Most of the people were tourists and were eating though a few regulars were in after work, I found this out during my 5 minute wait to be served whilst they served people they knew ahead of those actual there first at the bar. The pub itself offered four ales which were London Glory, Grubber, 1730 and Doombar. On the keg front they had Hop House, London Pilsner, Stella, Heineken, Amstel, Over Easy, 1664, Fosters, Kopparberg and Aspalls. I obviously went for the Over Easy which I hadn't tried before. Over Easy is brewed by Craft Academy (aka Greene King) and is only 3.8%. Considering the beer was only 3.8% I was a bit surprised by the £5.30 price tag. The beer had a good hoppiness to it along with a nice aroma, but had a dry after taste.

There was quite loud music blaring out across the pub, which felt weird for a mainly tourists with their families having dinner. I did though notice a sign saying downstairs dinning area, so perhaps that is where most people were seated and it was quieter. There wasn't really much else stand out about this pub as it just felt characterless with its open plan floor, no nooks to discover or interesting articles on the walls. I made the very short walk through the pedestrian walkway to the next and final stop Paxton's Head (SW1X 7PA). The pub is situated right on the busy Knightsbridge and opposite One Hyde Park. The pub sign outside the Paxton was in the same format and styling as the Bunch of Grapes. The outside of the pub looks quite standard but upon walking through the main door I was surprised at the interior. The pub was like what the Bunch of Grapes should have been. The pub was spacious and had a large oval bar, the two side walls of the pub were decorated with glass mirrors and wood.

On the bar the pub was offering up 5 ales: Grubber, Doombar, Bombardier, IPA and Glory. The kegs this time were Guinness, Peroni, Hop House, Fosters and 1664. I had actually asked for Grubber but the barman mishead and poured Doombar, but there were no complaints from me on this, so I took the Doombar. I think this perhaps was a good call as I'm not a Greene King fan and their seasonal ales aren't generally much better than the all year ones. Whilst awaiting my beer I did see a tourist come up and ask for a beer then point at the cider. The bar staff did well and informed them it was cider and made from apples, which I don't think was the drink he was looking for and he quickly changed his mind.

The pub wasn't too busy and as I wandered round I noticed there was a downstairs area, so thought I'd check it out. To get downstairs you walk down a half spiral staircase. Downstairs has its own small bar, though this wasn't in use, but I did wonder if some of the stock on display was empty or not. There is a pool table and screens placed around, which had sky sports news on. The walls are exposed bricks, and there are quite a number of tables all around the outside. I ended up staying downstairs in the quiet (only 2 other customers, although just as I was leaving a group booking arrived) and finishing off my pint. It also helped that the toilets are downstairs, so made for one less trip back down and up the stairs.

Overall the Paxton Head was my favoured pub due to decoration and style, which I hadn't expected. The Grapes is a standard pub though probably better to visit outside of both tourist dinner time and Friday after work parties. The Tattersalls though is probably not an establishment I would actively seek to return to as there wasn't any particular draw there either in location, beer, the actual pub interior or exterior.

London Pub Tour 20 - Enfield Town: The Old Wheatsheaf, The Stag, King's Head and The George

Photo by Bone007

This pub tour was again on the outskirts of London, in Enfield. I started just outside the town, at The Old Wheatsheaf (EN2 6SE) which is a short walk down the hill from Enfield Chase Station. The pub is split into two sides, with no access between the two. The newer side is the door you'll arrive at first from the station, and also provides access to the rear garden. I however prefer the older side, which you enter through a latched front door, which is unusual to find at a London pub. The pub feels like its had a lick of paint recently, but still feels aged. The small bar is facing you straight on as you enter, only a few paces away. To the right and stretching down the back is seating. There is wood flooring around the bar area, and the seating area is carpeted.

On tap there was Guinness, Amstel, Becks, 1664, Fosters, Heineken and Carlsberg. There were three hand pumps offering up 6X, Tribute and Courage. I selected to start the night with the 6X as it was only 4.1%. I hadn't had 6X in years, and its a decent sessionable pint. After the 6X I moved across to have a pint of Heineken. The pub wasn't too busy, but I seen the poster on the wall advertising quiz night at 7pm, so decided to move on before any participants started to appear. I moved down the hill, to the top end of Enfield Town and stopped off at The Stag (EN2 6PH).

Photo by Bob Osborn

The first time I actually went into The Stag was last year and it was just a quick stop off after coming off the bus at the bus station opposite. On that day the pub was empty apart from a small after wedding ceremony going on. Tonight there were no other customers in the pub, though some customers did arrive to check in to their rooms above the pub. The Stag has been through quite a few different managers over the years, and has been refurbished a few years back after a fire. The refurbishment involved giving the interior a more modern, minimalist look. There are no ales served and on tap they offered up Becks, Shipyard, San Miguel, Fosters, Carlsberg, Peroni, Guinness and Thatchers. I went for the pint of Shipyard and took a seat over in the sofa area.

As the pub was quite empty the bar man came over and joined in for a chat. We began discussing the history of the pub and in particular the historic unsolved murder in 1816 of John Draper. Draper was a beadle who had been out collecting money earlier in the day and had already been kicked out of a pub in Barnet. He made his way with a new accomplice to the Bald Faced Stag where he proceeded to drink and in the process pick fights with most of the other customers. When he didn't return home that night his wife called the police and they discovered his body in the well at the rear of the pub, minus his pocketbook and money. The police were unable to pin the murder on anybody as they all had a reason for murdering him, but all backed up each other's story. The bar man explained where the well can be found. It was a very interesting discussion and certainly added to the allure of the pub. After another pint of Shipyard it was time to move on to catch the second half of the football.

I made my way down into the Town Centre, and in particular to the market square where the King's Head (EN2 6LL) can be found. This pub was closed for numerous years and I believe re-opened in 2015. This is quite a large pub with some outside covered tables. Walking in the door and the large bar which I can't describe as Horseshoe, but which wraps around the bar and all the way towards the back, is the first thing you see. The pub has an Irish feel to it, meaning a pub where your certain to find Irish sports on. The pub is split into sections with privacy screens between the areas, some with stained glass. Walking towards the rear and you arrive at the dinning area, which used to have a canoe hanging from the ceiling, for what reasons I'm unsure, but since has been removed.

The pub has 4 hand pumps which on this visit were offering up Bombardier, London Glory, Greene King IPA and London Tap. I selected a pint of London Tap from New River Brewery, as never heard of the brewery before and they're local. The pint was drinkable but nothing really stood out. It had a hoppy taste and aroma but not much else to distinguish it from other similar beers. I certainly wouldn't say no to drinking it if given the choice, but it wouldn't be a first choice. So much so that my next beer was from their keg selection. They offered up a variety of the mainstream beers you see in London including Guinness, Stella, Amstel, Peroni, Heineken, Hop House 13 and Hells. I went for a pint of Camden Hells, only reason being that Camden Brewery will be moving to their Enfield Brewery soon (So you can see my thought process at this stage).

The pub was busy with lots watching the football on the many TVs dotted around the pub. There must have been 40+ people, so it was at that level you have space still. The pub is owned by the Enfield Market Trust who lease it out. This pub always seems to have a good number of people and has managed to become a very popular pub in the town centre. The other competing pub is just across the road and is where I went next, The George (EN2 6LE). The George is definitely a busy pub during the day and after work, but was particularly empty this night. They sometimes have DJs and clear to make a dance floor, and as such, the pub seems neglected in caring for its furniture or even the smell.

The beer range is standard with a few ales on offer, which included Sly Fox, Rudolph's Reward, Doombar and Greene King IPA. The kegs included beers such as Punk IPA, Stella, John Smiths, Carlsberg and Carling. The pub reminds me slightly of a spoons with the large single level open plan pub, though it has been this way long before spoons made that style famous. I sat down and had a pint of Stella, though slightly reached the decision that maybe I should have called it a night at the King's Head and not moved on. As it was quite late and many pubs in, I didn't have many notes for this pub. After finishing most of my pint I called it a night and got a cab home. All in all a nice variety of pubs were covered, with three that were different but enjoyable and the last a place that isn't on my re-visit list.