Bars & Pubs

Set back from the Thames close to where the Boat Race begins, tucked down an unprepossessing cul-de-sac opposite a red-brick housing estate, is a plain and staggeringly simple pub, which hails real ale with much gusto and shows little consideration for anything else. Dating back to 1826, the oldest boozer in Putney has bona-fide bric-a-brac adorning the walls, wobbly pine tables on a threadbare floor and a real coal fire rumbling away beneath a pair of headless antlers. An incongruous annexe has a disco mirror, chairs drenched in tapestry and a raftered roof shaped like an upturned boat. Design-schizophrenia continues outside with an L-shaped terrace decked in wrought-iron furniture. The entertainment options are few (television, bar skittles or shove ha'penny), which means you shouldn't be distracted from the real task at hand: drinking. Named 'Greater London Pub of the Year 2007' by CAMRA, this is the sole London pub to serve Taylor's lesser-known gems on hand-pull: Golden Pride, Dark Mild, Ram Tam and Best Bitter. The regulars are beer boffins, flat-capped proprietors of free bus passes and clued-up locals who can keep a secret. Fulham footy fans pop in during match days.

Time Out Bars, Pubs & Clubs Guide 2008/9