Bars & Pubs

By Ben McFarland

The west London branch of the successful Grand Union chain is found opposite a closed-down carpet emporium, perched betwixt a couple of roundabouts where the Goldhawk and Askew roads converge in what is like a meeting of two rather dirty minds.

It's an enormous, identikit outpost of the empire that remains loyal to the rolled-out recipe of party pubs brimming with burgers, booze and burlesque bric-a-brac. Decked out like an eighteenth-century episode of 'Cash in the Attic', it’s all a bit mental and oriental. Shabby chandeliers hang low on feather boas, and it’s littered with a load of garish lampshades, neon flashes, pseudo-posh portraits and paintings, eclectic table types and all manner of exotic indoor greenery. The vista from the front beer ‘garden’ is best described as underwhelming.

The cocktail list keeps within the confines of the classics (mojitos, Long Island iced teas and mai tais) and the beer doesn’t showboat far beyond the likes of Stella, Staropramen and Becks Vier – with Old Speckled Hen top of the, ahem, pecking order in the fridge. The French house wine, one of a dozen bins from both old and new worlds, comes in at under £13. From Monday to Thursday, there are 2-for-1 cocktails between 6 and 8pm.

The open-plan kitchen gives 22 different burgers a good grilling. Slabs of minced beef and lamb, chicken, fish, turkey and veg are slapped between freshly-baked buns and are best launched into one’s laughing gear with Grand Union chips, once voted as 'London’s best' by this very publication and still on fine form. Slimmers can seek slight solace in the sizeable salads.

DJs give it some until 2am on weekends, and on our Saturday night visit, the bar was steeped in youthful hen parties, big birthday groups and, as is west London’s wont, an enormous array of eagerly imbibing Antipodeans.

Time Out London July 2009