London's best beer gardens

Best beer gardens in north London

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  The Albion

  10 Thornhill Road, Islington, N1 1HW (020 7607 7450)

  Halfway between Upper Street and the Caledonian Road, this Georgian boozer has an olde-worlde English charm entirely in keeping with its name. It’s far enough from the main thoroughfares to ensure there’s barely a whisper of traffic noise to be heard at the wooden tables in the walled beer garden, with its trees and colourful flowers. Beer-drinkers usually have three options on draught (perhaps Ringwood Best, Deuchars IPA and Landlord), there’s a short list of summery cocktails, and the quality wine list complements a menu speckled with British ingredients.
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  Bull

  13 North Hill, Highgate, N6 4AB

  Set back from North Hill (not the busiest road in north London anyway), the front terrace of this listed pub is a great place to sip your way through the extensive US-focused beer list.
• Edinboro Castle

  57 Mornington Terrace, Camden, NW1 7RU (020 7255 9651)

  The rather small interior of this lively Camden institution gives way to a fair-sized outdoor area, with high walls and an array of foliage giving it a real garden feel despite being hemmed in by a busy road and a railway line. If the weather’s dreary, you can grab one of the cosy side tables with their heaters, or shelter under the convenient mini-marquee and admire the fairy lights. The garden can get rammed with Regent’s Park-goers and cool Camden types when the sun shines, which leads to our only grumble – sometimes the service fails to keep up with the crowds.
• Faltering Fullback

  19 Perth Road, Stroud Green, N4 3HB (020 7272 5834)

  While there are definitely bigger beer gardens to be found in the capital, the outdoor space at this well-loved, ivy-covered local is certainly one of the cleverest. Faced with the difficulty of only having a small yard, the owners built upwards – creating a kind of Ewok village from decking, with room on the various split levels for several tables. It’s an early afternoon suntrap in which to sip a London Pride or a cold lager – no particularly inspiring choices for the latter, but they do put the glasses in the fridge to chill.
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  The Garden Gate

  14 South End Rd, Hampstead, NW3 2QE (020 7435 4938)

  On the edge of Hampstead Heath just twenty yards down from the train station, the Garden Gate is a lively local with a lovely big garden that’s well endowed with greenery. Should, heaven forbid, it ever get chilly, shelter can be sought under an extended undercover area – heated and furnished too – that hosts weekend barbecues through the summer and the occasional hog roast. Ask for cask and you’ll be offered the choice of London Pride and four ales changed at least weekly (Oxford Gold, Sharp’s Doom Bar, Timothy Taylor Landlord and the like). Other draught delights include London’s very own Meantime Pale Ale, Aspall Cyder, Erdinger and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, a celestial summer sip from California that does a fine line in citrus-tinged refreshment.
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  Junction Tavern

  101 Fortess Road, Tufnell Park, NW5 1AG (020 7485 9400)

  Regular visits prove the Junction Tavern to be a reliable source of good (sometimes outstanding) food at extremely reasonable prices. The result? Large crowds even on midweek nights, in the high-ceilinged dining room (with view of the kitchen), the sofa-lined bar and the rear conservatory. In fine weather a garden also comes into play.