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The Antic pub company does a strong line in characterful, pubby bars such as The Dogstar in Brixton and the Balham Bowls Club. But The Hope is the company’s first purpose-built pub, which is itself a real rarity in London.
Looking at The Hope’s rambling interior, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s been around for ages. The reclaimed parquet flooring took a battering somewhere or other, and chintzy lampshades, jam-packed bookshelves and high-gloss wallpaper complete the retro hotchpotch effect.
The drinks lineup is dominated by local brews. Rotating draught bitters run from Sir Thomas Gardyner from Peckham’s Brick, to Old Smoke (a collaboration between Tooting’s By The Horns and London tea company Joe’s). Bottles include a mead from Gosnells, based in Peckham. The only thing missing is a decent kitchen. But that gap’s being plugged for now by street-food residencies.