London’s best bars and pubs with open fires

The bulbs are bare and the floorboards worn at this Kentish Town pub. It’s sparse, it’s simple and it’s really rather splendid. The regulars are more mature than in most pubs, and some bring along their canine companions. Purchase some traditional snacks, a pint of scrumpy (this is a cider and ale house, after all) and seat yourself and your dog beside the wood-burning fire.

The interior of this local Hackney boozer has been tastefully renovated to look like your textbook Great British pub. Claret-coloured walls make it cosy as hell, with a couple of fireplaces for extra warmth and Scrabble for when you really want to make it a session.

This welcoming Dickensian pub in Hampstead has an ancient interior, reasonably priced food and wooden booths to slide into. Its two wood and coal-burning fires make the pub the perfect place to head following a stirring walk across the heath – or at least up the steep road to the pub.

This Grade-II listed building is full of handsome features. If you can peel your eyes away from its glitzy stage, there's an open fire to feast your eyes on. And it's almost as warming as the community feel at London's first co-operative pub.

Kentish Town locals adore this pub, so good luck getting a seat near the coal fire in colder months. The shelf just by the fire is stacked with books and board games to keep you occupied while you warm up your toes. Essential after a walk on nearby Hampstead Heath.

More of a pub with food than a gastropub, the Rose has seen a few name-changes over the years, including the Legless Ladder and, most recently, the Fulham Tup. The muted walls are dotted with prints of ladies in various states of undress (more tasteful than it sounds). Candles twinkle and locals lounge on church pews and leather sofas. Eat, drink and get cosy on one of the armchairs surrounding the fire.

In this grand old building at the north end of Green Lanes you barely have to share bar staff: it's absolutely massive. You may have to fight for those fireside armchairs, though! Taxidermy cases and ornate cornicing decorate the central, beer-focused bar, a jukebox plays music in the main room and a projector plays sport in the second.

Venture down a Hammersmith sidestreet and you'll find this popular gastropub, which offers a sophisticated Mediterranean menu as well as plenty of brickwalled charm. Plus, it keeps punters cosy with its open fire in the winter months. 

They’ve gone to great lengths to make this pub interior look old-timey. It’s panelled in gorgeous carved wood and fabric-covered pews act as seats in the small drinking space. And the pièce de résistence is a roaring fire that fills the small space with plenty of warmth come winter.

This 300-year-old pub in Hampstead plays on its historic name with decorations that tell the story of a duelling duke. Beyond that, a wood-burning fireplace adds plenty of character – and warms up what is otherwise a slightly cold-feeling decor of neutrals and greys. You’ll be the one duelling it out to get a seat by the fire, which pairs pretty well with a bountiful plate of roast chicken on a Sunday.

This craft beer haven is operated by Big Smoke Brew Co, and if we know anything, it's that there's no smoke without fire. An adorable ornate fireplace is well stocked with logs and decked by two comfortable leather armchairs. A great position from which to sample the brewery's range.

Cadogan Arms is impressively cosy, with wood panelling and chandeliers giving it an air of Victorian luxury. And for for the best seat in the house? Bagsy the central tables, flanked by massive, sinkable velvet bucket chairs stationed directly in front of the fireplace with beautiful autumnal foliage. The perfect spot for plonking in front of with pints.

There’s lots to like about the Antelope in Tooting, not least its good gastropub food. With three fires to choose from (two coal-burning options in the bar and dining room, and a wood fire in the games room) there’s every chance you’ll find a spot near the hearth – just be prepared to do battle for one of the pub’s fireside chesterfield armchairs.

With a half-finished look and cavernous main bar area, this hipster pub may be spacious, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be toasty warm. It generously keeps three wood fires alight (two in the front bar, one in the dining room), and also serves a simple food menu together with a good selection of British-brewed real ales including Deuchars IPA and Redemption Trinity.

The Dove is famed as a prime pub from which to watch the annual Boat Race, but don't overlook it in the winter months when its Dickensian charm comes into its own, particularly when a fire is lit and is one of the few things lighting your way around the low-beamed rooms.

A perfect local if ever there was one, The Eagle is dark and cosy come winter, with dark wood floors and those all-important comfy seats by the fireplace. An island bar topped with two big, bold tanks (the traditional, ‘bright’ kind), holds the brewery’s Raw lager if you’re in need of cooling off.

If you're wondering what the Thames docks might have felt like before their Disneyfication into Docklands, these narrow, ivy-covered and etched-glass premises aren't a bad place to start. Come in out of the cold and huddle up in front of their fire.

This Newington Green retreat gets the thumbs up from us for its cracking Sunday lunch, welcoming staff and impressive board game line-up, but add to that a real fire to curl up next to and you'll understand why it's hard to steer clear come winter. You may even make friends with Sidney the dog if you're lucky enough to bag fire-side seats.

This pub is full of lures for the discerning East London drinker, including snazzy decor, DJ nights, a karaoke nights and a dedicated games shed with darts and table football. But don't overlook the old-fashioned appeal of its grand-looking, wood-burning fire when the winter chill sets in.

Popular with Highgate locals (students and celebs alike) the Wrestlers has a large roaring log fire to the right as you enter, whose comforting smell fills the room and mingles with delicious Sunday roast aromas. A beaten chesterfield sofa is near-enough to feel the warmth but not make your glow too rosy.

Don't let the name put you off, Soho's Old Coffee House is a pub through-and-through. If its dark, worn and dated features and old man-ish clientele aren't comfort enough for you, make a beeline for the coal-effect fire in a rear corner and rejoice in the fact that 'proper' pubs like this still exist in the capital.

Victoria Park's most handsome pooches hang out with their owners in this welcoming and somewhat sprawling boozer. Lucky them, as they curl up by a log burner on nearby sofas while their masters work their way through the papers or gaze on at the big screens showing match day highlights.

Make merry in Dalston with Czech beer and real ale (Pride, Brakspear, Woodforde’s Wherry) – there are plenty of good wines by the glass too. The George's free jukebox (one of the best in London) means there’s always a party going on, so don’t go expecting to take a quiet nap alongside the wood- and coal-burning fires.

This popular pub is decorated with an eclectic selection of bric-a-brac, which includes a fibreglass rhino head, a plaster Egyptian dog, an autographed photo of Dennis Bergkamp and old maps of Islington. It’s kitsch but cosy – particularly if you opt for a pint of traditional ale and a strategic position by the crackling coal fire.

A gorgeous log-burning fire greets regulars – both human and canine – at backstreet boozer the Wenlock Arms. A large hearth helps spread the fire's toasty heat around the room, with banquettes and stools nearby hotly fought over. Order from brilliant beers and oozing baked camembert for even more comfort.

You can practically feel the history stepping inside this old Thamesside pub that dates back to 1620. Luckily the open fire will warm your cockles in this slightly haunting but always charming inn, particularly useful if you've been out on its water-facing deck at the rear.