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Please note, this venue is now closed. Time Out Eating & Drinking editors, March 2017.
The first part of this slightly cumbersome name refers to this newly reopened bar having the same owners as refurbed Homerton pub the Plough, while the second part indicates its location on old landing off the Lea Navigation in Hackney Wick. In 2014, this pub became a tap for the local Truman’s brewery called the Cygnet; it closed in November of that year, but with an outdoor space like this in east London, it wasn’t going to stay shut for long.
The enormous canalside seating area couldn’t be called a garden – it’s more a post-industrial pub playground, surrounded by large-scale murals, bits of defunct industry and the occasionally bucolic Lea itself. Furniture is reclaimed, salvaged and recycled. The huge Olympic stadium looms just to the east.
A rollcall of US classics make up the menu, including fried chicken sandwich, beef burger, fish tacos, fries with ‘chicken salt’ – you’ve seen them all before, but they’re done very well here and are good value, apart from a ‘green salad’ which was really just a little pile of rocket for £3.
The Truman’s brewery is still nearby, so it makes sense that its brews dominate the taps: a few other US and local craft beers make up the rest of a decent offer.
Any sunny day, TPASW is guaranteed to be rammed, but its hidden-away location (tip: walk down the canal to find it more easily) and laid-back attitude make it a more desirable place to drink than most city-centre beer gardens.