The Hand & Marigold, Bermondsey, SE1

Traditional corner pub just a short walk away from a rather trendy area of Bermondsey with some posh looking cafes, restaurants and shops. We were surprised to see this place fairly quiet with just one other customer, who as luck would have it we would bump into later in the day at the River Ale House in Greenwich. Perhaps this pubs gets busier at weekends, especially when the Bermondsey Beer Mile venues are in full swing. It's a simple square room with a small snug in one corner and two toilets in another corner. There are a few things of interest to admire on the walls and on pillars. At the bar, there are 4 cask ales. For our visit, these were Duration Best Bitter, Saddle & Goldfish & Crouch Vale Blackwater Mild. A cider was Ascension Shimmy. Craft beers were O'Hara's Nitro Stout, Cloudwater SoCal & Fresh, Duration Deep Fried, Adventure Defender, Cuttin' Grass, Strawberry Fields & Blue River & The Kernel Table Beer. Seemingly, there was a Duration tap takeover, similar to our visit to the Pocket in Canonbury at the weekend. I opted for the Blackwater Mild, which was enjoyable. It seemed a shame that this pub was so quiet. But it must be doing something right to be CAMRA's Southeast London pub of the year. Certainly worth a try.