The Churchill Arms, W8

Historic Fullers pub serving up a decent range of their ales in good condition Once you’ve admired the vast array of colourful hanging outside, you enter to a dark, cosy boozer with a glow of orange reddishness for various lamps. It sounds odd but it works. The plant life inside and out is almost as appealing as the history element – one wall holding portraits of every British PM since Sir Robert Walpole, alongside all sorts of assorted bric-a-brac. Some original snob screens are in evidence by the bar and the interior is in the CAMRA Regional Inventory. Worth a special look is the rear room where the Thai food operation takes place, which is literally covered in plants, like eating in a Kew Gardens glasshouse – quite staggering, really. And as almost a side note is the beer – the Fullers range plus a seasonal which is always on good form, making this pub a Good Beer Guide regular. Beware that it does get very busy and it can get a bit intimate at peak times with the other punters. All in all, a cracking place I’d heartily recommend to anyone visiting the capital.

I'm a regular at the pub despite living in Leicestershire. It really is one of the best I've ever been to and despite being always busy, the staff are excellent as are the drinks on offer. Gerry, the landlord is often busying himself on the customer's side of the bar and always makes his customers feel welcome. This pub should be a template for others to follow, sadly all too often, they do not.

Entering this pub, you are subjected to something of a sensory overload - the sound of a packed pub's chatter, the smell of Thai food, the sight of a jaw dropping collection of items adoring every inch of space on the walls and ceiling. By the time you've made it to the bar and tasted the excellent beers on offer, your experience is all but complete. The place is quite rightly popular and trying to find somewhere to sit can be a bit of a battle. I found myself propped up at the bar as a result, where I was able to chat to some of the regulars and admire the insane collection of lamps, pans, baskets and so forth, plus a lot of Irish sporting items. The other rooms to the rear were no less impressively decorated, mostly with artefacts related to Churchill, which extended to WWII poster prints in the gents toilets. It's hectic but it works and it's a joy to nose around and spot things of interest. The bar itself has the rare distinction of some seemingly original snob screens from behind which I managed to order myself a lovely pint of HSB from a typical Fullers range which also comprised of London Pride, ESB, Chiswick and Discovery plus Honeydew and London Porter on tap. The bar staff were lovely and very quick in dealing with a relentless and demanding stream of customers. The one facet of the pub which I didn't experience, and perhaps one of the biggest draws for many of the people there, was the Thai food, served up in a separate restaurant area to the rear of the pub. The food certainly smelt great and people were still trying to get a table late into the evening. I loved this place and wouldn't hesitate to return again. For me it's the best pub in the area and a real credit to the landlord and his staff, who clearly work very hard to create something a bit different from the normal pub set up.

Randomness Guide to London - Churchill Arms entry

Randomness Guide to London - Churchill Arms entry