The Hero, W9

The original Hero of Maida was a pub a quarter of a mile away on Maida Vale which closed in 1992, named after General Sir John Stuart, ennobled Count of Maida by King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Sicily after the victory at the Battle of Maida in 1806; it opened in 1809 and today, all that remains is a pole and sign frame to what is now a skin clinic; this ‘Hero’ was originally the Shirland Hotel, built 1878 and situated in a not very nice area, but on the border of the rather smart enclave of Little Venice, which I remember as being very down-at-heel in the ‘70s; how things have changed. The exterior now features a dog to the sign and gas Windsor lanterns. The oh-so-contrived website paints a tableau of what to expect: as if in a painting by Vermeer, a girl dreamily lights a candle; a fish’s unblinking glazed eye looks up as if in a scene from Alien; a barman descends from the upstairs dining area carrying a tray of drinks, despite the bar being on the ground floor; an aerial view shows a quartet of diners toasting a fish pie, all to an abundance of knotty unpainted wood, shades of ochre and umber to rag washed walls and ceiling. With a quarry tiled bar apron, the floor’s dark bare boarded, furniture traditional. There’s a very substantial natural oak bar back, with jars containing eggs, fruit, vegetables and alliums pickling away, framing another picture of that mystery dog. Customers were mixed locals and abundant for a Monday, many eating, all making for uncomfortable acoustics. Above the zinc bar top, the bronze-effect pumps and taps are too cool to have either clips or fisheyes, all wares advertised to a beer board, the cask options amounting to DEYA Creek Life, Allsopp’s Pale and IPA at £3.30 a half, but on very good form, served by a smiley barmaid. I preferred this pub’s previous incarnation(s), finding the place now a bit pretentious, not to mention expensive. It does though add to the area’s limited drinking arsenal, making for a decent crawl with the Prince Alfred, Warrington, Warwick Castle and even the Carlton.

Reopened a few days ago as The Hero of Maida, taking its name from an Edgware Road pub of the same name which closed in 1992. The eponymous hero was Major General Sir John Stuart who defeated the French at the Battle of Maida in Italy, 1806. As before, this is quite a grand affair but sensibly restrained - they could really have gone over the top here. As I recall, it's little different from before, probably to save money but also because the paint had barely dried on the former refurbishment before it closed. The exposed brick fireplaces still lack real fires which is a shame and there's an attractive zinc bar top. The polychromatic encaustic bar apron is still in situ, original or not I can't tell and the floor is covered with bare oak boards. The lower walls are dark grey field panelled, white paint above to the white ceiling with its ornate roses and recessed downlighters. Simple spherical lamps hang from the ceiling above the bar and further lighting is contemporary. Tables are basic and wooden; furniture consists of green leatherette banquettes to much of the periphery and wooden chairs with studded red leatherette. A multitude of prints of every kind of photograph hang from a wall and the pub's frontage can concertina open to afford a view of the estate across the road to the accompaniment of traffic noise which competes with the muted music on the stereo. There's a decked, two-tiered garden with unlit steps to challenge the drinker at night. Finally, lavatories are very modern but equally very small. Ales: Timothy Taylor's Landlord, Adnams Ghost Ship and Thornbride's Jaipur at a relatively reasonable £4.40 a pint and very good too. This is a decent place, better and slightly more homely than the previous incarnation though certainly no boozer. It does however probably have the best and least expensive ale selection in the W9 area, so that's worth something.

Official site of The Hero of Maida - theheromaidavale.co.uk

Official site of The Hero of Maida - theheromaidavale.co.uk