The Surprise at Pimlico, SW1

The first surprise - given that it is located on the Westminster side of Vauxhall Bridge Road - is that this place is not an upmarket gastro-pub... Instead, you find a rather run-down, old-fashioned, estate-type pub with two bars. The front (where most of the customers can be found) is fairly small, the rear (almost deserted) being a larger space with a pool table, etc. The second surprise is that these two rooms are connected via the gents toilet... Wooden patio benches out front. Hostel upstairs. Two handpumps in the front bar, with either Wandle or Pride (£3.50) usually on (although both were off on my last visit). Instead, I opted for a Guinness (£3.00 during the 5-7 Monday to Friday happy 'hour', and real ale would have been £2.00 had it been on), The final surprise is that the pub is apparently named after HMS Surprise, a vessel which was left to rot (or perhaps burned on the foreshore) after a very undistinguished career - why would you do that?