The Durell Arms, Parsons Green, SW6

On Wednesday afternoon I paid my first visit to this pub for many years, and like so many pubs it’s changed out of all recognition from the basic boozer that I knew. It’s kept, or possibly reverted to, its original name though. The exterior, and much of the interior, is painted a dull pastel grey/duck egg green colour, which is a clear sign of a thoroughly nodernised pub. The interior design is fairly unusal, with a number of booths on a raised area to the left, with some large (10-seater) tables in the front bar area. Here we also have a couple of sofas/armchairs, some normal tables and chairs, and even a leather bound chest or trunk doing duty as a table. At the back past the booths is another large room with more sofas and the like. There are no tall tables and stools though, and I didn’t spot any fruit machines or other mechanical devices of that ilk. The ales on were GK Fireside and Hogsback RIP. Food is available here, with main course between £9 and £13. Prices are shown pretentiously – with the pie of the day 10.5, which I suppose means that it costs £10.50. So, not cheap by any means. I would hope that it’s homemade for that price, although the menu didn’t say so. Sandwiches are available until 6.0, coincidentally at £6.0 a throw. On the whole the pub’s OK. The beer costs the going rate, with the RIP at £3.30 a pint as I recall for a good quality 5% ale. It’s a large opened up pub, but is clean and as comfortable as most pubs. It’s not the sort of pub that I would rush back to, but OK for a pint or two if you’re in the area.