The Black Lion, Kilburn, NW6

I've been meaning to visit this pub on Kilburn High Road for some time. Indeed, this was the last London pub in the Good Beer Guide left for me to visit. With large-scale disruption on the Overground, my visit here was much briefer than I'd hoped. But I still had enough time to appreciate the grandeur of the interior, especially the fine ceiling. Entering at the corner, there is a small side room off to the left-hand side of the main room, whilst there is a fair-sized dining area off to the right with an open kitchen. Many of the tables in the bar were also reserved for those expected for Sunday lunch, but not longer after midday opening, there were only a handful of customers in. For a weekend, I was expecting a bigger range of real ales. It appears that the choice is now down to just the 2 - By The Horns Hopadelic & Five Points Best Bitter. In addition, Seacider White Peach was also on a handpull. Craft beers were Wiper & True Kaleidoscope, London Brewing Company Upright, Delirium Tremens & 360° Sussex Haze. The interior of this pub is well worth a visit alone, but I was left underwhelmed by the cask ale selection and the sheer number of reserved tables suggested that the focus here is very much on dining.

This is a stunner. Magnificent pub, totally gorgeous venue. There were four beers on hand pump, my choice was the Thornbridge Lord Marples but I would have snogged Miss Marples if that’s what it took to be here. Other options were Dudda’s Tun cherry cider, Five Points Pale and Diamond Geezer a red ale from the By the Horns Brewing Co. The keg options were absolutely fantastic and nothing on the boring nothingness of other venues this evening. In my opinion this is a must visit venue. The pub also has an Indian food offering so if you walk in through the front doors and thing you have died and gone to heaven then I think you are probably right. So many venues I haven’t posted reviews of on here but if I could magic up that effortless task completion then this would still be in the very stratified area of the very best of pubs. Utterly lovely.

Recently restored and is a CAMRA 3* heritage pub, mainly for the beautiful interior décor (ornate lincrusta ceiling, cornicings, wood panelling, inlaid mirrors, gilded friezes around the walls) rather than the layout which, a small saloon area off-left, has been gutted and opened-out at soe point. On a Sunday early afternoon almost all tables were reserved for Jasper, Phillipa and their Trustafarian friends to have food. Three cask on the go from lesser-known breweries; my Best Bitter by Three Acre Brewery tasted like it was the first one out since the shift the night before (NBSS 2) and my mate’s choice wasn’t much better; we’d have been better off with one of the ciders or craftykeg options. Overall it’s certainly well-worth a visit to see the interior but the cask quality left me underwhelmed. GBG24 listed because of course it is.