The Crown, Greenwich, SE10

A new pub for me, it has obviously been knocked about a bit inside but retains some nice features including the etched mirrors behind the bar and the ornate but distresed bar front. The pub has gone in a craft beer direction with ten beers on tap from reputable brewers plus a couple of more mainstream stuff in Guinness and Estrella. There are a couple handpumps but a Redemption clip was turned leaving the only handle in use that was dispensing Seacider. I was happy with my half an Anspach & Hobday London Black and more than happy with the pub, a goodun.

A mid-19th century pub with an old Whitbread sign frame, this has recently been hipsterfied somewhat, an exterior part olive green colour scheme looking attractive. The interior has also been modified, with a scrubbed boarded floor, battleship grey walls and scarlet Anaglypta ceiling with structural columns with Corinthian capitals, painted the obligatory gold; what is of note is the fantastic etched and cut glass mirrored bar back with a gilt embossed parapet. Furniture is conventional, décor comprises potted palms and there’s a raised snug to the rear. What wasn’t of appeal was the substantial encroachment of live televised sport (just one West Ham fan watching), with loud commentary – and even louder ads – which clashed with rather loud music; what also wasn’t called for was the clueless barman, who on clearing the menus, though it would be perfectly ok to dump them on the table where I was seated. Ales amounted to an unused pump, Seacider and London’s London Lush at a very reasonable £2.25 a half and decent, served by a pleasant barman. This isn’t a bad place and would be good paired with the Pelton and Plume, certainly miles better than the Angerstein, but the all dominant football combined with loud music mutes the appeal somewhat; as things stand, I wouldn’t have stayed.

Official site of The Crown - www.frontierpubs.co.uk

Official site of The Crown - www.frontierpubs.co.uk

Called in on the crawl round the area ok place worth a visit to say you have been had a decent pint of Charles Well,s Christmas good stuffing 4.5%