The Ship, South Norwood, SE25

This is a narrow pub with a very traditional feel to it on South Norwood High Street. The interior has a nice, warm and welcoming feel to it, in stark contrast to many of the other pubs in the area, thanks to the dark wood and bare brick that dominates. The entrance leads to a small seating area at the front with the bar counter situated along the side wall with a number of standard tables and chairs opposite. Beyond the bar is a lower level in a separate room to the rear, which appears to have a lot more seating available. There are brick fireplaces in both rooms but there was no sign that these get used very often. A shelf above the bar displayed a lot of interesting brewerania items including some small barrels, but otherwise decor was fairly minimal save for some rather prominent Crystal Palace flags. A TV screen was showing a rolling news channel with background music trying to compete with the newsreaders. Disappointingly, despite a healthy looking five handpumps, no ale was available on my recent visit, with what looked like Abbot, Ruddles and Courage Best clips all turned round. I settled for a Guinness at £3.20, served by a kindly, if unapologetic, barman. This is probably the stand out pub in South Norwood, but it was a real let down to find no ale available. I think I’d be prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was a one off, and as such I would probably call in again next time I’m in this part of town.

The Ship, like the Jolly Sailor, and hence the names, dates back from the days when the Croydon canal basin was here: the long curve of Albert road reflects the original line of the canal. Although doubtless much changed and extended since those early days, the pub remains relatively unscathed by recent fads, apart from the disgraceful vandalisation of the tiny snug at the front around 20 years ago. So it remains very much a traditional town boozer populated by traditional town boozers, and nothing wrong with that. Beers - usual routine range, relief was provided by St Austell Tribute the other day bu alas it was not in the best of shape. South Norwood is a good spot for a pub crawl, a decent number of fair to middling pubs. The Ship is one of the better ones, and would make a good starting or finishing point.