The Crown & Cushion, Lambeth, SE1

Randomness Guide to London - Crown And Cushion entry

Randomness Guide to London - Crown And Cushion entry

For an Irish pub, the Crown & Cushion is one of the better of its ilk. The once bright yellow exterior has now been toned down for those with more delicate retinas but the interior still hints at enough Irishness to please the purists mixed in with a few eccentricities that make the place quite appealing to those, like me, who genrally avoid such places. The “vast range of Real Ales” depicted outside actually equated to Speckled Hen & Greene King IPA (and the Specky ran out as I ordered ) so not terribly great on the beer front akthough you probably wouldn’t expect anything other than kegs and Guinness anyway so anything is a bonus to ale drinkers. Upstairs is a Thai restaurant thatb has a pretty good reputation although I have never treid any food here. The furnishings are haphazardly arranged and floor sections raised to create intimate areas in what would otherwise be a plain and open plan room. The walls and shelves are packed with an indeterminate amount of junk and bric-a-brac ranging from mirrors, pictures, jugs and posters to typewriters, radios and clocks. There is a dart board and a couple of falt screen TVs tuned, as per usual, to sport To the rear is a small patio area with various car number plates and road signs. Overall I quite liked the quirky nature of the place even if thye beers are a bit on the dull side. There are far worse places around Waterloo and this does tend to lose the commuter traffic.