The Rose, SE1

Visited 23/01/2018. OK this is a somewhat belated review but based on my personal notes since I started keeping notes at the start of 2018. Full disclosure, this is my local, 30 seconds from my front door on Weston St. Been here a ridiculously large number of times pre recording of venues and an even more ridiculously large number of times since I started recording venues but this date is the single time I have noted this as a venue since I started counting venues at the start of 2018! Pretty basic corner st venue, been pretty much in the same format since the date recorded but prior to that and its conversion to a more upmarket venue to catch the multitude of well heeled locals and more blue collar workers on building sites that have dominated the area over the last decade and a half and Guy’s hospital workers it was a more local estate venue showing sports - now showing silent early last century silent movies etc on a loop above the entrance door! Always have a single beer on hand pump, has been Doom Bar for a while (I hang my head in shame) but generally more interesting than that. I generally tuck into a glass of wine here these days. I love this place but I can’t rate it more than a mid range 5 on here.

Dating from the late 18th century, this was rebuilt, probably in the 19th, formerly a Hoare’s house. The windows are modern leaded with stained glass, but otherwise it would seem that the addiction to the copper theme mentioned in several earlier reviews no longer applies; it also boasts that it’s home to the Bermondsey Parmo, despite the pub not actually being in Bermondsey. There’s still the wood panelling, with studded banquette booths to the rear, beyond which is an ugly games machine, then tall conventional furniture to the front, but then again, the dim lighting (fake Victorian chandeliers and sconces) may have impeded my vision somewhat, but otherwise it’s as described, with trendy framed artistic prints, mocking senior members of the royal family. Customers were youngish with a fairly good buzz for a Tuesday evening, possibly buoyed up by the loud Stevie Wonder playing over the gramophone, so I doubt I’d find it any less busy on a Friday. Amazingly there was just the one ale, something called Rose – Amber House Ale? at an insulting £2.85 a half and decent, though 10p cheaper than my half at the Horseshoe Inn across the way. This place isn’t a disaster, but there are plenty of better pubs in the area.

Typical corner pub. Bar to the left. One hand pump which I didn't take note of. Rest keg. Room off to the right.

Official site of The Rose - www.therosepublichouse.co.uk

Official site of The Rose - www.therosepublichouse.co.uk

A typical street corner Victorian pub, now opened out and taken firmly down the gastro path. Parquet flooring, mostly copper topped tables and a copper topped bar, a reasonably decent carved bar back, wood panelling rather lightly stained and an almost gold effect painted embossed wallpaper on the ceiling as well as the walls. Light blue child or nymph figures over the entrance lobby, a bust of Queen Victoria behind the bar and an old Charrington's sign were of note. The main space winds around beyond the bar and past an open to view kitchen to a narrow area which eventually leads to a small walled courtyard garden. Stairs lead down to the facilities where the floor in the corridor is surfaced with glued on pennies which I obviously found unusual...how do you properly clean it? The bar contained various keg offerings of a non-standard nature, one solitary handpump as far as I saw with Banks' Sunbeam, ridiculously priced at £4.90 for a 4.2% beer. Having said that the Sunday menu had a chicken roast for two at £33. Well if the pricing policy didn't put me off the abundance of young children did, toddlers roaming about and sitting in inconveniently located buggies, not my idea of a relaxing Sunday pint. A nice building and it could be a nice pub but it isn't one that is aiming in my direction at all.

Located round the back of Guys Hospital and thus handy for London Bridge station (and the Shard), this is a typical back street boozer that has been given a fancy gastro re-fit. It's a simple pub with a single, rectangular room which houses the servery on the rear wall. The pub is bare boarded throughout and has a dark wood servery and bar back adorned with a collection of stuffed birds in display cases. There is plenty of seating in the main bar area and also in the smart, wood panelled dining area which is partly screened from view by a large pillar. A number of salvers and clocks were on show around the room, but the décor still felt a little bland and minimalist, with the wood panelling failing to recapture what was presumably once a smart, traditional interior. A number of plain mirrors can be seen around the walls and some of the windows have nice diamond stained glass inserts. The day's papers were available from a rack and I noticed quite a few old books stacked along the window sills. The clientele seemed relatively upmarket and a good proportion were here to eat from the somewhat pricey menu. Just the two ales were available on this visit - London Beer Factory Summer Ale and Banks' Sunbeam. The Summer Ale clocked in at a whopping £4.90 for a pint, so suffice to say I only stayed for the one. It wasn't even in particularly good condition and I had the feeling the bar staff weren't impressed with me taking up a table that could otherwise have been used by diners. Keg beers included one more from London Beer Factory (I dread to think how much it cost) and something called Snowfields, which I assume was a rebadge of something else especially for this pub. I thought this was a reasonable gastro pub that would perhaps be worth a visit if you felt a bit flush. But visiting just for a drink, I was left feeling a bit disappointed by both the choice at the bar and the ridiculous pricing. With so many other fine pubs in this part of town, it really is difficult justifying visiting somewhere that is blatantly ripping you off.