The Wood House, Sydenham Hill, SE26

Official site of The Wood House - www.thewoodhousedulwich.co.uk

Official site of The Wood House - www.thewoodhousedulwich.co.uk

Randomness Guide to London - Dulwich Wood House entry

Randomness Guide to London - Dulwich Wood House entry

With so many bland, soulless pubs taking over our high streets and ruining the pub-going experience for anyone with a hint of a pulse, it's always refreshing to stumble accross one that tries something a bit different. And boy oh boy, is the Dulwich Woodhouse 'different'. The guys running this place have deconstucted the concept of the pub as you and I would recognise it and then seemingly reassembled it blindfolded, throwing in random elements of other related industries to add to the confused mix. The results of so much brainstorming, speak for themselves. Why, for example, have the entrance to the pub at the front or side of the building, when you could make punters trudge round to the back, via a beer garden full of out of control kids high on sunshine and e-numbers, before finally entering the premises through an enormo-conservatory with an astro-turf floor? Why paint numbers on the tables in the beer garden, when you can give punters a nigh-on invisible bit of drift-wood with a number hidden on it, thus reducing the job of the poor bugger trying to serve you your food to that of a bingo caller? Why bother maintaining the original Victorian interior of the pub, when you can turn it into the lobby of a 3 star hotel? Why charge a sensible price for a pint of beer, when you could fleece the poor folk who finally make it to the bar for £3.78 for a Hieneken or £4.25 for an Erdinger? Part of me wants to give this place a high rating just for the sheer balls-out madness of the whole enterprise, but having read through some of the comments below, it seems like this is another case of a well loved and respected local pub selling it's soul for an easy buck.