Clapham Tap, Clapham, SW4

Just to let readers know, the Manor Arms now have a quiz evry other Thursday from 5th August at 8pm and they will be having live music from 18th August. The first group will be Redgrave.

Randomness Guide to London - Manor Arms entry

Randomness Guide to London - Manor Arms entry

I went in here 9 January 2010 and found this is quite a decent pub there were three real ales on i tried Taylor Landlord which was a good drink there was also Sharps Doom bar and Ringwood best i thought this pub was ok, i apologise for the crap photo.

I was in this pub at the tail end of their recent beer festival. I had pints of the superb Loddon’s Hullabaloo, and the Hepworth Prospect Organic Bitter (both at £3.20 a pint). Being in a pub during a beer festival means that you don’t really see it in its natural state, and there were too many ales to mention, but organising a beer festival does suggest a commitment to real ale. In fact the bar does boast five handpumps, and the barman did tell me that they are usually all in use, with Doom Bar, Landlord, and Harvey’s Best as regulars. There’s nothing special about the pub itself. The exterior is painted black, and at the front is a small area with a few picnic benches with some black “Havana Club” umbrellas. The dark theme continues inside with the lower half of the walls painted black, and some black (or perhaps very dark brown) banquettes. The remainder of the walls and the ceilings are painted a dull red. Seating is mainly normal chairs, combined with small tables, some inlaid with chess boards, and a few high stools at a ledge on the left, and at the bar. There was also a sofa and low solid table at the back on the left. There is some subdued concealed light on the walls, as well as a few pictures of nothing much in particular. But if it was my pub, I wouldn’t I wouldn’t allow so much blank wall space to remain unoccupied. This has the look of somewhere that someone has tried to give a chic makeover, and failed. It’s not chic at all; in fact it’s a bit tatty in a nice sort of way. I got the feel that it was still a locals’ pub, and that the clientele has remained the same despite, not because of, the “chic” makeover. This is just supposition of course. But having five handpumps on the bar is always an attractive feature for any pub in my opinion! – and does help give the impression that this is still a real pub.