The Griffin Belle, SW8

Vauxhall Griffin The Vauxhall Griffin, what a place There's not a bare wall in sight With pictures and posters everywhere To see them all may take all night The seating is very comfortable There's not a plain seat anywhere So once you have claimed your place You won't want to leave your chair There is a garden at the side For when the sun does shine And just to make this poem scan It's on the Victoria line They have a room called the Ruby Lounge Which is up on the first floor It's used as a free cinema So no tickets at the door If you're in the Wandsworth Road Near the Vauxhall end Drop into the Griffin pub You can even bring a friend.

Yes, this one is now definitely worth a visit. When I was in on Tuesday afternoon they had on Doom Bar, Thwaite’s Wainwright and Windsor & Eton Guardsman (£3.60 a pint). Clearly they have a changing real ale policy, as evidenced by the mass of pump clips displayed behind the bar, and the fact that two of the ales had changed since jaqptio’s visit the other day. The Doom Bar seems to be the constant factor. There were clipboard menus on the tables, including some pub grub standards – the fish and chips was £8.45. Furnishings are now a mixed bag – banquettes, tall tables/stools, sofas, small stools, normal tables and chairs. An aspidistra on a table near the window, a standard lamp, as well as the velvet curtain framing the doorway to the room at the back all lend it something of the drawing room look. The decor is as described previously – in fact it is what I would call “busy”. I liked this pub. It has the “pubby” atmosphere that I like, and I would be happy to visit again.

Reinvented as an upmarket community pub, looking much the same from the street but thoroughly refurbished inside. 'L'-shaped bar, partly screened with a curtain. Main front room full of mixed furniture - such as sofas, high chairs and normal tables - and eclectic decor. Smaller side room has a pool table and a mass of posters and cuttingson the wall. Claims to have 100,000 songs on the jukebox. Live music advertised. Ruby Lounge function room upstairs (not visited). Three of the four handpumps were working, offering Doom Bar, Leeds Yorkshire Gold and Adnams Topaz Gold. Overall, now worth a visit if in the area.