The Charlotte Despard, Archway, N19

The Charlotte Despard blog - www.thecharlottedespard.blogspot.com

Official site of The Charlotte Despard - www.thecharlottedespard.co.uk

Hi, and welcome to The Charlotte Despard. We pride ourselves on being a relaxed and friendly place, with a nice and eclectic clientele. We’re the place to come for great beer, tasty food, good conversation and funky music, and we hope that we have something to offer everyone... We’ve always got a range of papers for your perusal and use –Although the Guardian quick crossword is most definitely Tom’s. We also have a good assortment of games, anything from Scrabble to Chess, Cribbage to Cranium. We even have a (very mini) table football (balls kept behind the bar). As you can see from the picture gallery, we’ve got some pretty funky decor and interesting pictures and bits and bobs; and any artists out there are very welcome to ask about displaying their work, either with a view for sales or just exhibiting. There are lots of spacious wooden tables and seating, as well as some very comfortable sofas for just hanging out and putting your feet up. So if you find yourself in Highgate or Archway, and you’re looking for a good time in a relaxed environment, with friendly, interesting people and no hassle, you know where to come.

The Charlotte Despard blog - www.thecharlottedespard.blogspot.com

Official site of The Charlotte Despard - www.thecharlottedespard.co.uk

This bar was a very pleasant surprise to me and to my mind is one of North London's undiscovered gems. What is surprising is that it has such a cosy country style ambience so close to the mayhem and bustle of Archway. The people that run it obviously have a love of music and seem keen to develop it into one of the the capitals foremost DJ bars. Of course I am slightly biased because I play there now every Friday but I would go there even if I didn't. To me its a joy to find a bar where you can chat with friends in a convivial ambiance and listen to some cool tunes. We need more places like this in London.

Apparently this pub was the Evening Standard Pub of the Year in 1979. I can't imagine it getting into contention now. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with it, but on the other hand there is nothing that makes it stand out from the crowd. There were two real ales on – Young’s Bitter and Black Sheep Bitter. Food wasn't too bad, although my gammon steak didn't look like it had ever been anything like the 10oz they advertised. But tasty nonetheless. Probably the best Pub in New Malden, although that isn't saying a lot. It does have a rather nice beer garden though. Good enough pub if you happen to be in the area, but not worth going out of your way to visit.

This place used to be called The Settle Inn and I never found it to be that welcoming. Thankfully the hospitality has improved since the name change and although I still wasn’t overly impressed I do think that there has been a vast improvement. It was good to see some real ale in the form of Landlord and Sambrook’s Wandle and there were also some ciders available with the inclusion of Flowers, Addlestone and Olde English. The premium lager selection will cover most tastes and my pint of Guinness was well served. There were a few people eating during my visit and I gleaned from a quick glance at the menu that Tibetan food is served along with some English classics. The décor is minimal and the tables are all large thick wooden ones that were all taken up on my visit so even though it wasn’t very busy it was difficult to get comfortable to watch the football on the large plasma screen. There are some more tables and chairs along with a couple of sofas at the rear of the pub by the kitchen area. There is a quiz every Thursday from 20:30 and I also spotted some signs for DJ nights which would probably cater for the young estate contingent that were propping up the bar. I think that next time I’m passing I will stay on the bus.