The Hope, Carshalton

This former Charrington’ pub dates from at least the mid-19th century, but the brewers’ Tudor may have arrived later. With the interior nautical nods (see photo), it’s amply well described below; I doubt anything changes here. At the time of my Sunday 8.45pm visit with hardly any customers in, though the place started to fill up after 9.00. The ship’s cat has retired, probably why the three huge dogs were tolerated. Customers were a resolutely older local bunch, all seemingly on first name terms with the efficient guv’nor – Graham – who came over to a customer who was sat virtually touching me, to enquire as to the quality of his beer; a pity he didn’t ask him to stop watching the news at full volume on his phone, though a prolonged hard stare from me brought this behaviour to an abrupt halt. With seven pumps in operation, I went for the Mad Squirrel London Porter, £4.80, served by a taciturn young barman and it was on decent form. This is a good pub, but at times it does feel like drinking in an old people’s home; if I were to spend 30 minutes on a train leaving central London, I’d prefer to go to the Sussex Arms, TW.

Well, it's been a while! The Hope is mostly much as I remember, with a great buzz, plenty of occupied tables and 7 ales on the bar, as always featuring Windsor and Eton and, today, a Pale from Anspach and Hobday and The Kernel's mighty Export Porter, increasingly available on cask, I'm happy to say. I doubt there were as many keg offerings on my last visit but these are, as you'd expect, well-chosen. I'm also not sure it ever expanded so far out the back, but it's a popular pub, and the space is very much needed. Tremendous and I need to visit again.

Very tempted to say "further comment is unnecessary" but this is a superb, community-owned pub, totally geared up to drinking and socialising and with an excellent back-up of home-made food, but definitely without turning into a dining place. A great selection of well-kept beers (and ciders) can be relied on, today's choice being an excellent Verdant Sail We Must dry Irish stout which would knock Guinness into a cocked hat! Enough superlatives - just what pubs ought to be like.

I haven't visited the Hope since 2013 and I believe this was only my second visit in all. In all honesty, I'd completely forgotten just how good this pub is. It's certainly in the running for best London pub, especially as traditional backstreet city boozers go. You enter the pub into what feels like a fairly crowded bar area. However, if you pass around the bar into the back room, there is much more space and plenty of seating, including further space outdoors. The patient barman really seemed to know his stuff and was happy to provide advice and tasters to customers. There are a couple of regular beers on handpull along the front of the bar, with 5 further cask ales on handpulls at the left-hand side of the bar. Regular beers are Downton New Forest Ale & Windsor & Eton Knight of the Garter. Guests when I arrived were Marble Stout, By The Horns Hopadelic, Drop Project Shifty, Kent Cobnut & Siren Nightshift. No sooner had the Nightshift gone was another beer put on and pulled through by the barman, with Burnt Mill Big Sur Moon appearing in double quick time. One bag in the box cider (Sandford Orchards Apple & Oak) was on the right-hand side and I later noticed that another cider and a perry were listed on a blackboard near the entrance door (Sandford Orchards Rib Tickler & Gwynt y Ddraig Two Trees Perry). Craft beers are not neglected, with Vibrant Forest Mantra, The Kernel Pale Ale, Verdant Deep In the Woods & Fruit Car Sight Exhibtion, Left-Handed Giant Apricot Sour, Yonder Raspberry Gose, Bianca Road Etna & Marble Birthday Beers No. 9 Peanut Butter & Cacao Imperial Stout all listed on the same board. The front bar was full of locals, many with their dogs. It was mainly men, with a few women. Although there was a good mix of both younger and older men and women in the rear room. There was no sign of the cat. Food (pot meals) are also advertised on a separate board. With a friendly atmosphere, professional service, real ciders, a few dark beers (both cask and keg) and a real traditional atmosphere, there is very little scope for improvement in this pub. It's very seldom that I find my second visit to a pub to be better than my first. But this is well worthy of an increase of my score from 8/10 to 9/10.