Orange Tree Hotel, Richmond

Refitted Youngs pub with plenty of pot plants, sofas and the contemporary choc n’ cream colour scheme. Saying that, I quite liked it in here - well the corner cubby-hole by the door anyway. I can’t recall what my pint was but it was acceptable enough. Nothing of note to keep you there beyond a pint but a pleasant enough stop if you’re in the town.

Randomness Guide to London - Orange Tree entry

Randomness Guide to London - Orange Tree entry

Official site of the Orange Tree, contains real ale details and menus - www.orangetreerichmond.co.uk

Official site of the Orange Tree, contains real ale details and menus - www.orangetreerichmond.co.uk

This was my first visit for over 20 years, and it seems to have been opened up and modernised a bit, which seems to be the Young’s’ way. The horseshoe bar counter is on the left, with the large seating area on three sides of it. Furnishings consist mainly of normal tables and chairs, but there are a few sofas, armchairs and low tables, as well as some high stools and high tables. Some walls, pillars and the bar back are painted that grey/brown taupe colour – other walls are painted cream, and some have a sort of gold/green wallpaper. A bit of a mixed bag then. This is one of those places where the menus on the tables are just one A4 sheet of paper. The sandwiches are between the £4 - £7 mark, and the mains around £10. Unusually, there was some blues being played (John Lee Hooker, Wee Willie Dixon et al) which seemed quite appropriate for Richmond as the place where that old blues group, the Rolling Stones, made their name. Overall this is a typical made-over Young’s pub – big open spaces and little character remaining, and is just a little too “corporate” for my taste, but it is clean and fairly comfortable.