The Alpaca, Islington, N1

This pub has clearly expanded into adjoining premises on the left at some stage, which has produced a separate bar, with its own door to the street, and where I would guess the live entertainment takes place. This room is joined to the original corner bar(s) via an archway to the rear of the central island servery. The original bar area has a bit of screening in the middle which would once have completely divided the room in two, and there is some nice wood panelling on the walls. Furnishings are traditional normal tables and chairs, and the flooring is some very distressed old black line. All manner of decor can be found about the place, as can be seen from the internal photographs I've uploaded. There was a decent selection of ales, with the ELB pair of Foundation and Nightwatchman, Southwark Brewery London Pale Ale, and Box Steam Brewery Golden Bolt all on, as well as Thatcher's Cheddar Valley Cider on draught. This is a decent selection by any standards, and both the Foundation and Nightwatchman were sampled by our group and found to be in excellent condition. I didn't see any sign of food on Wednesday afternoon. We liked this pub a lot. This was our favourite pub of the day. It felt as if we were in a real pub, although being Islington there were sprigs of flowers and candles on the tables. We could have done without the rap and other overly loud music, but I for one would be happy to visit again.

A pub that looks modern on the outside but inside it seems to be much older and again has that "Islington" look. There were 3 real ales on with the Fredrisks & Clarence pale ale being in great form. Beer OK but did not feel comfortable in the pub.

The curious mixture of modern signage and traditional green tiling on the facade is reflected inside by furniture and decor which is a bit part-this and a bit part-that. There is also a row of wooden benches outside on the pavement. A old fashioned three-room layout is partially intact, but the whole place was a bit of a scrum when I visited as there was an Arsenal home game on the large screen and other TVs. Mind you, the staff were pretty efficient and it didn't take long to get served. Beartown IPA and Red Tail Pale Ale from Red Squirrel Brewery (£3.50) available, with the third handpump in the process of being changed over. Overall, the atmosphere seemed pretty good so I would happily visit again.