The Duke of Hamilton, Hampstead, NW3

I've heard off the Hampstead grapevine that the lease of the Duke has been taken over by the owners of the Barnsbury in Islington and Woody the governor will be leaving at the end of January. I've heard some good things about the new chaps and I liked what I saw when I visited their pub a while back, but hopefully they will not be so food orientated! I'd also like to add that this is the only pub in Hampstead and the surrounding areas that has a dartboard so hopefully they will leave it be! Also, bring back Sky Sports... All the locals want it!!!

I was keen to give this pub a try on a recent visit to Hampstead, given the fact that it has been fighting a lengthy battle to stay open, as detailed below. The pub has a classic, traditional feel to it, with padded banquettes along the front wall and some modest tables and chairs elsewhere in the U shaped room. Fraying carpets, ancient looking curtains and smoke stained walls give it a lived-in look, although my first impression of the pub was from the smell of stale smoke, which suggests the place could do with a good clean at the very least. The bar area is an attractive feature, with some frosted glass insets running above the counter and some nice tiling underneath it. Pictures on the walls show various scenes from Hampstead in years gone by. The pub has six hand pumps and having travelled from the opposite end of London, I was hoping for a good selection, but two pumps were London Pride, one was ESB and another was Adnams Ghost Ship (a beer currently available at the Wetherspoons national beer festival), with the remaining pumps not in use. This was a bit of a disappointment for a pub with such a reputation for its ale. My pint of Ghost Ship was well kept and the barmaid who served me was friendly enough. I can see why the pub is popular and why locals have fought so hard to keep it the way it is. I may well have caught the place on a bad day in terms of beer choice and as such I will no doubt return the next time I'm in these parts, but as first impressions go, I must confess to being a little underwhelmed.

Just got the following News from CAMRA. Duke of Hamilton – phony war is over. The owners of the Duke have now finally played their cards by submitting formal planning applications to Camden Council to convert the Duke into two private dwellings. The first application – 2010/1923/C – was filed on 28 May for the demolition of a single story extension at ground floor level – I suspect this to be the toilet block. The second and more substantial – 2010/1901/P – was filed on 1 June for conversion to residential after the previously mentioned demolition. Both are on Camden’s website, follow this link and then enter the application numbers http://tinyurl.com/2u2wteb The Duke is a three times winner of CAMRA North London’s Pub of the Year competition. One by one pubs in this part of Hampstead have either closed – Coach & Horses, Horse and Groom, Jack Straw’s Castle – or have shifted over to being more food led operations – Old White Bear, the Wells. Does Hampstead really need two more houses or does it need vital amenities such as the Duke? We know there are local pub operators who are keen to bring their skills to running the Duke as a community local. It is up to us to try and help that happen. This week we presented our current Pub of the Year award to the Pineapple in Kentish Town, a pub which was saved from being converted into flats by a vigorous campaign run by local residents and CAMRA in 2001/2. It can be done.

Looking at the ales on offer I would guess that it is a Fuller’s pub – London Pride, ESB; and Chiswick. But looking into the future I can see that Strongers will visit in Feb 2010 and confirm that it is in fact a free house. Nonetheless I just couldn’t resist the temptation of what must be a guest ale, in the form of Meantime Pale Ale. And excellent it was too, and at a very competitive price of £2.60 a pint. This pub is somewhat off the beaten track, and it’s less pretentious than some of its near neighbours. Stools at the bar, banquettes round the sides, and wood topped iron framed tables complete the furniture inventory. There was a TV on showing the news, for the benefit of the Guv’nor and I, who were the only people in there. The bar gantry is adorned with some interesting leaded lights, and advertising “ports”, “sherries” etc. it looks a bit 70s to me, but I think that it adds to the character of the place. The blue and white tiles under the bar counter are also an interesting feature, including a handful of tiles advertising products from yesteryear – the one I noticed was for “Zebra Grate Polish”. I thought at first that it might be a reference to the great Polish nation; but not so – just some archaic product that probably hasn’t seen the light of day for many a year. There’s also a few picnic benches on a raised patio at the front of the pub. This strikes me as an unpretentious backstreet pub, serving decent ale at decent prices. A good bet – yet another Hampsted pub definitely worth a visit.