Zerodegrees, Blackheath, SE3

Official site of Zerodegrees - www.zerodegrees.co.uk

Official site of Zerodegrees - www.zerodegrees.co.uk

Having visited the other Zerodegrees bars in Cardiff, Reading and Bristol, I was keen to see how their London branch, in the heart of Blackheath, measured up to the rest. My initial impression was that this was by far the smallest of the four branches, before a trip to the toilets uncovered a vast part of the pub that I hadn’t realised existed. The front section is a reasonably pleasant spot, set in an interesting swirl-patterned, concrete floored room with a crooked servery along the left hand wall. The room has been decorated in gastro-pub grey and offers an odd mix of seating with high stools under the front windows and along a ledge opposite the bar, whilst standard tables and chairs have been sparingly arranged through the rest of the room, including some down the right hand wall, next to an old disused fireplace. Further back, the setting is more like a formal dining room, with pre-set tales in front of an open kitchen. On entering, you’ll notice the pub’s own brew plant is to the left, behind the servery, but it’s only when you pass the bar and kitchen and enter the previously undetected rear part of the pub, that you get a feel for the size of the operation. This rear part of the pub has a much more industrial-feel to it, much like other Zerodegrees bars, enhanced no doubt by all the brewing equipment. Steps lead up to a mezzanine-style area with lots of formal seating, but no customers, whilst a similar area can be found beyond the brewery in a space reached by descending a curved staircase at the far end of the first floor. A separate bar can be found upstairs as well, presumably saved for private functions. The menu revolves around pizza, pasta and mussels – I tried what turned out to be a very good pizza which was served in good time by a friendly barmaid. I was fortunate to bag a window seat, which gave good views out over the nice front patio area and across to the Common. The core Zerodegrees range was available, although this was difficult to ascertain initially, as all of the taps are on the bar back without labelling, so I had to check with the barman who provided me with a menu and explained that unfortunately neither of the seasonal beers were available. The remaining options were Pilsner, Pale Ale, Wheat Ale, Black Lager and Mango. A pint of the Pale Ale was £3.95, which seems competitive for the area, especially for a (‘craft’?) keg beer. This place, like the chain as a whole, was a bit of a mixed bag. The beer was pretty good, if a bit too cold and over carbonated, the food and service was very good and the interior was a mismatch of smart contemporary bar and cold, impersonal drinking barn. Overall, I felt the positives outweighed the negatives and I’d be happy to come back for a meal or to see if anything interesting was on the bar.

Smaller and faintly more intimate than the other ZD outlets (Cardiff, Reading and especially Bristol). Internally it’s an opened-out front room, sparsely furnished, with a surprisingly larger area to the rear for dining which is also home to the brew kit. The front is quite light due to the traditional large Victorian shop front windows. Like the rest of the ZD chain, it’s quite an echoey place but the lower ceiling and general décor is much less industrial utilitarian, though the copper stud bar front is a nod. The Prisoner-style ‘egg pod’ chair was an unusual touch and quite the talking point. Seating out front in a decent garden patio with nice boho views toward the heath. Usual ZD menu, pizzas and mussels and pasta. ZD homebrews on, with a seasonal Winter Ale which was quite palatable. Unlike the Reading outlet, the beer here isn’t ‘real’ as they add CO2.With a bit more homeliness this could easily be the best in the chain.

One of 4 Zero Degrees brewpubs (the others are in Raeding, Cardiff and Bristol), this branch has recently reopened following a major refit that has left the place barely recognizable from its previous incarnation. The bar has now effectively moved into the adjacent building and what was the restaurant area no longer seems to be part of the premises. The brewing equipment is now situated in the original bar and entrance hall and a new upstairs bar has been added. The old mezzanine atop the spiral staircase is virtually the only remant to have escaped the refit although this is set up for diners. As for inprovements, it’s hard to see any. I was quite keen on the previous innards of an oil tanker style of the original and whilst there are a few elements of industrial plant décor by way of exposed duct pipes it does now look like 101 other functional modern bars that can be found in anywheresville. It seems to be more geared for diners than it was previously although the main bar area does have ample exposed floor space for the crowds of vertical drinkers that it probably attracts at peak times. The new upstairs bar does at least have more of a traditional feel to it but appears to be used only at peak times or for private functions. Of course such an outlay for the “improvemnets” has inevitably been passed down the line and the beer prices appear to have been suitably hiked to £3.95 a pint (£4.20 for the speciality beer). Previously a trip here didn’t burn a hole in the wallet and the Happy Hour (which also now appears to have been consigned to history) made this an ideal and unusual visit for an early evening. It would also appear that they now also operate a strict door policy (essentially no trainers on Friday and Saturday nights) which has upset a few of the old clients. All in all, very much a backward step from all angles except that without all the old metallic surfaces you can now get a better mobile phone signal!