Phoenix, Alexandra Palace, N22

Formerly the Phoenix, the Bar & Kitchen is housed in one corner of the Alexandra Palace complex near the main event entrance. 'U'-shaped bar with a high ceiling. Wooden benches outside on the terrace. Efficient staff. For a venue bar, I was surprised to find two handpumps on the counter. Better still, they weren't just the usual suspects, but Camerons Strongarm and the Belgian-style Sunny Republic St Wite's Ale (£3.70). Overall, considerably better than I was expecting.

I sometimes Nip in here for A pint or Two on a sunny evening or when visiting a Exhibition. Its OK if you Drink inside you can get a Glass but if you want to go outside you have to get a plastic cup. Theres usually three Real Ales on tap its not to bad with some nice views but could easy be made much better with a little thought and planing.

This is a bland horseshoe bar in which my Guinness was served to me in a plastic cup. There is a plasma screen in either side of the pub and Sky Sports is shown, but this place is more of a stop off for people to have a quick drink or bite to eat whilst exploring the area. There were three ales which were Spitfire, Deuchars and Theakston XB during my visit and Amstel was also available alongside a standard draught selection. The staff were friendly, but I couldn’t help feeling that the prices didn’t match the quality and if this was a pub on the high street it would go bust. In hindsight I suppose that there are far worse pubs that feed off their location and this place does have great views of the city and I would probably pop in again if at Ally Pally, but more due to necessity than choice.

This pub is part of Alexandra Palace which has great history including the first TV broadcast from the BBC and of course an early venue for the CAMRA Great British Beer Festival(one of which I attended in the early years)Come up here on a nice clear summers day and you will get the most stunning views over London and the home counties.