Whyteleafe Tavern, Whyteleafe, Caterham

A carpeted bar with a central horseshoe bar, banquette and regular seating, a horse racing feel. saddles and bridles on the walls as well as pictures of racehorses. Framed photos of the area as usual, football on TV. There is a real down at heel feeling to this place, unusual I thought for the location, lots of industrial language but it was busy with Palace fans after the early afternoon game, maybe not the usual demographic. A series of pumps but only the dreaded Doom Bar on, a quick half then on the train home. Not a patch on the Radius Arms a skip away.

Sat rather conveniently between Whyteleafe and Upper Warlingham train stations, this is a reasonably sized U shaped pub on a prominent corner site. It's quite apparent that this was previously a two bar pub, as evidence by the serving hatch that can still be made out at the right hand end of the bar, but the dividing wall has now gone, leaving a long, U-shaped room that wraps itself around the central servery. The left hand side is the equivalent of a public bar, carpeted with some limited seating under the front windows, slot machines, a pool table and a dartboard. Two side by side TV screens showed muted sports channels and there was a juke box near the pool table. The right hand side is a lot comfier, with a mix of standard chairs and short banquettes to choose from. A low brick fireplace stands on the side wall and there were a couple more TV screens showing the same channels. The walls are decorated with a mix of black and white photos of Whyteleafe in days gone by and some framed displays relating to the World Cup and horse racing, as well as a few small advertisement cards. There are picnic benches out on the paved area in front of the busy junction, and a more peaceful walled garden to the rear. Music played quietly throughout my stay and there was a decent post-work crowd in creating a good mid-week atmosphere. I was pleased to find four ales available when I arrived, although the Robinsons Trooper had apparently gone off, as the barmaid drew a load of water through when she started pouring my pint. Instead I opted for Shepherd Neame Spitfire (£3.50), whilst the remaining options were Fullers London Pride and Wells Bombardier. As the only pub in the immediate vicinity, this place clearly plays an important role in the local community and seems to be well supported as a result. It's not really a destination pub and not quite my cup of tea, but it's clearly doing a good job and long may it continue to do so.

In an area totally devoid of pubs, the Whyteleafe Tavern needs to have a universal appeal to accommodate all tastes and luckily it does seem to achieve this. The neat and tidy U shaped bar has a pool table area at one end, comfortable surroundings for the chatty types, TV's for the sport fans and an outer beer patio for the sun lovers. The drinks range was fairly typical but the Spitfire and Pride were of good standard. Unless you live in the area there is little to attract you here however the the pub is friendly and the nearby football ground is quite picturesque with its tree lined terraces and is 5 minutes walk away.