The Kernel Taproom, Bermondsey, SE16

A plain and functional railway arch, the draw of course is the beer, few do it better. there were 13 keg beers available plus one cask from the solitary handpump, also a choice of a red or white wine for those who prefer. the seating is comfortable enough, the trains running frequently overhead quite loud. I would always call in when in the area for the beer alone.

Slightly more spacious railway-arch taproom, due in part to the brewery being located in a nearby unit and also because there is enough height for a small mezzanine at the front. Of course, the furniture is as spartan, and the decoration as minimal, as one would expect. Beer-wise, there were 12 craft keg brews in a range of styles and strengths, plus an excellent 5.8% cask Export India Porter hopped with Mosaic (£6.50).

Having closed down their original taproom in 2015, at the height of its popularity, the Kernel Brewery took a few years off before opening this similar venture, a couple of arches further along the line, in 2019. They certainly haven’t pushed the boat out with the new place – it must be one of the drabbest examples of this type of bar that I’ve seen – perhaps hoping to let the beer do the talking. The railway arch interior has a concrete floor, plain pine panelled walls and corrugated metal cladding over the vaulted ceiling. Hard fixed benches run down the right-hand side, with some wide benches in support, whilst a few high tables and stools fill in the gap down the left-hand wall. The bar is to the rear and has a plain counter, painted in grey, with a matching bar back beneath large beer boards. The bar counter has a water tap built into the front, with a small table of glasses next to it, which is perhaps to help calm down punters who’ve gone a bit overboard on the Bermondsey Beer Mile. A small bottle shop station has been set up next to the entrance, with a fridge full of bottled beer and a little cashier’s desk that saves those wanting takeaway from having to walk all the way to the bar. Stairs to the left lead you up to a very small mezzanine seating area with a few more benches and an elevated view out to the access road in front of the taproom, with the brewery itself visible on the other side of the road. There was a cracking hardcore punk soundtrack playing in the background, clearly for the enjoyment of the barmaid rather than the family of four or the old boy who made up the rest of the customers on this wet and windy February afternoon visit. The family were eating what appeared to be a charcuterie board, but I’m not sure where they got this from, as I couldn’t see food advertised – it may have been ordered in from one of the neighbouring food outlets. The beer boards listed eleven Kernel beers and on cider, which I assumed would all be on keg dispense, so I ordered the Citra Vic Secret Pale Ale (£6.00 a pint), before realising that Table Beer was actually available on cask, with a lone handpull tucked away at the end of the bar. The Citra poured pretty hazy but tasted great, adding weight to the idea that you’re here for the beer, not the décor. I’ve lost count of how many railway arch and industrial estate breweries I’ve visited, but this must rank as one of the least memorable from an interior decoration perspective. The beer’s great, the service is friendly and it’s an essential port of call if you’re crawling along the beer mile, but it couldn’t make much less effort to feel homely and comfortable, so the possibility of an extended session will depend on how much you like, and can afford, Kernel beers.

One of many similar establishments forming part of the famous Bermondsey Beer Mile, like many of the others this is located in the arches under the railway track, and is of course a brewery tap rather than a pub, and this is reflected in the somewhat industrial style décor, if one could go so far as calling it that. The flooring was some type of concrete screed, whilst the usual white corrugated iron of these establishments was cladding the ceiling in order to channel the continually dripping water from the tunnel roof away from the punters underneath. That said, they had made a bit of an effort to make it a little cosier, with the walls being clad in oak woodwork and various bits of foliage hanging from the cable trays. Exposed filament light bulbs which are of course de rigour in any pub renovation these days protruded from metal conduit, whilst further seating was provided on a mezzanine level at the front of the pub. Beer choice appeared extensive but was presumably all keg rather than cask. On this occasion the list comprised of a Table Beer, a Wheat Pale Ale, two Pale Ales, two IPA’s, Dry Stout, Export India Porter, India Double Porter, Imperial Brown Stout, Fœder Beer and three Bière de Saison’s.