Marquis of Granby, New Cross, SE14

Pub SignMan left this review about Marquis of Granby

I've no idea why I've never set foot in this old school boozer on a prominent junction between the two New Cross stations before, as I used to regularly drink in this part of town but for some reason always swerved this place. It's a shame, as it's a pleasant pub with a single room interior, set around an island servery, and therefore almost certainly opened out from a previous multiple room layout at some point. The room has been carpeted throughout, with a laminate floor strip around the servery. The bar has a dark wood panelled counter with two different panel styles, nice rounded corners and a matching gantry. Unlike most island serveries, this one has retained a decent amount of its bar back, which helps the place feel a little less opened out than it might otherwise have. Red upholstered banquette seating runs around much of the perimeter, with chairs and low stools in support. The walls have almost full height wood panels, with a plain white painted strip below the ceiling, and I noticed a boarded up fireplace in the rear left corner, which was a bit of a shame. Decent leaded windows with green stained glass banding, can be found mainly to the front and there were lots of TV screens around the room showing a couple of different football games with competing commentaries audible. The room has been decorated with a few huge paintings, some brewery mirrors, trophy cabinets, maps, local photos, mounted animal heads, a framed Millwall shirt and plenty more, so there's loads to explore and a juke box means you can set your own soundtrack as well.
This didn't look like somewhere to go for some cask ale, but to my surprise they had two handpulls in operation, dispensing Brockley Spring IPA (£5.00 a pint) and Sharps Doom Bar with a reversed Sharps Atlantic clip on a third pump. The barmaid was very friendly and welcoming and my pint of the Spring IPA went down nicely as I watched an entertaining, if ultimately dispiriting FA Cup semi-final between Man Utd and Coventry, with the entire pub cheering on the underdogs.
I thought this was a nice little, down to earth pub with no pretentions, content to deliver live sport and some decent beer to its regulars. With the new micropub just around the corner, I'm unlikely to make this my first choice New Cross pub, but I certainly wouldn't rule out returning.

Date of visit - 21st April 2024

On 17^th August 2024 - rating: 6
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