The Crown & Greyhound, Dulwich Village, SE21

The land of the huge pubs.... once again, I say outside - the front this time - so saw little of the interior. Dulwich is a nice place - and this was a lively area. London Pride in fine condition.

This is a grand old pub with a very attractive facade befitting its rather upmarket location near one of the entrances to Dulwich Park. The pub clearly used to have a complex, multi-room layout, as evidenced by three front doors which take you into two bar areas and a smaller central room, much opened out these days but still retaining a feel of partitioning. The entrances are surrounded by some terrific etched glasswork, whilst inside, the period detail is enhanced by dark wall panelling and some fine stained glass pieces which looked great when stood inside on a bright, summer’s day. The servery runs through all three segments of the pub and has a lovely, curved dark wood counter, ample serving space and a pleasant bar back that fits in nicely with the pub’s traditional decor. The large front seating area offers plenty of chunky benches whilst regular tables and chairs can be found through much of the rest of the pub, including in a side room behind a fine etched glass partitioning wall, where everything looks to have been set up more for diners than drinkers. A lovely frieze runs around most of the pub and the decor, whilst fairly sparsely utilised, reflects the overall look of the pub and there were no incongruous items to spoil the attractive interior. To the rear there is a large, partly covered garden and out front there are a good many picnic benches which made for a good spot to enjoy a pint or two in the summer sun. There were five handpulls in operation on our visit, offering Sharps Juniper Rising, Purity Ubu, Taylor Landlord, Adnams Ghost Ship and Fullers London Pride, with a few interesting keg brews alongside should none of that take your fancy. I enjoyed a well kept pint of the ghost ship, but there were mixed reviews about the quality of the Sharps. We also stopped off here for some lunch and whilst the menu is a little pricy, we found the food in general to be pretty good. This is a very pleasant pub that has retained a lot of attractive features despite efforts to modernise and turn into a gastro pub of sorts. I felt there were enough spaces here in which the drinker might feel comfortable and whilst the pub’s upmarket appearance might not suit everyone, it certainly seems to at least serve the local community well.

Set in the upmarket area of an upmarket area, this is a beautiful building housing a huge pub retaining a large amount of splendid internal decor and divisions. Apparently it was once two premises - one for the gentry and one for the labourers. There are fantastic moulded ceilings, floor to ceiling wood and glass room dividers and lots of varnished wood. Rather food focussed; turn left to scope out a seat, though many tables I noted being occupied by upper middle class couples hogging the space like an extension their living room. Five pumps with four on; Doom Bar, Pride, Hobgoblin Gold and Purity Gold (very good nick) and outrageously priced at £5.05 a pint. I really enjoyed the heritage factor here, but the thought of paying over a fiver for a mid-range ale is enough to put this one down as a ‘glad I did it once but that will do’ place. 7.5