The Plume of Feathers, Greenwich, SE10

Pride, Adnams, Harveys Best, Everards Sly Fox.Carpetted bar area with banquette seating, lovely old brick fireplace to rt of bar and tv showing footie scores on teletext, beyond this a smart wood-floored restaurant area, empty but laid for evening service, well spaced tables, a nice country-dining feel to it although the price for pub-grub dishes leans toward top-end, starters £4-5, mains £10-12. Nice beer garden to rear, popular in Sat's sunshine, we were lucky to grab a (plastic) table.

Just a short walk from Maze Hill station and handy for the North Eastern entrance to Greenwich Park, this is a fine back street locals pub, well removed from the tourist masses in central Greenwich. The pub is laid out in a U-shape, with the room wrapped around a centrally positioned servery in what was almost certainly once a two bar set up. The room is carpeted, with a few strands of checkerboard tiling running around the bar area. Fixed padded benches run around the perimeter of the room, supplemented by a fleet of low stools although most punters were stood or perched at the bar on a late Friday evening visit. A high shelf running around the room displays a fine collection of ceramic plates, whilst lower down the walls are covered with countless nautical themed photos, some knot displays, old mirrors and some more contemporary London sketches. A nice fireplace was lit to the right and this had a collection of horse brasses and a smart mirror above. Beyond the bar was what appeared to be some sort of restaurant space, but this remained in darkness throughout my stay, so I was unable to get a good look. There is also a garden area out through the back of the pub, but I also failed to find this. Some pretty good tunes were on rotation during my stay, mainly the Rolling Stones and bands from a similar era, and I found the place had a good, lively vibe, with a warm welcome from the staff making me instantly feel at home. Four ales were available at the bar - Harvey's Sussex Best, Sharps Doom Bar, Whitstable East India Pale and West Berkshire Mister Chubbs. This is a pretty decent selection for a low profile back street boozer of this kind and I enjoyed a well kept pint of the Mister Chubbs. Greenwich is a bit of a mixed bag for drinkers, with lots of tourist focused, overpriced bars and pubs. Here however, in the most unlikely of locations, is a fine example of a well run pub which combines a good community feel, warm welcoming staff and good beer to great effect. This isn't the sort of place I imagine the day trippers will want to seek out and I'd be happy to return to this little bolthole the next time I'm in the area.

The Plume of Feathers is a Haven away from the high road and I was very glad that I took the time to make a 2 minute detour. The drinks selection is nothing to write home about with Harvey’s Best and London Pride doubled up on the four hand pumps, but the Pride was in excellent condition. There is also a standard draught selection and the typical pub fare was priced between £8 and £11 for a main dish. The bar at the front of the pub is U-shaped and some more seating can be found in the right rear. This seating was all set for dining during my recent Monday afternoon visit. Out the back is a nice beer garden with an assortment of picnic tables. At the rear of the garden is an outhouse that has been carpeted and filled with children’s toys and books to keep the little cherubs entertained, and away from the adults. I found the garden out the back to be very nice, but the whirring refrigeration unit started to become a little bothersome. A plasma screen in the bar area was switched off and I spotted no advertisements for any sports or events other than the biweekly Wednesday evening quiz. I found the service to be very friendly and I could have settled in here for the whole afternoon. I would recommend this pub to anyone in the area.

Plume Of Feathers official site with menu and event details - www.plumeoffeathers-greenwich.co.uk

Plume Of Feathers official site with menu and event details - www.plumeoffeathers-greenwich.co.uk

Inviting-looking side-street pub, facing Greenwich Park and on the walking route between Maze Hill station and the National Maritime Museum. Inside, the two bar areas are joined by a wide corridor with further seating. Old-fashioned but attractive furniture and decor. Very busy on a Sunday afternoon, but staff working efficiently. Many family groups out for lunch, but the place retains a proper pub atmosphere. Four handpumps offering the regular Pride and Harveys (£3.70) plus Doom Bar and Adnams Lighthouse as guests. I found it by chance, but would say that it is certainly worth seeking it out if in the area.

Attractive, small back street pub tucked away behind the National Maritime Museum. Pertains to be a fairly old 18th century pub with the exterior sign giving that it was originally built in 1691. Festooned with hanging baskets and troughs it has a nice green tiled exterior more reminiscent of a Victorian pub frontage. Inside it is two areas either side of the central serving area that you walk onto when entering from the front door. The right hand space was mainly laid to table for dining, which several people were doing on my lunchtime visit. But the left hand space is a more traditional drinking area with space up the bar or tables round the side. There are four hand pumps on the bar , which were dispensing Sharps Doom Bar, Fullers London Pride, TT Landlord and Harveys Best. So not the most adventurous of beer selection , but solid enough, and as the Harveys Best and Landlord we tried were well kept pints, makes this a decent little pub to search out when in Greenwich. There is also a small external drinking area to the left front of the pub, with a couple of tables, which was catching the mid day sun and was a great place for an alfresco pint.

Randomness Guide to London - Plume Of Feathers entry

Randomness Guide to London - Plume Of Feathers entry

There were three real ales on during my visit – London Pride, Harvey’s Best, and Dartford Kentish Dark, with a fourth clip having an Adnam’s clip reversed. Never having had a Dartford ale before, I went for the Kentish Dark, which turned out to be an excellent 3.5% session bitter. The lady behind the bar gave me a taster first, which is invariably a sign of a good pub. I didn’t eat there, but the lunch menu seemed to be fairly reasonably priced, with a daily special (e.g. bangers and mash; fish and chips) for £5.95. My impression of this pub is that it is a clean, comfortable, friendly and welcoming place. As you enter, the bar counter is immediately in front of you, with seating areas to the right and left of it. There is a separate room at the back on the right with tables set for diners, leading out to a smallish garden area. Furnishings consist of red upholstered banquettes, normal tables and chairs plus stools; and it is also carpeted and low ceilinged, adding to the warm and cosy feel. The decor on the walls is of a mainly nautical bent of course, which is a feature of pubs in this area, but there is a picture of Winston Churchill in the bar area on the left. The seating area on the right features a rather good painting of HMS Bellerephon dishing out a thorough tonking to a French ship at the Battle of Trafalgar, and there is also a fireplace in this area, with the dark stains that indicate considerable past use. The outside has dark green tiling, and the windows have the green glazed bands round the sides, both indicating that this was a Charrington’s pub in the past. It is only a few yards from the entrance to Greenwich Park, and on a nice sunny day it tended to get a fair number of families in, all of which during my visit filed through the pub to get to the garden at the back. Nonetheless, I liked the atmosphere of this pub very much, and would very much like to pay a return visit.