Bunch of Grapes, SE1

Early evening in late May.The gloomy decor drew us out onto the pavement.Busy with revellers between the landmarks of The Shard and the gates of Borough Market.Amongst others on the bar, Southwark Brewery Best, new to me, and fairly memorable.

Situated opposite the London Sperm Bank, the Grapes is a late Georgian pub, bunched I know not when. A first in here the other night and I had thought that this was some sort of traditional London pub, perhaps geared towards tourists seeking a slice of Merry Olde London after a trip to Southwark Cathedral or the London Dungeon, but no. Most of the surfaces seem to have been painted black, though it’s hard to make out given the gloom, but there does seem to be some original dark woodwork and there’s much glazed white tiling to the rear, rather than behind the bar for once; I wonder if this place has had a rather savage makeover since the last review? There’s a multi-level ‘garden’ out back, the music was very loud and the mainly young, but mixed crowd was chucking itself about with gay abandon, all having a lot more fun than me. The usual suspects were up for grabs at the bar, with Proper Job ‘coming soon’. A half of Special was a wincing £2.70, but very good. In an area that has undergone much revision in recent years to become something of a nightlife hotspot, it’s no surprise that the pubs here tend to be a bit awful, the honourable exceptions being the Market Porter and Old King’s Head, which is where I’ll end up if I find myself in the area again.

Official site of Bunch of Grapes - www.bunchofgrapesborough.co.uk

Official site of Bunch of Grapes - www.bunchofgrapesborough.co.uk

Nice little pub near the train station and well used by football fans passing through. Bouncer on the door as you would expect. 4 beers from the Young's range in OK shape.

Surprised to come across this pub.Thought I had visited all the Borough pubs.Havent missed much.Nice enough and busy.Youngs -waggle dance (dull) and Wandle were the choices.Nice rear space.