The Jolly Gardeners, SW18

There’s no real ale here, with mainly standard lagers on, although they do Hoegaarden and Leffe Blonde. The half of Leffe Blonde that I had was served in a branded glass, and looked to be short measure until I spotted the line on the glass that revealed that I had in fact received long, and not short, measure. Not cheap at £2.50 for the half though. I didn’t see a menu but in the room at the back all the tables were set for diners, and at 3.00 PM on a Wednesday there was a group of people finishing their lunch. This definitely looks like yet another food led pub in this area. The front room, where the drinking seems to be undertaken near the bar counter, is furnished with a mix of tall tables/stools, sofas, armchairs, small stools, and a few normal tables. I tend to prefer normal tables and chairs in pubs, but enjoying my Leffe Blonde, sitting in an armchair wasn’t all that bad a way to spend a bit of time on a wet and cold December day. This bar area also has a fireplace with a wax encrusted mantelpiece, but unfortunately not in use at present despite the alcove next to jammed full of logs. There was some music being played, but reasonably quietly, and I didn’t see any TVs, one-armed bandits or games machines. This isn’t a bad pub; in fact it’s quite good in some ways, but my personal preference would be for the inclusion of some normal tables and chairs in the bar area, and of course for a real ale to be introduced. The latter should be possible even in an obviously food led pub like this one.