Spaniards Inn, NW3

Much has been written about this fine, historic country pub on the fringes of Hampstead Heath, not least by Charles Dickens who immortalised it in The Pickwick Papers, and rightly so, as it has plenty of stories to tell. The pub’s website, for example, claims that John Keats wrote ‘An Ode to a Nightingale’ in the pub, whilst a more widely told tale is that of the former landlord’s son, Dick Turpin, who used to gaze down at the road below from his bedroom window, dreaming of robbing the rich folk passing by in their coaches. Upon arrival, all such romantic notions vanish within minutes, with the pub presenting a chaotic front when we visited on a hot, spring afternoon. The interior thankfully still retains much of its multiple-room layout. Entering through the main porch, you pass a small, well kept snug to the right before emerging into the main bar in the mid-section of the building. This is a large space with the hop-lined bar to the left and some tub chairs and pews opposite. There are dark floorboards and wood panels that evoke an olde-world feel, as does the nice brick fireplace on the end wall, with its large brass hood. Two other rooms – a formal seating area to the front left and a dining space to the rear – round out the rooms to explore, before moving out to the huge garden to the rear, with nicely kept hedges and climbing plants acting as partitioning screens to break up the sight-lines across the rows of picnic benches. There is plenty of covered seating, a ‘dog-zone’, an aviary and a huge car park. The ale range was pretty good, with Fullers London Pride, Conwy Beachcomber Blonde, Harviestoun Broken Dial, Ilkley Mary Jane and Sharps Doom Bar all on hand pump. Sadly my pint of Mary Jane was a little past its best, whilst the service was utterly dismal, with the clueless bar staff getting themselves in a right mess and serving people in a completely random order. The food was expensive, as you might expect in such a location, and not really worth the hassle required to order it. With a little effort, this could be one of the ‘must-visit’ pubs in London, but instead it is content to do the bare minimum, knowing that there will be a steady stream of day-trippers and walkers from the Heath to keep business ticking over. It’s worth a visit to explore the building and soak up a bit of the history, but ultimately I left feeling disappointed at a missed opportunity. Perhaps I should have listened out for that nightingale to lift my spirits.

This is a very old, alledgedly 16th Century, highwayman’s pub (also alledgedly – Dick Turpin and all that) that has gone firmly down the gastro route. Dickens and Keats are claimed to have been regulars here. I can believe that – they both liked to frequent London’s hostelries. There are daily printed menus available, with only a passing nod to pub grub. The cheapest main course was the “Gloucestershire Old Spot sausages, mash and cider gravy” at “£11.50, up to the 28-day aged ribeye steak at £22.50. Each item on the menu unusually had a beer recommendation to go with it, which I don’t really buy into. I reckon the real ale I like goes with just about everything. Anyway, they did have five ales on – Purity Mad Goose, London Pride, Caledonian Flying Scotsman, Downton Ed’s American Red and Butcombe American Pale Ale. A decent selection by any standards. Both the Pride and the Mad Goose were £4.10 a pint, which is of course a top of the range gastropub price, and £11.50 for some basic sausage and mash is also on the expensive side. Notwithstanding the gastropub nature of the place, they’ve not been tempted to ruin the interior with pastel shades everywhere. All the dark wood panelling is still in place, along with most, if not all, of the original nooks and crannies. These are the things that give the pub its character. Other features worthy of mention are the traditional settles in the main bar area, the brick framed fireplace, and the large and well maintained pub garden. There’s also a smallish car park. The absence of TVs, fruit machines and piped music are also big pluses for me. Despite the high prices, and it being a bit out of the way, this place is still pubby enough for me to want to pay a return visit.