The Bloomsbury, Twickenham

Potted palms and arty bits of decor give this suburban pub a slightly disjointed feel. It is basically one large room with an island bar, with a restaurant section down one side and a large sports screen in the other. Out the front is a shrubby patio area with a terrace garden behind. Draught ales were Wainwright, Naked Ladies and London Pride.

Having been to the Bloomsbury over a period of time here and there what strikes me is how much it has changed and improved over such an amazingly short period of time. It balks me to say that it used to be a joint called the Five Oaks, where on your way in they'd frisk you for a weapon and if you didn't have one they'd give you a knuckleduster or a cosh, so you might feel safer! Joking aside The Bloomsbury as it is now, I rate as one of the best pubs in the area. The welcome is always warm (Malden Man, aw... maybe you should try striking up a conversation in a pub when you go in?) and I think for a lounge bar they've got the decor spot on. I've never had a bad drink, but for me the clincher is the food. I've been in to eat on many occasions now and generally try whatever's on the specials board - If you want to mix and match something, the chef Peter will basically make you anything, which is a cast iron sign that not only is he very confident in the kitchen, but that he's willing to make sure his clientele are properly taken care of. Not every pub is to everyone's taste but the Bloomsbury is to mine, my friends and a lot of people from lots of different backgrounds that go there. Rating it?? Malden Man a 4 (pish, tush!), Rex Rattus a 5 (for shame!)?! The Bloomsbury gets a solid 8 - it's not perfect but it's getting there....

The interior has that modern opened up look, central bar, dining area to the right. Lower light green wood panelling, wooden flooring, brown "Habitat" style lampshades, candles, bamboo screen and sofas full of cushions. Some outdoor seating to the front and a terrace style garden to the rear. Big fold down screen for sports, small kids play area of the type you might see in a bank. They do three real ales but I'm not sure how much throughpull there would be based on this visit. I didn't feel especially welcome and with all the staff including the chef deciding to lounge around on the public side of the bar I had the distinct feeling that they just wanted us to leave so they could close. Perhaps I'm doing a disservice but that's how it felt.

The Bloomsbury official site - www.thebloomsburypub.co.uk

They had on Adnam’s Explorer and Everard’s Sunchaser, with a Thwaite’s Wainwright clip reversed. The Sunchaser was OK (and no better than OK), but we were a little disappointed with it as I for one expected a fuller flavoured beer from Everard’s. It wasn’t off or past its best; just a bit “thin”. But that’s not a comment on the pub of course. They clearly do food as there is a separate room to the right of the bar counter with all tables laid for diners. We came in here about 5 minutes after the England v Ukraine final whistle and were the only customers, but would hope that the large pull down screen still showing the after match analysis would have attracted a few punters in earlier in the evening. Anyway, the pub itself is a very modern and chintzy affair. It had its fair share of sofas, one of which was festooned with Union Flag scatter cushions. Candles were alight just about everywhere you could fit them in, and there were some odd looking indescribable objects strategically placed around the room, that I can only assume were modern art of some kind. I also noticed a piano against one of the walls, surrounded by some kiddies’ toys and the like. All a bit incongruous I would say, but harmless enough of course. I found this pub a little too “untraditional” for my taste, but I’m sure it would appeal to a lot of people.

The Bloomsbury official site - www.thebloomsburypub.co.uk