Alleyns Head, West Dulwich, SE21

There was a good range of ales on when I visited on Wednesday afternoon – London Pride, Young’s Bitter, Sharp’s Doom Bar and Trelawney, Landlord, Adnam’s Green Bullet and Jolly, and Stonehenge Eye Opener (£3.35 a pint). This is an Ember Inns pub, so obviously food is available at reasonable prices. There was an array of menus on the table; the main menu was fairly extensive, including the usual pub staples, such as burger etc for £7.50. This menu is supplemented by a separate daily menu with some more haute cuisine items such as fillet steak dauphinoise for £15.95. Moving on we also have a light lunch menu (sandwiches between £3.95 and £5.95); a fixed price menu; and a December menu. I didn’t examine them all in detail – a bit of menu overload I would say. This is a large stand alone pub, surrounded by its own car park and a fair bit of picnic bench seating. The interior is typical of the Ember Inns brand, with the usual vase bearing dividing shelves; open see-through fireplaces, plush furnishings, etc. It is no longer a traditional drinker’s pub, but whatever your view of this chain’s pub style, they are clearly a successful brand as all of their pubs that I’ve visited have been doing a very good trade. And with eight ales on, as this one had, it has a lot going for it on the beer front as well.