The Devonshire, Balham, SW12

Tris C left this review about The Devonshire

This is a 19th century pub with a fantastic end of the century gin palace interior, largely intact, garnering a CAMRA * rating, visible on their website.
The finery is rather spectacular, especially the lobby (see photo) which probably explains why Young’s hasn’t ravaged it in the way that a grizzly bear mauls a hiker. The rear has been altered somewhat – proof that Young’s just doesn’t know when to stop – furnished with some modern hotel bar-style furniture such as an intimate small lounge-style mini booth for two. Customers were professional local types, one with an annoying barking dog and many eating, all to a banal backing track.
There’s Special and London Original of course, the preferred Proper Job option ‘coming soon’ (but not soon enough), a bit lame for a Thursday evening, so it was more Neck Oil at £3.70 a half.
This place is worth a sniff for the interior – hence the score – and one to include on a crawl, certainly better than the Bedford and Regent, but for a prolonged stay, the Balham Bowls Club is the one to beat.

On 27^th March 2024 - rating: 7
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