76.
Epsom and Sutton with Richard Bradshaw, Thursday 30th and Friday 31st December
2004
Richard Bradshaw and I had been discussing
places to visit with a view to squeezing that little bit extra out of doing as
many pubs as possible for the year. I had done some research and decided that
there was some mileage in doing a few pubs in the arse end of Epsom. I met Rich
outside his flat, had a cup of absinthe and water and got on a 470 bus bound
for Epsom. The first port of call was the Vestry, a place that we had been to
before and was much the same. It's moderate and has a couple of very mediocre
real ales on. Not somewhere worth dwelling.
The Good Beer Guide 2005 recommends
the Barley Mow on Pikes Hill. You can see why. It's a decent Fullers pub that
does a solid selection of Fullers ales - Jack Frost, Chiswick, London Pride and
ESB - and is very cosy with lots of small corners. I actually wasn't overly
impressed with the quality on the occasion of our visit, but it is however a
good pub and well worth a return visit.
I found the Railway Guard preferable to
the Barley Mow. True, the decor is a little shabby and far less cosy, but the
selection of ales was very good. We had five to choose from - London Pride,
80/-, Adnam’s, Spitfire and Hopback Red Devil, the last of which was excellent.
The toilets are also worthy of note for the urinals are mounted very highly on
the wall. Again, you wouldn't have this trouble if you had a trough would you?
Moving on, we came to Ye Olde King's Head,
which appeared very cramped as everyone was sitting at the bar making service
difficult. They did have a bit of real beer in the form of Spitfire, London
Pride and Young’s, but it was decidedly on the turn. Despite the fact that
there were not many people in, it was still very difficult to get a seat, and I
wasn't overly impressed. We had been in the Rising Sun on Heathcote Road
before, and it had been a smart trendy backstreet boozer. It was still trendy,
but there was a little scruffiness exhibited by the ramshackle array of lager
taps with paper/beer mats obscuring the badges, and a general untidiness in the
bar area. Nonetheless, it was still pleasant and well worth a drink and we had
a good look at the lagers that they did have on offer including those in bottles.
Pilgrim Surrey and Granny something were the ales, and there were a few choice
lagers worth noting, such as Noel Abbaye de Rocs and Riegele. Poor signage
means the list is incomplete. Some twenty-somethings were in the rear of the
pub having a pleasant time, so the atmosphere was good.
The Amato is a pub that we failed to find
last time and on this occasion I was determined to find it. We did, with ease,
and went in to enjoy their wares. This is a very pleasant boozer with a
plethora of scattered seats, and is all in all quite nice and welcoming in
earthy tones. For such a place, the beer selection was interesting as they had
Young’s, London Pride, Ruddles and Harveys Sussex (which we both had), and
which tasted good. Time was marching on so we couldn't stay to enjoy any more.
Just up the road is the Ladas, which is furnished in plush dark red fabric
seating and fixtures. Notably, my Young’s Bitter (Special and Greene King IPA
is also available) was served in a stemmed glass which is always a nice touch.
Richard leapt for joy upon sighting a Top of the Pops quiz machine,
essentially a cash machine, and won a tenner on the first go, 'Rolling back the
years'.
The Haywain is attached to a Travelodge on
the main road and is unsurprisingly poor. It isn't dire though as it has the
redeeming feature of having Brains, 6X and London Pride on draught, so is worth
a visit nonetheless, and it is very quiet and there are cosy chairs in
plentiful supply. Unfortunately the breakfast bar set up on one side of the
room leaves an uneasy feeling. The Brains was also well past its prime, but I
am going to acknowledge the fact that they tried to serve real beer, and it's
still a hell of a lot better than some of the awful pubs that you find in town
centres. The Queens Head moving into town may be such an example. We couldn't
even get in, as at 10.30 the door was already closed and someone cleaning waved
us away. What's the point in that? Symond's Well was also not very welcoming,
as the solitary four people at the bar stared at us as we entered. The pub is
very heavily wooden in its interior, and it does a few beers, eg: Deuchars IPA,
Abbot and Old Speckled Hen.
We made this a swift half so we could slot
in a half at the Albion next door, quite a light airy pub which has a young
custom base. Fortunately, they retain a few decent beers that they sell cheaply
such as Black Sheep, Adnam’s and Young’s, together with expensive designer
bottles for those less fortunate than ourselves. The last pub of the day was
the loud and disappointing Marquis of Granby, which had no beer and hardly
anywhere to sit. It reminded me strongly of a busy Scream pub. Maybe it is, I
had lost interest. We left to get the 293, and plotted a few lunchtime beers
for the next day, New Years Eve.
*********************
The following day I met up with Rich in
the Red Lion, Sutton, rubbing shoulders with a variety of misfits as Rich was
preparing for the New Years Eve St Etienne concert later on. The Red Lion,
Sutton, is not a particularly nice pub. They had some very mediocre Greene King
IPA available on draught. Mums and their children were in there, enjoying
lunchtime ciggies. A strange man was talking to himself. Just up the road was
the Crown, which was not much better. They did at least have Marston’s Pedigree
and Courage Best on tap, but the bar is spartan. One highlight was one time
England, Wimbledon, Oxford United, Crawley Town and now Sutton United
footballer Peter Fear getting shitfaced (this is lunchtime remember) whilst
watching horse-racing from Wolverhampton. Mr Fear apparently turned out as a
sub for Sutton the following day.
The Sydney Arms is an excellent example of
a backstreet pub and has quite comfortable decor, with a raised section near
the front with booth seating and half-height walls. There isn't any beer though
unless you like keg Whitbread, so I had a bottle of light ale instead. One or
two dodgy punters were drinking, but I let them off. We very seldom go in the
Angel, Benhilton, and for good reason - it is not particularly pleasant, the
sort of place where Phil Mitchell lookalikes might congregate on a Sunday for
lunch then Sky Sports and lager. It is a very large pub, with a bar that can be
approached from all sides. The beer, Courage Best, may well have been
supplemented by other flavours on busier days. However, the gents' toilet floor
was awash with piss. Final stop was a little walk up to Sutton Common to what
is now the Harvester (formerly the Plough). Although there is no beer, it is
not as bad as I had expected. There are some plush chairs. Those not eating are
encouraged to sit in a purpose built part of the bar. Rich and I enjoyed our
lager and Murphy's while reminiscing over the year that had passed, though
Rich's drinking was to continue that evening, culminating in his 594th
different domestic pub visited.
Dan
Lovegrove
dan@doctor-lovegrove.com
Last updated 10th January 2005.