Committee member Peter Wallace writes:
Flowing again ! The doors are open and the beer is on tap again at the Fleet Tavern on South End Green, the former White Horse.
The site’s seen many name changes over the years from the White Horse to the Cork & Bottle and then the South End Green Social but none more appropriate than the latest, given that the “hidden” Fleet river flows under the pub on its way from Hampstead Heath down to the Thames.
It’s a link the new owners love – even the pub’s beer mats trace the course of the river.
So what makes Tom Gilroy, managing director of Stanley Pubs, based in Tufnell Park, believe he can make a success of the site that’s proven so troublesome in the past ?
“Don’t worry, we know what we’re doing” he said with a smile: “We already run seven pubs, among them the Lord Stanley in Camden, the Tufnell Park Tavern and the De Beauvoir Arms in Islington. “It’s something we’ve done in all our pubs: keep things simple, a great range of beers, along with a focus on food and proper hospitality.
“We want it to feel really pubby; somewhere the local community can use for a quick lunch, to sit all day with a pint of ale, or enjoy a three course meal and a bottle of wine.”
Food will play a great part of the pub’s appeal. There’s an open kitchen adjacent to the bar and what’s called an “affordable” menu of Mediterranean food with a £9.50 daily lunch offer.
Pub manager Rosie Barrett said:” We want people to come in and go straight to the bar to order what they want, whether just a pint or with a food dish they can see being prepared”.
And, from first impressions, the company’s formula could be a winner with every table taken on opening night.
There won’t be any music or TV screens which may disappoint sports fans. According to manager Fred Wright , “We found many of our customers don’t want to watch while they drink”.
In a soccer World Cup year perhaps that’s something of a gamble.
What about the beers ? “I’m a big ale fan” said Mr Wright. “All our beers will be changed every four weeks”. The first ale on offer was Brakspears Gravity at £5.50 a pint.
Just five months after the re-opening of the Stag pub further down Fleet Road, it’s even more reason to raise a glass to the Fleet Tavern.
