# Elm Park Tavern, Brixton - chat and news



## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

I've been here for years but never frequented the Elm Park Tavern til Friday. I loved it - it's a proper pub - grimy and smokey - I thought they were a thing of the past in Brixton.


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

it's a great place. my front door faced theirs for years, and I lived in Elm Park for about 6 years in total. Used to love the EPT but the continuing presence of a vile ex meant i couldn't go there.

But she's buggered off and now i can again. We should go - it's kinda halfway house, innit?


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

Have you got a link to it on Beer in the Evening or anything?


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## tastebud (Jan 15, 2007)

been there a few times - it's brainaddict's local too. (v v local actually).

it's quite a nice pub, yes.


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

Onket said:
			
		

> Have you got a link to it on Beer in the Evening or anything?


Lazy boy:
http://www.fancyapint.com/main_site/thepubs/pub2994.html


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

Aye, it's not a bad pub - we used to go there for pub quizzes. 


Check out the archive pic:





And here's the photo caption from my blog:


> Admire the collective genius of 'Team Clever' - the urban75 pub quiz team that managed to come fifth in a competition of just seven teams.
> 
> The quiz was at the delightfully no-nonsense Elm Park Tavern, off Brixton Hill, an old school boozer untouched by the slightest whiff of gentrification. Or paint, for that matter.
> 
> ...



It's pretty amazing that the pub is still going when you think of how many pubs have closed around Brixton. http://www.urban75.org/brixton/bars/lost-pubs.html

(*Blimey, I've noticed that it's not included in the urban75 Brixton pub guide. I'll have to fix that later)


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> Lazy boy:



Basically, yeah! 




			
				Orang Utan said:
			
		

> http://www.fancyapint.com/main_site/thepubs/pub2994.html



Ta!


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

Aint the Elm Park Tavern in Streatham...?

SW2

Not in Brixton...


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Aint the Elm Park Tavern in Streatham...?
> 
> SW2
> 
> Not in Brixton...


Sure. But that would be nitpicking.


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

It's in Brixton cos it's north of the South Circular


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## Kanda (Jan 15, 2007)

Most of Brixton Hill is SW2...

Or does Brixton stop at St Matthews in your eyes???


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

Hew we go again


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Aint the Elm Park Tavern in Streatham...?
> 
> SW2
> 
> Not in Brixton...




that's nonsense, obviously..


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## twistedAM (Jan 15, 2007)

Kanda said:
			
		

> Most of Brixton Hill is SW2...
> 
> Or does Brixton stop at St Matthews in your eyes???



please don't start this one up again..he's just smarting cos a while back we proved that NORTH London begins at St Matthews


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

Am I missing something here?  I live in Elm Park and I live in Streatham?


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## tastebud (Jan 15, 2007)

yeah i agree w/ the streatham thing.  i tell ba that he lives in streatham.


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

except he clearly doesn't


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

The web link above says it's in Streatham.


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## tastebud (Jan 15, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> except he clearly doesn't


people that grew up in the area are the ones in the know. fyi. 

he does.


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Aint the Elm Park Tavern in Streatham...?
> 
> SW2
> 
> Not in Brixton...



SW2 is Brixton
SW9 is Stockwell


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

tastebud said:
			
		

> people that grew up in the area are the ones in the know. fyi.
> 
> he does.



As opposed to people who lived for many years in the road in question, you mean?


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## twistedAM (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> SW2 is Brixton
> SW9 is Stockwell




fantastic ...it's been a few months since we had one of these 

come on ed, defend Stockwell and Kennington


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

Onket said:
			
		

> The web link above says it's in Streatham.




well it wouldn't be the first time the internet has been wrong.


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## tastebud (Jan 15, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> As opposed to people who lived for many years in the road in question, you mean?


they don't count  alas.

anyway, whilst i jest, it's definitely closer to st. reatham than the brix.


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

tastebud said:
			
		

> yeah i agree w/ the streatham thing.  i tell ba that he lives in streatham.


You're clearly mental then.
If it's off BRIXTON Hill, it's in Brixton.
If it's off STREATHAM Hill, it's in Streatham


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> SW2 is Brixton
> SW9 is Stockwell


Nonsense - I live in Trinity Gardens and that's in SW9 - Morley's is in SW9 - are you saying that it's in Stockwell?


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> come on ed, defend Stockwell and Kennington


I believe the case for SW9 being the real Brixton has been proven.  We've got the tube, the railway, the market, the arcades, the main shops, Morleys, the Albert, the Phoenix and the police station and that's good enough for me.

Now I've got to get back to work.


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

tastebud said:
			
		

> they don't count  alas.
> 
> anyway, whilst i jest, it's definitely closer to st. reatham than the brix.




I'd said there's sod all in it, really.. Elm Park is about halfway up Brixton Hill, if you assume Brixton Hill stops at the South Circular...


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## tarannau (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> You're clearly mental then.
> If it's off BRIXTON Hill, it's in Brixton.
> If it's off STREATHAM Hill, it's in Streatham



What about all the people living off a LONDON ROAD then?

Or those poor Streathimites and Tooting residents living on MITCHAM LANE?


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

tastebud said:
			
		

> people that grew up in the area are the ones in the know. fyi.




Exactly... 


I really tire of outter townies claiming to know stuff & they dont know jack sh*t about the history or boundaries of areas... SW2 is streatham... 
eLm park is streatham... elm park kids back in my day all smelt & The elm park crew where weeds from streatham & got bashed up all the time by the dick shepard boys & dick shepard was actually in brixton...... standard Knowledge...


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I really tire of outter townies claiming to know stuff & they dont know jack sh*t about the history or boundaries of areas... SW2 is streatham... .





> SW2 is officially the London distinct postcode for 'Brixton Hill Sorting Office', located in Blenheim Gardens, off Brixton Hill.
> 
> However, this is often abbreviated to Brixton, and therefore a common but erroneous assumption has emerged that this is the postcode for Brixton. In fact the centre of what people think of as Brixton town straddles the boundary between SW2 and SW9, which the post office considers to be Stockwell.
> 
> ...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_SW2


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

sir clip, you're an arse


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> Nonsense - I live in Trinity Gardens and that's in SW9 - Morley's is in SW9 - are you saying that it's in Stockwell?



Those are the Royal Mail categories.  Actually I think Trinity Gardens is in Brixton as well as Elm Park - but who am I to argue with Her Maj???


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

I may be an arse  but the elm park tavern still remains in streatham...


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I may be an arse  but the elm park tavern still remains in streatham...




it's amazing all my post got to me for all those years then. Maybe it's cos the Brixton sorting office was just over the road, and they knew they were in Streatham as well.

twat


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## gabi (Jan 15, 2007)

I think an estate agent would describe it as 'Brixton Borders'


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Exactly...
> 
> 
> I really tire of outter townies claiming to know stuff & they dont know jack sh*t about the history or boundaries of areas... SW2 is streatham...
> eLm park is streatham... elm park kids back in my day all smelt & The elm park crew where weeds from streatham & got bashed up all the time by the dick shepard boys & dick shepard was actually in brixton...... standard Knowledge...



Dick Shepherd Boys was in SW2, so by your reckoning - Streatham - you seem a bit confused!  As is the far end of Acre Lane, all of Tulse Hill, Brixton Water Lane and St Matthew's Road....


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> it's amazing all my post got to me for all those years then. Maybe it's cos the Brixton sorting office was just over the road, and they knew they were in Streatham as well.
> 
> twat



Elm Park Tavern, 76 Elm Park, Streatham SW2 2UB.........

Did you live in the elm park tavern. dubversion..?
Did you d.j there too ?

A letter could say absolutly anything really as long as it has a door number, 
And the most crucial POSTCODE... its going to arrive.. Try it.. You could
claim you live in the london area known as BOMBAY... all the lads in the sorting office would think it a little strange But as long as the post code is on it you should get your mail.....


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

Streatham is SW16.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_SW16


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

grow up, sir clip 

you've already had to apologise on one thread for acting like a twat, are you going to have to do it again?


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> Streatham is SW16.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_SW16



well no, not necessarily. We live in Streatham and in SW2. 

i think perhaps people have to stop expecting postcodes to match area names. They don't and weren't designed to


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> Dick Shepherd Boys was in SW2, so by your reckoning - Streatham - you seem a bit confused!  As is the far end of Acre Lane, all of Tulse Hill, Brixton Water Lane and St Matthew's Road....



I aint got an arguement about dick sheppard....

This thread is about The elm park tavern in streatham......

And yes I aint to admit I'm confused.... whats up with that..?


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I aint got an arguement about dick sheppard....
> 
> This thread is about The elm park tavern in streatham......
> 
> And yes I aint to admit I'm confused.... whats up with that..?




But while being confused, you feel confident in telling other people they're wrong (in a fairly wanky manner). Can you not see any inconsistencies in that?


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## OpalFruit (Jan 15, 2007)

If there are any grounds for discussion at all, it would be whether Elm Park is Tulse Hill or Brixton, imo. But since it is North of the S Circular, it really can't be Streatham!

You can't determine the borders of 'real' places like Brixton or Streatham by the borders arbitarily imposed for administrative convenience by the Royal Mail! And some places aren't even contained within the same borough - look at Herne Hill!


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

Calm the fuck down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Surely postcodes were made up waaaaay after traditional bounderies were established anyway!


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> grow up, sir clip
> 
> you've already had to apologise on one thread for acting like a twat, are you going to have to do it again?




You will never bate me into trading insults dubversion.. If i apologise for anything its because I am not affraid to agree to disagree... 
I apologise to you for irratating you over such trivial issues concerning the placement of where a pub decides to locate itself... If you look & ask the pub their address they might tell you its streatham..

Local people like to say Brixton as that claim can put an extra 10 grand on the asking price of a property...


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

tastebud said:
			
		

> they don't count  alas.
> 
> anyway, whilst i jest, it's definitely closer to st. reatham than the brix.




Well I've lived in Elm Park since 1985 and it's most definitely Brixton

















the nicer end


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

Onket said:
			
		

> Surely postcodes were made up waaaaay after traditional bounderies were established anyway!



That is a intresting topic.... I'd like to know the truth in that...
Alot of it comes down to local people & especially the post office workers who sort the mail & decide how far to walk before saying its the next mans delivery area...


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I aint got an arguement about dick sheppard....
> 
> This thread is about The elm park tavern in streatham......
> 
> And yes I aint to admit I'm confused.... whats up with that..?



Nothing wrong with being confused... you've confused me too.    As a self-proclaimed old timer you say that everywhere in SW2 is Streatham, but that it's common local knowledge that the Dick Shepherd School (SW2) was in Brixton.  So which statement is true?


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## Pieface (Jan 15, 2007)

Londoners and their weird obsessions with boundaries  
Bizarre.

Anyway - EPT - top pub - I lived down the road from it for a couple of years.  It made me very happy.


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## tarannau (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> Nothing wrong with being confused... you've confused me too.    As a self-proclaimed old timer you say that everywhere in SW2 is Streatham, but that it's common local knowledge that the Dick Shepherd School (SW2) was in Brixton.  So which statement is true?



Hate to say it, but Dick Shepherd was in Tulse Hill as far as I was concerned...


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> That is a intresting topic.... I'd like to know the truth in that...
> Alot of it comes down to local people & especially the post office workers who sort the mail & decide how far to walk before saying its the next mans delivery area...



Could have been a local input but I'd guess that the final word came centrally from within Royal Mail somewhere. And they've been changed since they started too haven't they?


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

It's like the old days!


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I believe the case for SW9 being the real Brixton has been proven.  We've got the tube, the railway, the market, the arcades, the main shops, Morleys, the Albert, the Phoenix and the police station and that's good enough for me.
> 
> Now I've got to get back to work.



 

here we go again.  We've got the bus garage, the old tram garage, the dole office, the Town Hall, the college, protected Rush Common, the River the Prison... 

I'm not getting into this, I'll let Twisted take over


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

as i've said, i think postcodes are totally irrelevant to this...


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

Royal Mail avoid the issue- http://tinyurl.com/yza5ku


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

Streatham is a state of mind man


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

...


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

tarannau said:
			
		

> Hate to say it, but Dick Shepherd was in Tulse Hill as far as I was concerned...



Gosh.. so you say it's in Tulse Hill, Sir Clip says it's in Brixton even though it's SW2 which he considers to be Streatham.  I reckon it's Brixton (for me Tulse Hill starts where Upper Tulse Hill meets Tulse Hill)... just goes to show how arbitrary the whole thing is and who cares anyway...


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

Onket said:
			
		

> Royal Mail avoid the issue- http://tinyurl.com/yza5ku



they've probably seen some of the bunfights on here and decided to remain neutral...


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

quite.

anyway, nice pub. One of brixton's best.


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## editor (Jan 15, 2007)

......


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## Onket (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> and who cares anyway...



Heh!


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## tarannau (Jan 15, 2007)

One of the reasons why I didn't want to go to Dick Shepherd as a kid was that the litereature said it was in Tulse Hill, which I imagined to be a faraway country at the time..


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

THE SAD TRUTH IS....


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## gaijingirl (Jan 15, 2007)

tarannau said:
			
		

> One of the reasons why I didn't want to go to Dick Shepherd as a kid was that the litereature said it was in Tulse Hill, which I imagined to be a faraway country at the time..



Where did you go instead?


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## Pieface (Jan 15, 2007)

Glad we got that cleared up then 

They used to have a Kiwi guy do the quiz in there and he couldn't pronounce half the place names he was faced with.  Poor man was much heckled


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> as i've said, i think postcodes are totally irrelevant...




TRY RECIEVING A LETTER WITH OUT ONE THEN.............


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## Pieface (Jan 15, 2007)

ok


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

yeh o.k it is a pretty pub....lovely people inside great wonderfulll truley splendid...
Trific atmosphere  & a lovely carpet..


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## twistedAM (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> TRY RECIEVING A LETTER WITH OUT ONE THEN.............



that's so pedantic; it was obvious what he meant but if you want to be pedantic it is without NOT with out


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## sir.clip (Jan 15, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> that's so pedantic; it was obvious what he meant but if you want to be pedantic it is without NOT with out



some people... just dont know where to leave it do they... 

I went to Kingsdale then tulse hill boys then pimlico... I got spelling & grammer and all that stuff  down to a fine art.. thanks to thatcher.. 

you dont know nothing about streatham brixton tulse hill norwood  hernehill or anything... i'm going for a sulk & a falafell sandwich...


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## twistedAM (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> you dont know nothing about streatham brixton tulse hill norwood  hernehill or anything... i'm going for a sulk & a falafell sandwich...



mmm....I can't decide between a veg curry roti (Negril) or Thai beef curry (COTH)  this lunchtime

SW2...got the best choice of lunchtime munchies


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## Pieface (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> lovely carpet..



You've clearly never been there!   

Would you like a map with directions?


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Elm Park Tavern, 76 Elm Park, Streatham SW2 2UB.........




Out of curiousity, how many houses/properties does a postcode cover.  I thought it was only half a dozen or so


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## clandestino (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> I've been here for years but never frequented the Elm Park Tavern til Friday. I loved it - it's a proper pub - grimy and smokey - I thought they were a thing of the past in Brixton.



It's my favourite Brixton pub. And not that grimy or smokey really. The ceiling is a gorgeous green, and it's far less smokey than the Albert. It's a shame they've installed the big TV though and you have to be a fan of Queen to drink there - the jukebox plays them every fifth song or so - but it's a fantastic place. A real pub with character.


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> ...




flabby SW9ers.  Lack of walking up Brixton Hill


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> TRY RECIEVING A LETTER WITH OUT ONE THEN.............




to this argument, einstein, not in general.

fucktard


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## Auberon (Jan 15, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> Out of curiousity, how many houses/properties does a postcode cover.  I thought it was only half a dozen or so


up to 20, i think.


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> Gosh.. so you say it's in Tulse Hill, Sir Clip says it's in Brixton even though it's SW2 which he considers to be Streatham.  I reckon it's Brixton (for me Tulse Hill starts where Upper Tulse Hill meets Tulse Hill)... just goes to show how arbitrary the whole thing is and who cares anyway...




Dick Shepherd - definitely Tulse Hill (according to ex-pupils I know)


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## Dubversion (Jan 15, 2007)

Auberon said:
			
		

> up to 20, i think.




yeh, depends on the population density. A tower block will have more shared postcodes than a regular street, i think


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

ianw said:
			
		

> It's my favourite Brixton pub. And not that grimy or smokey really. The ceiling is a gorgeous green, and it's far less smokey than the Albert. It's a shame they've installed the big TV though and you have to be a fan of Queen to drink there - the jukebox plays them every fifth song or so - but it's a fantastic place. A real pub with character.


hehehe - funny you should say that cos I picked Don't Stop Me Now on Friday


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## Auberon (Jan 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> Aye, it's not a bad pub - we used to go there for pub quizzes.
> 
> 
> Check out the archive pic:
> ...


do they still do the quiz?


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

Auberon said:
			
		

> up to 20, i think.




It appears it's even more than that.  Turns out nos. 2 to 76 are all SW2 2UB.

Wondered how I could have the same postcode as Elm Park Tavern.

So, there you have it.  Elm Park Tavern has the same post code as me and I live in Brixton


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## Auberon (Jan 15, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> SW2 is Brixton
> SW9 is Stockwell


Yes. But postal districts like that cover a multitude of sins. For example, NW1 is Camden Town. But it also covers parts of King's X. NW3 is Hampstead, but also covers parts of Belsize Park. N1 is the Angel, but also covers parts of Hackney - the nicer parts, I might add. So, just because something is _nominally_ in Streatham doesn't mean it isn't in eg Brixton.


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## clandestino (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> hehehe - funny you should say that cos I picked Don't Stop Me Now on Friday



You wasted your money. Just sit there long enough and you'll hear it......! It got to the point where the guy behind the bar would press a button to skip onto the next track as soon as Queen came on!!

I walked past the EPT at around 5pm at the end of last week. It was packed with what looked like a wake - lots of people in formal clothes, black ties, etc. What song was the jukebox playing? You've guessed it...


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## han (Jan 15, 2007)

Those pub quizzes were ace - we should go again sometime!

I love the Elm Park Tavern.  I agree it's one of the best pubs in Brixton. Old, a bit grubby, atmospheric, chilled, characterful


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## gabi (Jan 15, 2007)

ianw said:
			
		

> You wasted your money. Just sit there long enough and you'll hear it......! It got to the point where the guy behind the bar would press a button to skip onto the next track as soon as Queen came on!!
> 
> I walked past the EPT at around 5pm at the end of last week. It was packed with what looked like a wake - lots of people in formal clothes, black ties, etc. What song was the jukebox playing? You've guessed it...








Shouldnt laugh but...


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

ianw said:
			
		

> You wasted your money. Just sit there long enough and you'll hear it......! It got to the point where the guy behind the bar would press a button to skip onto the next track as soon as Queen came on!!
> 
> I walked past the EPT at around 5pm at the end of last week. It was packed with what looked like a wake - lots of people in formal clothes, black ties, etc. What song was the jukebox playing? You've guessed it...




It was a wake.  According to someone I spoke to, they'd never ever ever seen the place so packed


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## ViolentPanda (Jan 15, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Exactly...
> 
> 
> I really tire of outter townies claiming to know stuff & they dont know jack sh*t about the history or boundaries of areas... SW2 is streatham...
> eLm park is streatham... elm park kids back in my day all smelt & The elm park crew where weeds from streatham & got bashed up all the time by the dick shepard boys & dick shepard was actually in brixton...... standard Knowledge...



There was me thinking that SW16 was Streatham.

And I'm *not* an "outter townie", just someone who's not quite as demented as you appear to be.


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## ViolentPanda (Jan 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> ......



If you look closely at the picture, you'll see that the speech bubble isn't, as you first thought, coming from the mouth of the blond bonehead on the right of the picture who's about to clout someone, but actually out of the arse of the person standing behind him.

Which is quite aposite really, when you think about it.


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> It was a wake.  According to someone I spoke to, they'd never ever ever seen the place so packed


There was some kind of police operation going on on Friday too - van full of coppers - stopping and searching a few people on foot and in cars


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## Jonti (Jan 15, 2007)

Is Brixton in SW2 or SW9?

Well, Railton Road is in SE24


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## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 15, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> There was some kind of police operation going on on Friday too - van full of coppers - stopping and searching a few people on foot and in cars




people using the pub?


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## Orang Utan (Jan 15, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> people using the pub?


People walking by


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## clandestino (Jan 15, 2007)

gabi said:
			
		

> Shouldnt laugh but...



It was "Don't Stop Me Now"! It was a bizarre contrast - people dressed for the wake, and the jukie blaring:

"Don't stop me now/I'm having such a good time/I'm having a ball..."

Plus I always think of that scene from "Shaun Of The Dead" whenever I hear that song now, which is possibly even more inappropriate given the context...!


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## William of Walworth (Jan 16, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> yeh, depends on the population density. A tower block will have more shared postcodes than a regular street, i think



True  

I used to be a postman, many many years ago ... . I still know most London postcodes. I can confirm that some of them are very misleading ,....


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## William of Walworth (Jan 16, 2007)

Jonti said:
			
		

> Is Brixton in SW2 or SW9?
> 
> Well, Railton Road is in SE24





See what I mean?


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## William of Walworth (Jan 16, 2007)

*Never been ...*

Anyway, Elm Parlk Tavern. What ale do they serve there? And what quality?


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## Orang Utan (Jan 16, 2007)

They serve flat brown stuff and fizzy yellow stuff. My friends were drinking real ale in a bottle, Old something. They seemed to like it.


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## William of Walworth (Jan 16, 2007)

Sounds like that could be Old Speckled Hen, which it's nice to know that they serve 

But people less bigotted against ale than you are also welcome to reply ...


----------



## Pie 1 (Jan 16, 2007)

Jonti said:
			
		

> Well, Railton Road is in SE24



Oh christ. It was only a matter of time until someone dragged Herne Hill into the equation


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

I thought about this all last night... 
I thought the best thing anyone can do is ask the landlord/Landlady where their pub is...

So next time anyone's in The Elm park tavern, for quiz night or for a wake. Pipe up & ask em for us.... 

It dont matter a crap really... 
I did ask my ol man & he reckons its in the tulse hill area.
I've always belived it to be in streatham.. Or more actuatly in the streaham hill area... 
Everyone seems to agree that post codes are muff & count for sod all...  
So its as i said  'down to local peoples knowledge of an area' 
Dont really matter cos there aint no right and wrong...


----------



## Orang Utan (Jan 16, 2007)

William of Walworth said:
			
		

> Sounds like that could be Old Speckled Hen, which it's nice to know that they serve
> 
> But people less bigotted against ale than you are also welcome to reply ...


I'm not bigotted towards ale, I just don't like it.
Anyway, it's about the pub and the company not the beer. The beer is the least important factor IMO


----------



## Dubversion (Jan 16, 2007)

so you didn't say



> really tire of outter townies claiming to know stuff & they dont know jack sh*t about the history or boundaries of areas... SW2 is streatham..



then? and give people grief for disagreeing with you?

must have been the OTHER Sir Clip then! how jolly confusing


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

Dubversion said:
			
		

> then? and give people grief for disagreeing with you?
> 
> must have been the OTHER Sir Clip then! how jolly confusing




well I said that yeh..
i dont think I grief any one? I hope i dont....

we can all change our views... thats not against the rules on this forum..

There can Only be ONE sir.clip...

And you just love to hate me baby... 
I'll make you a badge for your blazer...'I HATE SIR.CLIP' & You can where it when you D.J.... at one of your d.j gigs.... d.j dubversion...


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 16, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> They serve flat brown stuff and fizzy yellow stuff. My friends were drinking real ale in a bottle, Old something. They seemed to like it.




The main reason I never used to go there, besides it being rough as hell, was that the only choice of lager for a long while was Tennants


----------



## Orang Utan (Jan 16, 2007)

They have Grolsch there now


----------



## SubZeroCat (Jan 16, 2007)

I'd like to try out this pub sometime, maybe we should arrange a little drink?


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I thought about this all last night...
> I thought the best thing anyone can do is ask the landlord/Landlady where their pub is...
> 
> So next time anyone's in The Elm park tavern, for quiz night or for a wake. Pipe up & ask em for us....
> ...




quick question: where is Brixton Prison?

a. Brixton
b. Streatham
c. Clapham Park or any other smartass answer


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> quick question: where is Brixton Prison?
> 
> a. Brixton
> b. Streatham
> c. Clapham Park or any other smartass answer



Jebss avenue..off brixton hill SW2


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 16, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> They have Grolsch there now




and Kronenbourg and Fosters


----------



## FridgeMagnet (Jan 16, 2007)

*looks at map*

That's definitely Brixton. Or at least "Brixton way".


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

FridgeMagnet said:
			
		

> *looks at map*
> 
> That's definitely Brixton. Or at least "Brixton way".



what about the exercise ground at the back of the prison...

If you jump over the wall your in lyham road Clapham ?


----------



## FridgeMagnet (Jan 16, 2007)

well, what about it?


----------



## Mr Retro (Jan 16, 2007)

I don't think I've ever been there I normally go to the Crown and Sceptre if I'm up that direction.


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

FridgeMagnet said:
			
		

> well, what about it?



Well. You can then boot up the road to the  fantastic Elm park Tavern & have a pint of speckeled hen whilst dancing around to Queens 'football fight' before group4 come and bundle you back into a shift truck & clink you back in the slammer...


----------



## tarannau (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> what about the exercise ground at the back of the prison...
> 
> If you jump over the wall your in lyham road Clapham ?



Lyham Road's in Brixton, SW2. I even lived down there for a brief while.

Clapham's still a few roads away from there, even allowing for the dubious promotion of several estate agents.


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Well. You can then boot up the road to the  fantastic Elm park Tavern & have a pint of speckeled hen whilst dancing around to Queens 'football fight' before group4 come and bundle you back into a shift truck & clink you back in the slammer...




When I moved to Brixton Hill 20 years ago, I heard rumours that prisoners used to jump over the wall and visit the local pubs and then go back.

I'm sure rumour is all it was though!


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> When I moved to Brixton Hill 20 years ago, I heard rumours that prisoners used to jump over the wall and visit the local pubs and then go back.
> 
> I'm sure rumour is all it was though!




 Thats true... Got to be..! The walls only about 14' high...


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Thats true... Got to be..! The walls only about 14' high...




not it' s true, really I know so cos someone told me in a pub so it's got to be true


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> not it' s true, really I know so cos someone told me in a pub so it's got to be true




what pub  ?

that one in streathamm, Whats the name MMmmmm?/*"*^MMmmm

The elm park tavern ?


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

Anmd lest we forget the two pubs on New Park Road (behind the BRIXTON Telegraph)

Haven't been in them for a year but used to enjoy the Sultan and it's fine beer garden. Never went in the Fist In face much but it has its fans.


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> what pub  ?
> 
> that one in streathamm, Whats the name MMmmmm?/*"*^MMmmm
> 
> The elm park tavern ?



yeah that's the one; i was completey and utterly drunk at the time so I believed them when they also told me I was in Streatham.


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> yeah that's the one; i was completey and utterly drunk at the time so I believed them when they also told me I was in Streatham.



Thats the spirit i like.... the one that comes insult free.  
 acid house


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 16, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> not it' s true, really I know so cos someone told me in a pub so it's got to be true




A friend of a friend of a friend in a pub


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> A friend of a friend of a friend in a pub



I know him... hes well safe geezer innit... wicked sorted... wheres me dry roasteds.....


----------



## christonabike (Jan 16, 2007)

If you liked this pub, then you may also like the Lorne on Dalyell Road

 

ie. stay out of my local and go infest my mates local


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> I know him... hes well safe geezer innit... wicked sorted... wheres me dry roasteds.....



I got four fillet steaks, two packets of smoked salmon and a huge block of mature cheddar off him for a tenner


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 16, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> I got four fillet steaks, two packets of smoked salmon and a huge block of mature cheddar off him for a tenner




Remember them blokes that sold cheap meat cuts in pubs...?

Fucking horrid... big lumps of pork & beef robbed from some where... 
I'd never bye them meat cutz of geezers in rebok classics.. standard..!


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 16, 2007)

sir.clip said:
			
		

> Remember them blokes that sold cheap meat cuts in pubs...?
> 
> Fucking horrid... big lumps of pork & beef robbed from some where...
> I'd never bye them meat cutz of geezers in rebok classics.. standard..!




That's what stews are for


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 16, 2007)

where have you two been of late?

the smackheads know their clientele and for the past couple of years have been robbing that Jamie Oliver matured for 21 days stuff that costs twice the price of Sainsburys normal meat..so successful were they at this art that the other week I noticed that Sainsburys now put an electronic tag on those packets

the shoplifter's fave before that was Mach III razors which have long since gone behind the counter in supermarkets


----------



## Orang Utan (Jan 16, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> That's what stews are for


In good times, in bad times
I'll be on your side forever more
Oh, that's what stews are for


----------



## Cowley (Jan 16, 2007)

Referring back to SW2/SW9 Debate Sorry....  

Old Original Brixton way be in ye old 19th century was SW2.  I believe one of the Central Tram landmarks was on the corner of Brixton Hill and Morrish Road right up at the top end of Brixton Hill.  Can't remember where I found this out...may have been in the SLP or on the web somewhere.


----------



## lang rabbie (Jan 16, 2007)

Cowley said:
			
		

> Referring back to SW2/SW9 Debate Sorry....
> 
> Old Original Brixton way be in ye old 19th century was SW2.



 

Neither the SW2 nor the SW9 postal district existed until 1917.   And prior to 1868, the whole area was part of the Southern "S" district, before it was divided between SW and SE.

But "the Brixton Road" would definitely have been regarded as the road leading to Brixton, rather than being the centren of Brixton back then.


----------



## Ms T (Jan 17, 2007)

Jonti said:
			
		

> Is Brixton in SW2 or SW9?
> 
> Well, Railton Road is in SE24



Only part of it, surely.  And Railton Rd does go all the way to Herne Hill.  Most of my street is SE24, but one end is SW2 - and we've got too different parking zones as well.  V. confusing.


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 17, 2007)

Cowley said:
			
		

> Referring back to SW2/SW9 Debate Sorry....
> 
> Old Original Brixton way be in ye old 19th century was SW2.  I believe one of the Central Tram landmarks was on the corner of Brixton Hill and Morrish Road right up at the top end of Brixton Hill.  Can't remember where I found this out...may have been in the SLP or on the web somewhere.




There's a separate thread about that


----------



## twistedAM (Jan 17, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> There's a separate thread about that



yeah, this thread was about drinking before sir.clip stumbled in so drunk he thought he was in Croydon


----------



## clandestino (Jan 17, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> yeah, this thread was about drinking before sir.clip stumbled in so drunk he thought he was in Croydon


----------



## sir.clip (Jan 17, 2007)

twisted said:
			
		

> yeah, this thread was about drinking before sir.clip stumbled in so drunk he thought he was in Croydon




I dont drink alcohol.. I havent for 5 years 9 months...
I stopped drinking to try and stop making mistakes.. seems not to be working...

Anyway i'll be in the elm park tonight rocking out to Queen with my J20..


----------



## William of Walworth (Jan 17, 2007)

Orang Utan said:
			
		

> *I'm not bigotted towards ale*, I just don't like it.



You've frequently mocked it and its drinkers fairly mercilessly in the past ...



> Anyway, it's about the pub and the company not the beer. *The beer is the least important factor IMO*



Easy to take that high and mighty attitude if people don't give a shit what beer or 'beer' they're drinking, or who aren't beer drinkers at all. I'm actually jealous (to an extent!  ) of drinkers of standard 'lager' in this country, they can drink what they want almost anywhere. The beer becomes far more important when you get to a pub where you can't find something you like ...

Call me fussy, but I'm not alone in this ...

I know atmosphere/clientele is pretty important too**, and the Elm Park does sound nice. I'd like to try it whatever the beer, but it would be nice to know what they serve and no-one's told me this ... unless I've missed a post ...

**My empirical experience over many years is that when in a new town, a pub recommended by the Good Beer Guide will often be friendly, and will generally be pretty unlikely to be troublesome ... exceptions in both directions, but as a rule of thumb it usually holds good. Honest!


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 17, 2007)

Anyway, in response to Orang's original post, I found this:

When you have lost your inns drown your empty selves, for you will have lost the last of England.


----------



## William of Walworth (Jan 17, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> When you have lost your inns drown your empty selves, for you will have lost the last of England.



Indeed!!!! 

It's all 'bars' nowadays ....


----------



## christonabike (Jan 17, 2007)

Can't remember what the bitter was like last time I was in

It's Pride or IPA - and is usually ok

Some twat was in there on Sunday, wanting Staropramen, they didn't have it but he made the barman list all the beers they have, and then decided to have Carling - he was a Spurs fan, so I was glad they lost


----------



## editor (Jan 17, 2007)

christonabike said:
			
		

> he was a Spurs fan, so I was glad they lost


Let's hope they lose again tonight!


----------



## christonabike (Jan 17, 2007)

I'm shouting for yers........


----------



## Onket (Jan 17, 2007)

christonabike said:
			
		

> Some twat was in there on Sunday, wanting Staropramen, they didn't have it but he made the barman list all the beers they have, and then decided to have Carling - he was a Spurs fan, so I was glad they lost



I see no problem with this- surely you are allowed to select what you want to drink from the options available?

But to choose Carling?!!! Yep, you're right, he's a twat!!


----------



## RaverDrew (Jan 17, 2007)

I'm a local born and raised in the area.

Elm Park Tavern is in between Brixton Hill and Tulse Hill.

Streatham Hill does not come into it at all.

Postcodes mean nothing round here, areas are definitely not defined by them.


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Jan 17, 2007)

William of Walworth said:
			
		

> Indeed!!!!
> 
> It's all 'bars' nowadays ....




and it's not only the old pub atmosphere that's disappearing, but the pub signs as well  











Oi, I thought you were banning yourself


----------



## SubZeroCat (Jan 17, 2007)

RaverDrew said:
			
		

> I'm a local born and raised in the area.
> 
> Elm Park Tavern is in between Brixton Hill and Tulse Hill.
> 
> ...



Sounds about right to me and the last sentence is definitely the most sensible approach to this stupid argument


----------



## William of Walworth (Jan 17, 2007)

Minnie_the_Minx said:
			
		

> Oi, I thought you were banning yourself



Read the relevant thread again, you loser!!!


----------



## William of Walworth (Jan 17, 2007)

RaverDrew said:
			
		

> Postcodes mean nothing round here, areas are definitely not defined by them.



I'm an ex postman and know all of em, but that point is very, very true


----------



## Loupylou (Jan 23, 2007)

gaijingirl said:
			
		

> SW2 is Brixton
> SW9 is Stockwell



Oh fuck me not this - I live in the part of SW9 of Brixton.
Had a row with someone in Scotland over the phone when I tried to correct the 'Stockwell' bit on the address they were writing to me on, it's because it came under the Post Office district or something.


----------



## OpalFruit (Jan 24, 2007)

RaverDrew said:
			
		

> I'm a local born and raised in the area.
> 
> Elm Park Tavern is in between Brixton Hill and Tulse Hill.
> 
> ...



Estate agents are rapidly re-inventing the bit off Elm Park as Streatham Hill. I saw a house on Claverdale advertised as being in Streatham Hill.

Do they think it will sell better if they airbrush out any reference to Brixton or  Tulse Hill? Even though house prices are higher in Brixton than Streatham Hill?

Madness.


----------



## Bob (Jan 24, 2007)

Loupylou said:
			
		

> Oh fuck me not this - I live in the part of SW9 of Brixton.
> Had a row with someone in Scotland over the phone when I tried to correct the 'Stockwell' bit on the address they were writing to me on, it's because it came under the Post Office district or something.


----------



## twistedAM (Feb 15, 2007)

Just spent a pleasant ten minutes talking to an old drayman whose beat this used to be in the late 60s/early 70s. Told me the Elm Park was well known throughout London as an actors and writers pub and was actually very plush compared to others in the area.

Even more interesting was that The Hand In Hand apparently used to have lock-ins for Osgood and the Chelsea players on Sundays. 

was pretty amazing to hear how pubs on Brixton Hill have changed over the years.


----------



## christonabike (Feb 15, 2007)

It's got fucking busy lately

I have no source other than Brixton tittle tattle but it's right up there for a re-fit


----------



## brixtonvilla (Feb 15, 2007)

Can't see it happening - looking at where it is it's never going to be a destination pub, is it? It's a neighbourhood boozer, somewhere to watch the footy and eat crisps. I just wish they'd turn the lights down on the pumps in there - I go half blind whenever I order a drink...


----------



## ChrisFilter (Feb 15, 2007)

I love the EPT.. those quiz nights were fun. I had cake there on my 22nd birthday or something.

Best pub in Brixton by a gadzallawallion.


----------



## passpat2 (Feb 15, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> ...


not been busy today then ?? ??


----------



## twistedAM (Feb 16, 2007)

brixtonvilla said:
			
		

> I just wish they'd turn the lights down on the pumps in there - I go half blind whenever I order a drink...


hee hee...they're a distraction to drivers on the way past..i always look in on the way past and those things are bright and the rest of the place look dark...it's all you can see from the outside


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Feb 16, 2007)

christonabike said:
			
		

> It's got fucking busy lately
> 
> I have no source other than Brixton tittle tattle but it's right up there for a re-fit




   You mean they'll be wallpaper on the wall next to the door?


----------



## Mation (Feb 16, 2007)

What's Elm Park like to live in then apart from having a proper pub? We've seen a flat there that we're thinking of moving to.


----------



## Mrs Miggins (Feb 16, 2007)

It's nice!
Only thing that's a bit annoying is that a number of drivers use it as a cut through between Tulse Hill and Brixton Hill and so you get a small amount of traffic going way to fast. 
Apart from that, I really like it. It's fairly quiet, 2 good shops with friendly shopkeepers and an excellent boozer


----------



## twistedAM (Feb 16, 2007)

yeah it's a good cut-through between Tulse Hill and Brixton Hill..drivers esp cabbies use it cos you come out on Brixton Hill at a light which is recommended procedure for attempting to get out on the Brixton Hill raceway

it's not really somehwre i'd fancy walking around alone at night though...am sure Minnie has comments to make on this


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Feb 16, 2007)

Nice enough road to live in, having lived there since 1985.  Since the congestion charging and parking permits and the amount of churches that have sprung up though, parking places seem to be disappearing although this issue is being addressed.

There's a couple of local (expensive) shops halfway down, a launderette, a chippy, a post office, and of course the pub.

Unfortunately, it is a bit hit and miss safety-wise.  Due to the way the road turns, if you're coming from Brixton Hill, it's a bit of a blind spot and I and others have been victims of attempted muggings.  Having said that, I'm sure there's plenty of other people who HAVEN'T had any trouble, and you could have the same trouble in any road, anywhere, so I wouldn't let that bother you.

All in all, not a bad place to live, and only a few minutes to Brixton Hill and 8 bus routes and in the opposite direction a 5 min walk to Brocky


----------



## Mation (Feb 16, 2007)

Hmmmm. We haven't actually been to the flat yet, so it depends on how irresistably lovely it is, I suppose. I'm used to living in places that some people think are full of trouble but where I have seen none of it and feel safe. Haven't lived anywhere that anyone I know has had trouble... Hmmmm...

Thanks for the info 

(and sorry for the derail!)


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Feb 16, 2007)

Mation said:
			
		

> Hmmmm. We haven't actually been to the flat yet, so it depends on how irresistably lovely it is, I suppose. I'm used to living in places that some people think are full of trouble but where I have seen none of it and feel safe. Haven't lived anywhere that anyone I know has had trouble... Hmmmm...
> 
> Thanks for the info
> 
> (and sorry for the derail!)




there's some lovely big houses down there on the left-hand side opposite the shops.  

I really wouldn't let a few attempted muggings affect your decision.  It could happen anywhere.

Josephine Avenue's a beautiful road but there's no way I'd choose to live there unless they improved the lighting etc.


----------



## Mrs Miggins (Feb 16, 2007)

We've lived there for almost 4 years and haven't had any trouble and Minnie's right, there are some lovely houses.


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Feb 16, 2007)

Mrs Miggins said:
			
		

> We've lived there for almost 4 years and haven't had any trouble and Minnie's right, there are some lovely houses.




Exactly.  I lived there for years before I had any trouble, whereas a guy I rentd my flat to temporarily was attacked within a couple of weeks  

But that was just bad luck


----------



## brixtonvilla (Feb 17, 2007)

Elm Park rocks - love it here. (Just round the corner acksherly, but wtf)


----------



## Minnie_the_Minx (Feb 19, 2007)

brixtonvilla said:
			
		

> Elm Park rocks - love it here. (Just round the corner acksherly, but wtf)




Elm Park wannabe     

Which corner?


----------



## brixtonvilla (Feb 19, 2007)

See PM, Miss Minx...


----------



## editor (May 30, 2017)

Update from someone on FB: 


> Last orders ever at the Elm Park Tavern as we know it - now closed for gentrification over the summer





> Closing for a refurb over the summer - reopening under new management & serving food with new flats for (high) rent above. It was a proper community pub for local folks & dogs & will be much missed.


----------



## Nanker Phelge (May 30, 2017)

Sad news.

Big respect to Matt the Landlord who left on Sunday.

He took my boy under his wing and taught him a lot about the pub game, and really looked out for him.


----------



## Twattor (May 31, 2017)

I have a feeling that EPT is part owned or linked in some other way to the people behind Brixton Beer lab, and also connected with King & Co on Clapham Park Road.

The King & Co model would work well there as they have virtually no kitchen - monthly residencies for up and coming chefs with a very limited menu.


----------



## DJWrongspeed (May 31, 2017)

Weird because it's had a big exterior redecoration and some interior work done upstairs of late. They put some staircase  in that made an already small pub tiny.

Hope it'll still work as a pub.


----------



## shakespearegirl (May 31, 2017)

They've been renovating the flats upstairs for a while. A few years ago they applied to fill in the rear garden to enlarge the building - the enlargement would have been the full height of the existing building. From memory it was rejected due to blocking light from adjoining properties in Archbishops Place


----------



## Twattor (May 31, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> They've been renovating the flats upstairs for a while. A few years ago they applied to fill in the rear garden to enlarge the building - the enlargement would have been the full height of the existing building. From memory it was rejected due to blocking light from adjoining properties in Archbishops Place


They've clearly been working at this for a while - application in 2011 to create a self contained flat at third floor followed by an application to remove the restriction that it is ancillary to the pub, then an application for the infill which is claimed to be ancillary to the pub at ground floor only but which actually means just the kitchen as the residential aspect is wholly self contained.

The new consent shaves a bit off the pub to create a corridor serving the new flats above and contains no restrictions whatsoever about retaining the accommodation for staff; however, the third floor flat access is actually through the flat on ground and second floor (which i didn't realise was still permissible these days) and i would imagine would be detrimental to amenity and value as well as having implications for fire stopping.

link here: 000P5RBOBU000     |                                                             Elm Park Hotel 76 Elm Park London SW2 2UB


----------



## Winot (May 31, 2017)

I really like the pub but the last couple of times I've been in (mid-week) it's been pretty empty. Only time I've seen it packed is for the quiz evening. Is that representative or not?


----------



## editor (May 31, 2017)

Thread title edited.


----------



## Twattor (May 31, 2017)

Winot said:


> I really like the pub but the last couple of times I've been in (mid-week) it's been pretty empty. Only time I've seen it packed is for the quiz evening. Is that representative or not?


mid-week I've often found it pretty empty - certainly the back room is often deserted, except, as you say on quiz nights. Love the pub, love the beer, love the eclectic collection of beer snacks, love the graffiti'd album covers in the gents, and have always loved that you can get a takeaway delivered and eat in; but i've always felt there to be a bit of a "slaughtered lamb" vibe - the locals go quiet and turn to look at you as you walk in.


----------



## Pickman's model (May 31, 2017)

(((the albert)))


----------



## editor (May 31, 2017)

Pickman's model said:


> View attachment 108088
> 
> (((the albert)))


The Albert can hardly claim to be a 'proper boozer' anymore seeing as it has no comfy chairs or sofas. Or any regular chairs for that matter.


----------



## CH1 (Jun 1, 2017)

editor said:


> The Albert can hardly claim to be a 'proper boozer' anymore seeing as it has no comfy chairs or sofas. Or any regular chairs for that matter.


When I last attended the Albert (maybe last year) the Greene King ales were on CO2 which seems a bit weird. If the manufacturer can't be bothered to serve its ales correctly leaving one to seek out the nearest Wetherspoons, what is the Brixton pub world coming to?
Apart from that it was also about £1 a pint more expensive.


----------



## editor (Jun 1, 2017)

CH1 said:


> When I last attended the Albert (maybe last year) the Greene King ales were on CO2 which seems a bit weird. If the manufacturer can't be bothered to serve its ales correctly leaving one to seek out the nearest Wetherspoons, what is the Brixton pub world coming to?
> Apart from that it was also about £1 a pint more expensive.


No one can compete with Wetherspoons extra-cheap prices but the Albert is by far the cheapest DJ bar/pub in Brixton that stays open late. Boy, I miss the Grosvenor.


----------



## alex_ (Jun 1, 2017)

Twattor said:


> I have a feeling that EPT is part owned or linked in some other way to the people behind Brixton Beer lab, and also connected with King & Co on Clapham Park Road.
> 
> The King & Co model would work well there as they have virtually no kitchen - monthly residencies for up and coming chefs with a very limited menu.



Yes - the same guy manages both pubs, I understand they are putting in a small kitchen.

Alex


----------



## editor (Jun 1, 2017)

alex_ said:


> Yes - the same guy manages both pubs, I understand they are putting in a small kitchen.
> 
> Alex


Here's their menu for King & Co.  Food for "striking tram workers" in a posh pub, ffs.


----------



## Pickman's model (Jun 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Here's their menu for King & Co.  Food for "striking tram workers" in a posh pub, ffs.
> 
> View attachment 108163


field MUSHROOM 
pickled PEPPER 

one mushroom  one pepper  fucking £8?


----------



## editor (Jun 1, 2017)

Pickman's model said:


> field MUSHROOM
> pickled PEPPER
> 
> one mushroom  one pepper  fucking £8?


Beef shin debris and bone marrow gravy sounds like something you'd scrape off the road after an accident.


----------



## editor (Jun 1, 2017)

Spot the photographer!  







Gallery – The King & Co


----------



## Pickman's model (Jun 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Spot the photographer!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## twistedAM (Jun 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Here's their menu for King & Co.  Food for "striking tram workers" in a posh pub, ffs.
> 
> View attachment 108163



Hmmm. I always thought Po Boy was short for Poor Boy and was a packed lunch for low paid farm workers. Not as good a story though.


----------



## editor (Jun 1, 2017)

twistedAM said:


> Hmmm. I always thought Po Boy was short for Poor Boy and was a packed lunch for low paid farm workers. Not as good a story though.


Here's what Wikipedia says: 


> In the late 1800s fried oyster sandwiches on French loaves were known in New Orleans and San Francisco as "oyster loaves", a term still in use in the 21st century. A sandwich containing both fried shrimp and fried oysters is often called a "peacemaker" or "La Mediatrice".[4]
> 
> There are countless stories as to the origin of the term "po' boy". A popular local theory claims that "po' boy", as specifically referring to a type of sandwich, was coined in a New Orleans restaurant owned by Benny and Clovis Martin (originally from Raceland, Louisiana), former streetcar conductors.[5] In 1929, during a four-month strike against the streetcar company, the Martin brothers served their former colleagues free sandwiches.[5] The Martins' restaurant workers jokingly referred to the strikers as "poor boys", and soon the sandwiches themselves took on the name.[5] In Louisiana dialect, this is naturally shortened to "po' boy."[5]
> 
> ...


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 6, 2017)

Elm Park Tavern re-opening this weekend. I've peeked in a few times going past and it looks like they've done a nice job on the renovation.


----------



## editor (Nov 6, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> Elm Park Tavern re-opening this weekend. I've peeked in a few times going past and it looks like they've done a nice job on the renovation.


The key thing for me is:
1. The Prices
2. Does it still feel like a pub?


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 6, 2017)

The Sunday roast menu is up on their Instagram page and I can't work out how to copy it! Mains are £16 and puddings £6. No drinks prices on there. Looked quite like a pub from what I could see, although a trendyish one..


----------



## Pickman's model (Nov 6, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> The Sunday roast menu is up on their Instagram page and I can't work out how to copy it! Mains are £16 and puddings £6. No drinks prices on there. Looked quite like a pub from what I could see, although a trendyish one..


use the snipping tool https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/help/13776/windows-use-snipping-tool-to-capture-screenshots


----------



## Pickman's model (Nov 6, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> The Sunday roast menu is up on their Instagram page and I can't work out how to copy it! Mains are £16 and puddings £6. No drinks prices on there. Looked quite like a pub from what I could see, although a trendyish one..


----------



## snowy_again (Nov 6, 2017)




----------



## DJWrongspeed (Nov 6, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> Elm Park Tavern re-opening this weekend. I've peeked in a few times going past and it looks like they've done a nice job on the renovation.


Weird , I went past and it still looks closed, will pass by later, last time I looked  in they'd ripped out the bar architecture So dread to think what it looks like. It's a small corner pub so hard to see how it can work as a small food biz?


----------



## RoyReed (Nov 6, 2017)

It used to be my dad's local. I can remember going with him to buy a couple of bottles of beer from the off-sales door when I was about six. This was in the late '50s. I don't think they did food then.


----------



## editor (Nov 6, 2017)

DJWrongspeed said:


> Weird , I went past and it still looks closed, will pass by later, last time I looked  in they'd ripped out the bar architecture So dread to think what it looks like. It's a small corner pub so hard to see how it can work as a small food biz?


I imagine they're just positioning themselves to fit the new, well heeled demographic.


----------



## DJWrongspeed (Nov 6, 2017)

Oh I get it now, *this* weekend


----------



## jimbarkanoodle (Nov 7, 2017)

Silly food prices, no doubt booze will be similarly ridiculous. one to avoid.


----------



## Twattor (Nov 7, 2017)

I can't imagine the beer prices will change much - ownership hasn't changed, after all, and EPT wasn't exactly a cheap place to drink before the refurb. I expect that it will all be quite similar to K&C.  

I've been told that EPT will have a permanent kitchen rather than the ever changing visiting chefs at K&C, which is a bit disappointing. I'd been looking forward to the same variety of food but without the long walk.


----------



## jimbarkanoodle (Nov 7, 2017)

Some of the beer pricing in the King and Co is beyond ludicrous, its down right hilarious and scandalous. 

the food in there seems like quite a good deal in comparison, where a full meal is rarely a more than a tenner (a couple of quid more than some bottles of the beer they sell!)


----------



## editor (Nov 7, 2017)

£7.60 for a pint of American Amber Ale!


----------



## alcopop (Nov 7, 2017)

jimbarkanoodle said:


> Some of the beer pricing in the King and Co is beyond ludicrous, its down right hilarious and scandalous.
> 
> the food in there seems like quite a good deal in comparison, where a full meal is rarely a more than a tenner (a couple of quid more than some bottles of the beer they sell!)


Some are competitively priced and then others are more expensive. 

It’s like a wine list


----------



## editor (Nov 7, 2017)

alcopop said:


> Some are competitively priced and then others are more expensive.
> 
> It’s like a wine list


Competitively priced compared to which pubs in the area?


----------



## Twattor (Nov 7, 2017)

editor said:


> Competitively priced compared to which pubs in the area?


 
Most pubs that aren't a JD Wetherspoons.  A selection of keg lagers around £4.50-£5.00 for the volume drinkers, which i believe is pretty typical in london.  Cask ales are likely to be cheaper, but they'll probably also have a selection of interesting keg beers which cost a bit more.  

If i want a dozen pints for very little money i'll go to the Crown, but for a few halfs of something more interesting I'll go somewhere like K&C and pay a bit more.  I've seldom seen people in K&C getting hammered smashing into multiple £10 pints - these are tasting drinks rather than session booze. People in K&C are more likely to be getting hammered from the modern horror that is the bottomless boozy brunch, which hopefully will not be coming to EPT.


----------



## editor (Nov 7, 2017)

Twattor said:


> Most pubs that aren't a JD Wetherspoons.  A selection of keg lagers around £4.50-£5.00 for the volume drinkers, which i believe is pretty typical in london.  Cask ales are likely to be cheaper, but they'll probably also have a selection of interesting keg beers which cost a bit more.


The nearby Windmill is loads cheaper and the Albert down the road charges £3.70 for a pint of Amstel, and a fiver for a round of three shots.


----------



## jimbarkanoodle (Nov 7, 2017)

The Windmill isnt much better tbh, as with all Youngs pubs!

The Alexandra, just up from the the King and Co on Clapham high street is reasonably priced.


----------



## technical (Nov 8, 2017)

Had a peek on way home this evening as you can now see through the windows again. Looks like there's plenty to do if they're going to be open by the weekend, but the bar layout appears to be the same. I'd assumed there'd be more room for tables and chairs if they're focusing more on food - but i suppose they may have made the back room bigger. 

So still looks like a boozer any road


----------



## clandestino (Nov 8, 2017)

jimbarkanoodle said:


> The Windmill isnt much better tbh, as with all Youngs pubs!
> 
> The Alexandra, just up from the the King and Co on Clapham high street is reasonably priced.



Think you might be talking about two different Windmills. I'm assuming editor means the Windmill in Brixton, whereas I guess you mean the Windmill on Clapham Common, as that's a Youngs pub. 

The poor EPT hasn't had the best of luck. I have fond memories of it in its old backstreet boozer incarnation, but however it turns out, it'll be good to see it open again.


----------



## Crispy (Nov 9, 2017)

Took a couple of pics on my way in. Not looking too awful.

Back room:

 

Bar:


----------



## clandestino (Nov 9, 2017)

"Pint of cough mixture and two packets of aspirins please mate..."


----------



## Nanker Phelge (Nov 9, 2017)

Boots the Boozer


----------



## clandestino (Nov 9, 2017)

Still, I like it - looks good. Green flock wallpaper reminds me of the Canterbury.


----------



## Nanker Phelge (Nov 9, 2017)

Hopefully the walls don't crumble like they did in the Canterbury....


----------



## bemused (Nov 9, 2017)

It's not a proper pub unless is serves jumbo sausage in a  roll.


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## editor (Nov 9, 2017)

Nanker Phelge said:


> Hopefully the walls don't crumble like they did in the Canterbury....


I'd take a crumbling wall over a nu-Brixton poshbar any day of the week!


----------



## alex_ (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> £7.60 for a pint of American Amber Ale!



Last night they had brick brewery bitter for 3.80.

A pint of craft beer for less than 4 quid, in central
Clapham, most of the other ales were less than 4.60

Alex


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

alex_ said:


> Last night they had brick brewery bitter for 3.80.
> 
> A pint of craft beer for less than 4 quid, in central
> Clapham, most of the other ales were less than 4.60
> ...


Well, that's much better, although there's no reason why 'craft beer' should always be expected to be inherently expensive anyway.


----------



## Twattor (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> Well, that's much better, although there's no reason why 'craft beer' should always be expected to be inherently expensive anyway.


 There is, simply because it is mostly brewed by tiny breweries who don't get the colossal economies of scale of the majors like AB InBev, Heineken International etc., who use far more expensive ingredients, and are more labour intensive.  You get what you pay for.


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

Twattor said:


> There is, simply because it is mostly brewed by tiny breweries who don't get the colossal economies of scale of the majors like AB InBev, Heineken International etc., who use far more expensive ingredients, and are more labour intensive.  You get what you pay for.


You can still brew beer in smallish quantities and sell it for a reasonable price - unless you're after the biggest profit. There's plenty of smallish breweries offering beer at prices that don't destroy the wallet. Producing your own beer has become much more affordable these days.


----------



## Twattor (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> You can still brew beer in smallish quantities and sell it for a reasonable price - unless you're after the biggest profit. There's plenty of smallish breweries offering beer at prices that don't destroy the wallet. Producing your own beer has become much more affordable these days.


Possibly if you're brewing English style cask ales with English hops and malts, or brewing at home for personal consumption.  Most popular beers these days are brewed for keg rather than cask (a far more expensive brewing process) and with new world hops imported from the antipodes and the Americas. Expensive methods and expensive materials equals more expensive beers.


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

Twattor said:


> Possibly if you're brewing English style cask ales with English hops and malts, or brewing at home for personal consumption.  Most popular beers these days are brewed for keg rather than cask (a far more expensive brewing process) and with new world hops imported from the antipodes and the Americas. Expensive methods and expensive materials equals more expensive beers.


Nope. There's plenty of small scale breweries who are happy to produce limited run beers and it's no longer the huge expense it was. I know this for a fact because I've done it in the past and I'm currently ordering another largish batch now. How about you? When was the last time you produced a beer?


----------



## Twattor (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> Nope. There's plenty of small scale breweries who are happy to produce limited run beers and it's no longer the huge expense it was. I know this for a fact because I've done it in the past and I'm currently ordering another largish batch now. How about you? When was the last time you produced a beer?


You're conveniently forgetting about product differentiation. You might just as well be saying: "Fiat cars are cheap, I don't understand why Ferraris are so expensive". There is a lot more to it than simply attributing the price to the brewer's greed.


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

Twattor said:


> You're conveniently forgetting about product differentiation. You might just as well be saying: "Fiat cars are cheap, I don't understand why Ferraris are so expensive". There is a lot more to it than simply attributing the price to the brewer's greed.


*Actually, I can't be arsed. I've brewed many hundreds of bottles of 'craft beer' and know exactly how much it costs, and there's no point arguing with someone who hasn't and it's got little to do with this pub.


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

Offer for locals!


----------



## alex_ (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> You can still brew beer in smallish quantities and sell it for a reasonable price - unless you're after the biggest profit. There's plenty of smallish breweries offering beer at prices that don't destroy the wallet. Producing your own beer has become much more affordable these days.



Sure, but are you saying that the only reason beers vary in price is margin ?

Because that’s blatantly rubbish, cost depends upon ingredients, scale, distribution cost, beer duty is charged at about 10p per pint per percent of alcohol, you pay vat on the final price AND then there is margin.

So the American beers price you quote above, can you think why that might cost more per pint than green king ipa ? ( ie ale at the Albert )

Alex


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

alex_ said:


> Sure, but are you saying that the only reason beers vary in price is margin ?


----------



## alex_ (Nov 10, 2017)

Two posts up

“I've brewed many hundreds of bottles of 'craft beer' and know exactly how much it costs,”

Alex


----------



## editor (Nov 10, 2017)

alex_ said:


> Two posts up
> 
> “I've brewed many hundreds of bottles of 'craft beer' and know exactly how much it costs,”
> 
> Alex


Yes, I know exactly how much the _beer I brewed c_ost and for that reason I know that not _all _craft beer has to be inherently expensive. That's what I stated many posts ago and it seems a pretty uncontroversial statement to me. However, you seem determined to spin this into a dull argument but I'm sorry I'm out.


----------



## Twattor (Nov 10, 2017)

editor said:


> *Actually, I can't be arsed. I've brewed many hundreds of bottles of 'craft beer' and know exactly how much it costs, and there's no point arguing with someone who hasn't and it's got little to do with this pub.


That's a disappointing response. You've commissioned rather than brewed. You've used others' facilities and probably received a discount on costs as it was charitable. 

Again you choose to ignore that beyond getting beer straight from the brewery it has to go through wholesalers to outlet, both of whom have overheads, office costs, bills, staff costs (and I'm sure there would be an outcry if you thought staff weren't getting LLW). Costs at the brewery aren't the same as costs in the pub. 

I'd rather live on a world where pubs survive and you can get an interesting beer, even if I have to pay a bit more for it.


----------



## Twattor (Nov 10, 2017)

I can report that sadly the vinyl covers artwork is gone from the gents, although the dodgy drainpipe on the stairs remains. 

In other respects I love the new pub. 6 handpumps, possibly 12 taps. Maybe 3 ciders and 5 lagers although none of the big brands. Loads of ales and even Brixton's latest sour if you like that sort of thing.

I'm uncertain about prices as I'm buying halfs but most expensive pair of halfs has been £4.40 (beer not lager), which I don't think is bad for London.


----------



## technical (Nov 13, 2017)

Went in for a drink on Saturday afternoon. It’s actually changed very little bar redecoration. Even seems to be pretty much the same choice of beer (cheapest pint is £4.30). Suppose the big change is they’re doing food, but didn’t see anyone eating. Menu was short but looked good (there were several veggie options).

So definitely still a proper boozer to me.


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 19, 2017)

Had lunch there today. Food was lovely. Not really a beer drinker but there seemed to be a good range. Was packed, turning over tables rapidly.


----------



## alex_ (Nov 19, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> Had lunch there today. Food was lovely. Not really a beer drinker but there seemed to be a good range. Was packed, turning over tables rapidly.



Not a surprise it’s in an big gap between pubs - the white horse, the crown and sceptre and the hootenanny - all of which are at about half a mile away.

Alex


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 19, 2017)

The guys running it seemed really nice. Very friendly, chatting to customers, open to suggestions on how to improve things


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 19, 2017)

I forgot to print my discount coupon but the were happy to discount me anyway


----------



## mx wcfc (Nov 21, 2017)

turned up on my fb.


----------



## ViolentPanda (Nov 23, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> I forgot to print my discount coupon but the were happy to discount me anyway



Why did I read that as "...happy to dismount me anyway"?


----------



## editor (Nov 23, 2017)

I want the thread title to be accurate, so how best should the thread be titled?


----------



## mx wcfc (Nov 23, 2017)

If I make it to the Dulwich game tomorrow (and forgive this basically repeating what I said on the weekend thread) I was planning to go home via Brixton, where I lived for a couple of years in the early 80s.  

I have had a peek on Google Maps and it looks like both of my old haunts are gone. (The Old White Horse and The Railway.)  Not sure it's worth the trip.    Very sad.


----------



## clandestino (Nov 23, 2017)

editor said:


> I want the thread title to be accurate, so how best should the thread be titled?



...a backstreet pub in Brixton? 

Sounds like it's settled down into being a decent half and half. Not the ragged and charming boozer of yore but not a soulless gentropub either.


----------



## T & P (Nov 24, 2017)

editor said:


> I want the thread title to be accurate, so how best should the thread be titled?


How about just 'Elm Park Tavern'? Lose the rest...


----------



## Mrs Miggins (Nov 24, 2017)

Wow so interesting to see this. I used to live on Elm Park and we were in most evenings for a pint and review of the day.


----------



## Rushy (Nov 24, 2017)

T & P said:


> How about just 'Elm Park Tavern'? Lose the rest...


Especially as it is one of the last remaining examples of a pub pub in Brixton. i.e. has not become another impersonal destination club pub. Good luck to them.


----------



## shakespearegirl (Nov 24, 2017)

I'm really happy to have a nice pub on my doorstep. The lovely food is a bonus.


----------



## alex_ (Nov 24, 2017)

shakespearegirl said:


> I'm really happy to have a nice pub on my doorstep. The lovely food is a bonus.



I like the pet, and I think the days of a pub surviving for long without offering food have long gone - it’s either a bit posh and food or flats.

Alex


----------



## editor (Nov 30, 2017)

A friend posted this on FB: "The Elm Park Tavern. New management same shit beer..."


----------



## editor (Nov 30, 2017)

One comment 

"Looks like actual turds"


----------



## blameless77 (Nov 30, 2017)

editor said:


> A friend posted this on FB: "The Elm Park Tavern. New management same shit beer..."
> 
> View attachment 121780



Craft beer?

£20 a pint.....


----------



## editor (Dec 1, 2017)

Hmm. My friend wasn't impressed at all with the customer service after CloudyBeerGate. They management sounds like a right bunch of wankers (for the record, my mate is not the argumentative type at all. He just wanted a nice beer)



> The problem is the people managing the pub. If someone says their beer is bad, you pour it down the sink and give them a different beer of their choice. Job done. You don't pretend your beer is fine, start a long argument with them and threaten to bar them! Especially when said customers have booked tables for a birthday party and have already spent hundreds of pounds on food.



Another urbanite added:


> It was very very bad. They have no concept of the basics of customer service whatsoever, plus clearly no training in how to keep beer.



Oh, and it was £5.80 a pint.


----------



## alex_ (Dec 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Hmm. My friend wasn't impressed at all with the customer service after CloudyBeerGate. They management sounds like a right bunch of wankers (for the record, my mate is not the argumentative type at all. He just wanted a nice beer)
> 
> 
> 
> ...



This is all very poor, what was the beer in question ?

Alex


----------



## Twattor (Dec 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Hmm. My friend wasn't impressed at all with the customer service after CloudyBeerGate. They management sounds like a right bunch of wankers (for the record, my mate is not the argumentative type at all. He just wanted a nice beer)
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Unlikely to be bad if it is keg beer.  A lot of craft beer (and particularly vegan beer) is unfined, so will be cloudy.  I've had plenty of beers that look even worse that that in similar places, and it is how they are meant to be.  I could show you beers from a can that look just like that.  Sometimes it is more a case of educating the punters.

Of course it does depend on the pub - if you get a beer like that in Wetherspoons then DEFINITELY send it back.

I'd be very interested to know what it was.


----------



## Nanker Phelge (Dec 1, 2017)

More concerned about management reaction than the cloudy beer.

It's a shame really, because there was ropey beer in there before, but Matt was a very good landlord.


----------



## editor (Dec 1, 2017)

Twattor said:


> Unlikely to be bad if it is keg beer.  A lot of craft beer (and particularly vegan beer) is unfined, so will be cloudy.  I've had plenty of beers that look even worse that that in similar places, and it is how they are meant to be.  I could show you beers from a can that look just like that.  Sometimes it is more a case of educating the punters.
> 
> Of course it does depend on the pub - if you get a beer like that in Wetherspoons then DEFINITELY send it back.
> 
> I'd be very interested to know what it was.


My friends are full-on real ales drinkers, by the way. Even if the beer is supposed to look like a liquid turd, they way he was treated was a disgrace.


----------



## Twattor (Dec 1, 2017)

editor said:


> My friends are fill-on real ales drinkers, by the way. Even if the beer is supposed to look like a liquid turd, they way he was treated was a disgrace.


I've spent a lot of years on both sides of the bar and a lot of the time it comes down to the how the customer raises the matter.  I've had people bring perfectly fine beers back claiming they were off just because they didn't like them, and depending on how they'd go about it i may or may not change them.  I've taken beers back myself when i couldn't tell whether the beer was off or just a nasty beer - i ask the staff to taste them and tell me if they are OK, and 9 times out of 10 they'll tip them away and change them rather than being put on the spot.

If a customer was to bring a perfectly fine pint back and insist it was off when it wasn't, then I'd expect the bar staff to explain that it was OK, for the benefit of others who might be drinking the same beer - the last thing you want is a whole pub returning their pints for no reason.  As a gesture of goodwill I'd expect them to offer an alternative, but without obligation and on the basis that there was nothing wrong.  If the customer wouldn't accept the explanation and got argumentative, then they might well expect to be asked to leave.


----------



## editor (Dec 1, 2017)

Twattor said:


> I've spent a lot of years on both sides of the bar and a lot of the time it comes down to the how the customer raises the matter.  I've had people bring perfectly fine beers back claiming they were off just because they didn't like them, and depending on how they'd go about it i may or may not change them.  I've taken beers back myself when i couldn't tell whether the beer was off or just a nasty beer - i ask the staff to taste them and tell me if they are OK, and 9 times out of 10 they'll tip them away and change them rather than being put on the spot.
> 
> If a customer was to bring a perfectly fine pint back and insist it was off when it wasn't, then I'd expect the bar staff to explain that it was OK, for the benefit of others who might be drinking the same beer - the last thing you want is a whole pub returning their pints for no reason.  As a gesture of goodwill I'd expect them to offer an alternative, but without obligation and on the basis that there was nothing wrong.  If the customer wouldn't accept the explanation and got argumentative, then they might well expect to be asked to leave.


Sorry are you trying to suggest it was my friend's fault here? You know, the person you absolutely nothing about?

There was plenty of people who were equally pissed off with how the staff dealt with this issue.


----------



## alex_ (Dec 1, 2017)

editor said:


> My friends are full-on real ales drinkers, by the way. Even if the beer is supposed to look like a liquid turd, they way he was treated was a disgrace.



Turd soup !


----------



## Twattor (Dec 1, 2017)

editor said:


> Sorry are you trying to suggest it was my friend's fault here? You know, the person you absolutely nothing about?
> 
> There was plenty of people who were equally pissed off with how the staff dealt with this issue.


Surely it comes down to whether the beer was actually off. I had a pint in there on Sunday afternoon that looked very much like that but tasted as it should. It might have been Mondo's Hop Chowdah, which is a challenging pint, so someone ordering it expecting a standard IPA would be surprised. That is why pubs offer tasters. It doesn't mean the beer is off or the pub should have to throw money down the drain because someone didn't like the beer.

There are two sides to every story, and you have been quick to slate the pub on the basis of one side. Have you asked them for their side?


----------



## editor (Dec 1, 2017)

Twattor said:


> Surely it comes down to whether the beer was actually off. I had a pint in there on Sunday afternoon that looked very much like that but tasted as it should. It might have been Mondo's Hop Chowdah, which is a challenging pint, so someone ordering it expecting a standard IPA would be surprised. That is why pubs offer tasters. It doesn't mean the beer is off or the pub should have to throw money down the drain because someone didn't like the beer.
> 
> There are two sides to every story, and you have been quick to slate the pub on the basis of one side. Have you asked them for their side?


They're being slagged off because of the way they treated a customer who was part of a large group of locals spending a lot of money there. A customer who is over 50 and knows his real ale. But if that's how you like to be treated as a customer go fill your boots. You keep on defending what you know nothing about.


----------



## Nanker Phelge (Dec 2, 2017)

Maybe everyone was just having a bad day and they can all make up and be friends again.

.....and then fall out again over the price of beer...


----------



## Twattor (Dec 2, 2017)

editor said:


> They're being slagged off because of the way they treated a customer who was part of a large group of locals spending a lot of money there. A customer who is over 50 and knows his real ale. But if that's how you like to be treated as a customer go fill your boots. You keep on defending what you know nothing about.


Pubs can't re-sell booze people send back. It is just lost profit. A lot of people spend money there and if they were to give free beer to everyone because they don't like what they've ordered then they wouldn't be open for long.

If you search "elm park tavern Brixton" then this thread is high on the results returned. Is is not fair to a recently reopened pub to be posting one sided unsubstantiated complaints without giving the pub right to reply. You have a duty in that respect.

EPT, K&C and Beer Lab take pride in their beers. EPT actually have someone brew for them unlike other pubs that just buy and rebrand. They don't knowingly serve beer that's off. I've never had cause to return a beer to them but from what I know of their staff I wouldn't expect it to be a problem.

This, and the fact that I think I drank the same beer on the same day is why I doubt your friend's account.  If I ran the pub, and if someone came in and criticised perfectly good beer, demanded I replaced it at my expense, and then posted all over social media when I didn't give them a freebee then they wouldn't be welcome back.


----------



## RubyToogood (Dec 2, 2017)

I was actually there and they googled the beer to check what it was supposed to look like before complaining.


----------



## editor (Dec 2, 2017)

RubyToogood said:


> I was actually there and they googled the beer to check what it was supposed to look like before complaining.


So there crumbles Twattor's pointless and ignorant defence of the pub.


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## DJWrongspeed (Dec 3, 2017)

I went there yesterday for the first time after reopening. It's sad about the bar shelves removal. It actually just makes he whole place more reverberant. Wide selection of beers, kind of too many really but they were happy to let us taste some of them. With so many beers on tap I'm not surprised about variable quality.

Still it was busy and just about still a pub. Seems to have opened up a whole market for families and i'm glad the 2nd room is still there.


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## artyfarty (Dec 3, 2017)

It's even noisier now as there are no soft furnishings to absorb the noise, with the bar shelves gone the tiles behind the bar just make it worse. On the plus side the smell from the bogs of detol or whatever it was has gone!


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## alex_ (Dec 3, 2017)

editor said:


> So there crumbles Twattor's pointless and ignorant defence of the pub.



Does anyone actually know what the beer was ?

Alex


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## sparkybird (Dec 5, 2017)

Went for Sunday lunch, on Sunday obv. Pretty decent grub, beers ace, wine OK. 
Staff were lovely! 
Will go back and try mid week evening food.... soon


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## editor (Dec 5, 2017)

alex_ said:


> Does anyone actually know what the beer was ?
> 
> Alex


Does it matter now? Ruby Toogood clearly said, "I was actually there and they googled the beer to check what it was supposed to look like before complaining."


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## T & P (Dec 6, 2017)

This is the problem with the internet:  Individual opinions and experiences, which until the advent of the WWW had had a limited impact on the fortunes of a business, are now seen as carrying a potentially critical influence thanks to the power of the interwebs.

FFIW I’d like to think most people will still have the presence of mind to give a place a go regardless of what they might have read about it based on the experiences of one or two anonymous punters on the net. But I can’t blame the owners of the businesses in question for being apprehensive about what iymt’s published online about them.


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## editor (Dec 6, 2017)

T & P said:


> This is the problem with the internet:  Individual opinions and experiences, which until the advent of the WWW had had a limited impact on the fortunes of a business, are now seen as carrying a potentially critical influence thanks to the power of the interwebs.
> 
> FFIW I’d like to think most people will still have the presence of mind to give a place a go regardless of what they might have read about it based on the experiences of one or two anonymous punters on the net. But I can’t blame the owners of the businesses in question for being apprehensive about what iymt’s published online about them.


They're more than welcome to post their thoughts here without any censorship at all. As far as I can see almost all previous mentions of the place have been positive - in fact, many urbs used to go to the quiz there (myself included). So it's not a hostile forum at all.

But just to put the record straight about this instance: these weren't random internet people with an axe grind. 

Some of them are long term urban posters and many in the group are people I know personally and almost all of them are long, long term Brixtonites. They're the kind of people who like to support pubs and that's why around 20 of them went along to the Elm Park Tavern. To piss them off so completely really is some achievement.


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## Nanker Phelge (Dec 26, 2017)

Popped in yesterday (xmas day). Guy working behind the bar was a bit of a dick.

He left us stood there for five mins while he 'popped a bag across the road' (instead if just serving us then popping the bag across the road)

When he returned I asked to taste two IPAs and he said 'you're pushing your luck now'

I replied that if he wanted me to buy a drink then I wanted to try them out first, he said 'I'm only joking' and maybe he was, but it didn't feel like banter to me. Just cocky bollocks.

We only stayed for one drink, but during the time we were there he got into an argument with some bloke outside, then they both came inside and they carried on arguing quite openly. 

He came off like some jack the lad hipster coke head....

ETA: He did give an old chap a replacement alternative pint for one that wasn't to his liking....


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## editor (Dec 26, 2017)

Nanker Phelge said:


> Popped in yesterday (xmas day). Guy working behind the bar was a bit of a dick.
> 
> He left us stood there for five mins while he 'popped a bag across the road' (instead if just serving us then popping the bag across the road)
> 
> ...


From recent reports, I'm finding it hard to find any reason to make the effort to visit this place.


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## han (Jan 2, 2018)

editor said:


> From recent reports, I'm finding it hard to find any reason to make the effort to visit this place.



Really, don't bother. I was there the evening of CloudyBeerGate - I wrote a review on their Facebook page, and over the following days had a very involved (but polite and civil) email exchange with the owner about what had happened.

He asked the staff about what had happened. Yes the beer is supposed to be cloudy, but not as deeply cloudy as it was.

The real issue, however, is the rudeness of the the staff. Had they dealt with the situation in a good-hearted and cooperative manner, they wouldn't have lost the custom of the group of 20+ locals who were there, spending hundreds of pounds on food, and most of whom won't ever set foot in that pub again.

I'm going to stick to my friendly, welcoming local - The Hand In Hand.


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## han (Jan 2, 2018)

Nanker Phelge said:


> He came off like some jack the lad hipster coke head....
> 
> .



I feel a bit sorry for the owner actually. He tried hard to do the right thing and find out what had happened. But if you have staff who have an attitude problem then you're going to alienate quite a large section of the community who care about these things. People who want a pub to be a community space, a Public House, not just a place where a transaction occurs.


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## editor (Jan 2, 2018)

han said:


> Really, don't bother. I was there the evening of CloudyBeerGate - I wrote a review on their Facebook page, and over the following days had a very involved (but polite and civil) email exchange with the owner about what had happened.
> 
> He asked the staff about what had happened. Yes the beer is supposed to be cloudy, but not as deeply cloudy as it was.
> 
> ...


If I lived closer, the Hand would be my local too. Top pub!


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## han (Jan 2, 2018)

I must clarify, I never post reviews up of anything unless my experience has been either very bad, or exceptionally good.

And I always make an effort to be very polite and friendly to bar staff , as I know what a hard job it can be. But it needs to be reciprocated.


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## Nanker Phelge (Jan 2, 2018)

I'm not sure who the geezer that served me is, but his pic is all over their promotional material...and I think he realised he was being a bit of a cock and did try to bring it back to a 'bit of banter'...


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