As the sole London outlet of Sussex brewers Harvey’s of Lewes, The Royal Oak is very much a magnet for beer lovers as well as representing a sympathetic rescue of a fine and unusual Victorian interior. Harvey’s occupies an unusual place in the pantheon of UK brewers in that — along with Timothy Taylor’s of Yorkshire — it is the most widely admired and respected with the brewing trade. When, in 1999, the River Ouse burst its banks and inundated the brewery, other rival brewers rallied round, offering casks, assistance with saving the yeast strain and — significantly — not poaching accounts when the brewery was down. As a result Harvey’s found in 1790, was back in production in remarkably short time, and its ardent band of followers could breathe a sign of relief. The Jenner family who run the firm have had their share of adversity in recent years. The brewery was ravaged by fire only a few years before the flood. A plague of frogs is expected at any time.
Harvey’s Sussex Bitter is occasionally available in some of London’s better beer establishments, but a pub offering the full range is a boon, and the chance of drinking them in such pleasant surroundings is an added bonus — the cast-iron pillars and ceiling plasterwork are original.
The entrance on Nebraska Street opens onto an office window in the bar, with a door to the saloon bar to the left and onto the public bar on the right, creating a separation of the kind that is now pretty rare. Pale eggshell walls in the public bar and richer burgundy colours in the saloon bar are judiciously hung with prints. In the public bar the prints are of a theatrical nature, reflecting the dramatic interest of brewery boss Miles Jenner. In the saloon the brewery itself is well represented.
Drinkers in the public bar have the odd sensation of looking at the back of the bar of the saloon as there is no corresponding frontage at head height. The sweeping lines created are very effective.
A little off the beaten track, perhaps, but the pub is still well situated to act a staging post when exploring historic Southwark, and with Little Dorrit Street, Copperfield Street and Quilp Street all nearby the area’s literary connections are not in doubt. Vinopolis, Southwark Cathedral and Tate Modern are all within walking distance. Looking west, the Imperial War Museum is a 10-minute walk.
Address
44 Tabard Street
Southwark
London
SE1 4JU
020 7357 7173
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