News Shopper leisure and what's on for Bexley, Bromley, Dartford, Gravesend, Greenwich, Lewisham

Review: Lullingstone Castle, Swanley

12:48pm Tuesday 14th May 2013

SETTING the record for earliest hostile stare on arrival at a pub, ladies and gentlemen raise your glasses to Lullingstone Castle in Swanley.

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Review: The White Hart Hotel, New Cross

9:35am Monday 13th May 2013

It is not clear how this confusion crept in, but Pub Spy is not a wedding singer. Requests are absolutely discouraged. 

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Review: Rambler's Rest, Chislehurst

12:17pm Thursday 9th May 2013

THE Rambler’s Rest has been quenching thirsts since 1684, and the furnishings could be due an update.

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Review: The Dart, Dartford

8:50am Friday 3rd May 2013

MAYBE they were born on a Crossfire Hurricane, but if you want to mark out Mick and Keef’s old stomping ground then The Dart in Chastilian Road is about bullseye.

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Review: The Ladywell Tavern

SOME people spend their lives looking for 'it'. They should go to Ladywell.

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Review: The Station Hotel, Hither Green

12:55pm Friday 26th April 2013

IMAGINE a railway pub. Is it dimly lit, grubby with dank carpets and saltly locals? Well, you’re out of luck with The Station Hotel in Hither Green.

Review: Three Daws, Gravesend

5:10pm Thursday 18th April 2013

MAYBE it’s the powerful real ale, but the very walls of the ancient Three Daws pub seem to whisper of the smugglers, sea shanties and spooks of its past.

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Review: Cutty Sark, Greenwich

12:06pm Thursday 11th April 2013

AS I took my lonely heart along the banks of Greenwich, I cursed love into the indifferent grey waters.

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Review: The Pilot Inn, Greenwich

5:00pm Thursday 4th April 2013

THIS week the quest for love has taken Pub Spy all the way to the northern edge of NewsShopperland.

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REVIEW: The Ravensbourne Arms, Lewisham High Street

12:38pm Tuesday 26th March 2013

AFTER standing accused of using this column as a 'personal ad' to scout for women with self-pitying talk about my failing love-life, I would like to apologise unreservedly and categorically confirm this will never happen again.

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Review: The Blythe Hill Tavern, Catford

2:34pm Thursday 21st March 2013

SHORTLY after the Chancellor announced the budget it seemed only right to go to the pub.

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Review: The Fox and Firkin, Lewisham

10:54am Monday 18th March 2013

FINDING an indie-rock bar in London is not easy.

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Review: The Seven Stars, Sidcup

12:09pm Tuesday 12th March 2013

DRIVING past you might be forgiven for thinking the Seven Stars had closed down, it was certainly difficult to spot any sign of life inside.

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Review: Sylvan Post, Forest Hill

10:54am Monday 4th March 2013

THE idea of hanging round in an old post office might not sound exciting but - take it from me -  dunking warm baguette into melted camembert whilst ensconced in the converted 1960s building is as close to heaven as I get on a rainy Thursday afternoon.

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Review: The Chequers, Bromley

1:30pm Friday 22nd February 2013

It is time for this incarnation of PubSpy to hang up her pad and keep the bitchy comments forever to herself.

Review: The Hob, Forest Hill

9:55am Tuesday 19th February 2013

MAD Men fans will remember a scene where sexy ad exec Don Draper is asked for his views on a bold new 60s hotel marketing campaign involving a cartoon mouse.

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Review: The Bricklayer's Arms, Beckenham

1:26pm Monday 28th January 2013

I never thought I’d be within reaching distance of Spiderman’s bottom.

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Review: The Bull Tavern, Woolwich

12:00pm Thursday 17th January 2013

YOU haven’t even got the through the door and you’re already being warned.

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Review: The Wheatsheaf, West Wickham

12:12pm Friday 11th January 2013

It’s always nice to receive opinionated letters from you lovers and haters of PubSpy.

Review: The Sovereign of the Seas, Petts Wood

12:13pm Thursday 3rd January 2013

When a barman suggests Pepsi as a substitute for orange juice, you know you’re not exactly in The Ritz – almost the opposite, in fact.

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PubSpy awards the Golden Pint and Grotty Toilet Awards for 2012

2:33pm Friday 21st December 2012

It has been a colourful year for PubSpy, full of ups, downs, vomitous smells and glorious booze.

Review: The Partridge, Bromley

2:52pm Thursday 13th December 2012

Christmas should be magical, but it’s generally a bloody miserable, guilt-laden time of year for me.

Review: Sun in the Sands, Blackheath

4:28pm Wednesday 12th December 2012

THIS ain’t half a pub. Well actually it is, that’s exactly what it is — the other half’s been turned into a restaurant.

Review: The Woodman, Farnborough

3:12pm Thursday 6th December 2012

WHAT a shame I no longer have a dog - if only it hadn’t died.

Review: The Beech Tree, St Mary Cray

5:43pm Thursday 22nd November 2012

OMG, why did I venture into this one?

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Review: The Dolphin, Sydenham

1:17pm Friday 16th November 2012

When it’s cold, wet and dark outside, there’s nothing better than cosying up in a pub.

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Review: Pawleyene Arms, Penge

12:10pm Wednesday 7th November 2012

FROM ground level you might not even give this one a second glance.

Review: Barrel and Horn, Bromley

11:31am Wednesday 31st October 2012

When you’re 9p over your overdraft limit, it’s tough being the Pub Spy.

Review: Goose on the Green, Catford

9:36am Wednesday 24th October 2012

With Halloween around the corner I’d been considering what freakish ghoul to go as this year.

Review: Westow House, Gipsy Hill

12:20pm Thursday 18th October 2012

A Garfield look-alike cat, glittery goat’s head, six different types of whacky wallpaper and drinkers doing feline impressions are just a handful of reasons to visit Westow House.

Review: The Old Haberdasher, New Cross

10:07am Wednesday 3rd October 2012

f I’d known a wild Kosovan was going to smash into my tiny motor, sentencing me to whiplash and house arrest minutes after going to the pub – I would’ve stayed in bed.

Review: Henry's Cafe Bar, Bromley

4:56pm Monday 1st October 2012

After an absolutely exhausting, nightmarish day in the office the best – or even the only - cure is wine.

Review: Imperial Arms, Chislehurst

10:47am Wednesday 19th September 2012

With a cowboy, plenty of booze, someone suggestively polishing the silver and music constantly playing, one could be forgiven for thinking they were at Elton John’s pad.

Review: The Slug and Lettuce, Bromley

12:27pm Wednesday 12th September 2012

Having had my fill of Wetherspoon pubs recently, I fancied taking my girlfriend to a more sophisticated joint for a glass of vino.

Review: The Flying Boat, Dartford

9:13am Wednesday 5th September 2012

When life is getting you down, a smile from a stranger goes a very long way indeed.

Review: The Greyhound, Bromley

12:04pm Wednesday 29th August 2012

Spying suspicious looking gents in flat caps, conspiring couples and elderly ladies in furs all plotting among exotic palms, I thought we’d stepped into an Agatha Christie murder mystery.

Review: The New Cross House, New Cross

9:40am Thursday 23rd August 2012

BLUR’S house is in the country and Madness’s is in the middle of your street, but this one is somewhere in between – New Cross.

Review: The Gipsy Hill Tavern, Gipsy Hill

2:04pm Monday 20th August 2012

“Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. “That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.”

Review: Kings Arms, Greenwich

8:12am Wednesday 8th August 2012

Shop owners are understandably a bit gutted the Olympics hasn’t delivered the overwhelming stream of deep-pocketed tourists it promised.

Review: The White Swan, St Mary Cray

11:38am Wednesday 1st August 2012

Crikey, you couldn’t mistake the name - there are white swans just about everywhere in this St Mary Cray boozer.

Review: The Bull Inn, St Paul’s Cray

1:49pm Wednesday 25th July 2012

There aren’t too many pubs on my patch I haven’t stepped into, but The Bull Inn, St Paul’s Cray is one of them.

Review: Twenty-five, Crystal Palace

12:01pm Wednesday 18th July 2012

Deciding to leave the car at home suddenly seemed like a terrible mistake as the heavens opened and my train flashed up as delayed for an hour.

Review: The Walpole, New Cross

11:16am Thursday 12th July 2012

Falling out with people at work with can create an unbearable atmosphere in the office, but not many employees would actually leave because of a tiff.

Review: Jam Circus, Brockley

8:49am Wednesday 4th July 2012

Strolling down a fairly nondescript street in Brockley, I found myself feeling quite deflated and uninspired one night last week.

Review: The Yacht, Greenwich

2:07pm Thursday 28th June 2012

What better way to celebrate the ever-charming Wayne Rooney’s glorious winning header against the Ukraine than boarding a gorgeous yacht for drinks in the sunshine?

Review: The Lord Northbrook, Lee

3:05pm Wednesday 20th June 2012

There once was an ugly duckling with feathers so stubby and brown nobody could have imagined he’d turn into a glorious swan, let alone a lord.

Review: The Perry Hill, Catford

11:38am Wednesday 13th June 2012

In my humble, dog-obsessed opinion, nothing makes a pub more attractive than its very own resident pooch.

Review: The Catford Bridge Tavern

9:39am Wednesday 6th June 2012

Seeing someone turn and run out the door two seconds after entering a pub doesn’t usually fill you with hope for the boozer in question.

Pubspy reviews The Railway in Blackheath

9:00am Wednesday 23rd May 2012

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, in my experience pubs by railway stations are usually functional at best and fight arenas at worst.

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Review: The Lost Hour, Greenwich

8:36am Thursday 17th May 2012

When the gavel went down at The Auctioneer, the only bidding taking place was a fond farewell from its student punters.