3-7 Northcote Road,
Battersea,
London,
SW11 1NG
0872 148 3823
The ViewLondon Review
You know how a short stretch of the Devon coast is sometimes referred to as "The English Riviera"? And it kind of is, in that it gets a freak blast of the Gulf Stream and has lots of palm trees and seaside hotels, but then it totally isn't as well, because however hard you look at it, it's Devon, and entirely lacking in any of the things that make the French Riviera both sophisticated and cosmopolitan?
Northcote Road is a little like that.
It's true that in a relatively small confluence of streets there is a startling concentration of bars and restaurants, many with tables on the pavements or open fronts, and that the bleak vista of Clapham Common beckons at one end of Battersea Rise, but despite the protests of the affluent locals it's not anything like the continental resort these few streets are so often, and so blithely, compared to. Even in summer.
So, slap-bang in the middle of South London's Sunset Strip lies Babel, a large, open-plan, loungey bar that's recently undergone a refit. Where once all was terracotta walls and irritating pouffes, now there is dimly-lit mahogany and leather; fixed seating areas prevent the chaos that often reigned there towards closing time in the past, and a moderately-priced cocktail list and table service lend a somewhat more sophisticated air.
Oh, and the mural of the Madonna with the big booby has been replaced, you may or may not be glad to hear.
There's a little more emphasis on food now, though nothing on the menu will knock you that far sideways – Mexican and Chinese sharing platters, lasagne, eggs benedict, chilli. Wines are decently priced, with a fair selection including a nice South African sauvignon blanc.
With its main competition being MOR stalwarts the Fine Line and All Bar One, and a purely local crowd, there's no call for Babel to break the mould – and it doesn’t. It's a decent, reliable local bar, good for Sunday afternoon lounging or an undemanding drink on a weeknight.
You'd have to do something pretty drastic to miss out on the weekend crowds around SW11, and with a welcome (and long overdue) return to live DJs on Fridays and Saturday nights, Babel will doubtless hold its place among the better of the South London bunch.
Babel has been reviewed by 9 users