One of a several pubs within a couple of minutes walk of each other on a sedate residential stretch in Brook Green, The Havelock Arms is seemingly the most in-demand, largely thanks to its glowing reputation for serving up quality food.

The Venue
A roaring fireplace, ales, good food, a busy blackboard packed with choice wines – this is pretty much the dream pub for city dwellers hankering after a comfortable local. Quiet it’s not: on a Friday night the place is heaving with couples, vociferous groups of moneyed guys and a distinctly mature, almost countrified clientele.

Winner of many awards, the most recent being a much-coveted West London’s Best Pub by the Good Food Guide, tables at The Havelock Arms are at a premium and you may have to wait to pounce on a table if you want to eat at peak times. This is a pub that’s not down with spoon-feeding its customers, so don’t expect table service – to order food you do so at the bar.

The Atmosphere
On a Friday night it’s lively, loud and full of good-natured banter. The immediate area is full of pretty terrace and mansion block properties so the punters are a largely well-to-do bunch, the sort who wear Barbour padded jackets and bring their dogs to the pub.

The Food
On arrival, warm, freshly baked bread is brought to the table, a sign that the Havelock Arms is stretching itself beyond the typical gastro experience. There are four or five options for each course and portion size, as with a lot of pubs these days, is pretty humongous. Prices are average for a foodie pub with starters peaking at £7.50, mains hitting the £13-£14 mark and puddings averaging just under a fiver.

A warm goat’s cheese starter arrives as a huge round puck served with cubes of butternut squash and a drizzle or balsamic on a bed of salad leaves. It’s very enjoyable but the portion size means it’s almost big enough for a main course. Alternatively, a turkey and chestnut terrine with granary toast and chutney is a great example of how to dish up comforting rustic food for the winter months. Mains include daily-changing fish dishes and a remix of a Greek classic – the lamb kleftiko. This is presented as a slow-cooked lamb shank on a huge mound of buttery mash with savoy cabbage and a tomato-y sauce. It’s a substantial and satisfying dish, although it does require a bit of salt and pepper to perk up the flavour.

The Drink
Four of five decent ales from the likes of Adnams are present at the pumps, and lager, cider and wine aficionados are also very well catered for. The house red - an Albizu Tempranillo – gives a sizeable blast of juicy, ripe fruit for a very reasonable price (around £14 a bottle).

The Last Word
The Havelock Arms is a much-loved local in these parts, and rightly so.

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