Picture a hot day, a Staropramen poured into a glass taken straight from the freezer and served from a wooden shack in an almost exotic outside bar and suddenly The Faltering Fullback looks very good indeed.

The Venue
The Faltering Fullback lies easily undiscovered, in a leafy street off Finsbury Park’s Stroud Green Road. It has always been a solid pub – a good place to watch football and have a pint – but lately it’s elevated itself to something special. The three-tiered, wood-decked beer garden, is lush with Yucca and bamboo plants and snakes up into the sky revealing a superb view of the city.

The pub is made up of a hotchpotch of rooms leading off one another, with each conveying a different vibe. The front space is a traditional wood-panelled bar, decorated with signed rugby shirts and other sporting garb.

The front bar welcomes an older crowd of regulars. A small room leading off it is decorated in the style of a boudoir, with rich red paint, brass trinkets, intimate tables and a small library of books.

The age of the drinkers diminishes as you get further into the pub. The back bar houses young professionals, is dimly lit, and has proper tables where you can eat in some style. Beyond that, there is a large, hut-like structure, with table football, pool, a large screen for watching sport and wooden benches. It’s like a village hall, but with a lot of young, inebriated men.

The Atmosphere
Laid back throughout, The Faltering Fullback is very sport-orientated and yet it is possible to find a table away from the television and leave it behind. The pool table room is best avoided if sport is on and it doesn’t appeal.

This place gets very busy on match days (when football is shown on TV) and is unusual in that it harbours both Tottenham and Arsenal fans, but manages to keep things convivial on North London Derby days. The bar staff are fast and friendly and look like they’re having a good time.

The Drink
The Faltering Fullback has a great choice of lagers – Becks, Becks Vier and Staropramen are the best of the draught offerings. Leffe, Guinness and London Pride are on tap, as is regular guest ale.

The Food
A long menu of Thai food is on sale and most main dishes (green curry with rice, beef in oyster sauce, Phad Thai noodles) will leave you with change from a fiver. At these prices the food is surprisingly good and certainly popular.

The Last Word
The Faltering Fullback now boasts the best outdoor drinking in the area. It’s a relaxed, busy pub sought out by sports fans, quiet drinkers and noisy groups of friends, all of whom are able to find the atmosphere they require in its differently themed rooms.

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