A fantastic pub on Essex Road, The Lord Clyde ticks all the right boxes.

The Venue
The Lord Clyde is a large, imposing pub situated on the corner of Essex Road and Englefield Road. The décor is Victorian-kitsch, with hanging chandeliers, antique clocks and an upright piano in the corner. A few flickering candles are scattered about the room and there’s ambient music playing in the week giving it an intimate atmosphere.

At the back of the pub is probably the real gem in the crown – an impressively large decked garden area complete with plentiful seating. During the summer months they host a weekly BBQ here on Saturdays (weather permitting). For this built up, urban area this is a real hotspot on a summer’s day.

The Atmosphere
This pub has a welcoming, relaxed atmosphere and seems to be well run by the friendly landlord and laid-back staff. During the week, it’s very chilled, although on Mondays they host a weekly quiz night at 8pm, which is very popular with the local residents.

The pub bills itself as a food-led pub and a lot of people come here to eat, so expect to find a higher proportion of diners here than your average run-of-the-mill pub. However, it’s also a CAMRA favourite and you can often find the bar being propped up by real ale lovers.

The Food
With an extensive and varied traditional British menu, The Lord Clyde has been setting tongues wagging in the surrounding areas for many a month. They have two menus: one for lunch and one in the evening. Lunch includes soup of the day served with bread and butter, or more substantial options like the seared steak sandwich with homemade mayo and red onion jam (£6.50).

The dinner menu is even more tantalising. Clyde favourites such as the Aspall cider battered pollock fillet with tartar sauce, pea puree and hand cut chips costs £10 – very reasonable for the area.

If you happen to fancy the quiz night on Mondays, the pub offers a dinner and drink deal, where you can get linguine pasta with chicken, chorizo and cream, plus a drink of your choice (beer, wine or soft drink) for a tenner. And if you fancy something small to nibble, try the infamous Lord Clyde Scotch egg served with piccalilli.

The Drink
The Lord Clyde is listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2011 and also holds its own ale festival (Clydefest) once a year. Guest ales are changed regularly and include Harvey’s Sussex Best and Woodforde’s Wherry, both costing £3.30 a pint. Lagers on draught range from Amstel (£3.30) to Staropramen (£3.90). There’s a decent range of wine too including a pinot grigio rose at £20 a bottle, or for something a bit fancier, the Les Launes Crozes Hermitage is highly recommended and costs £32.

The Last Word
A real gem of a pub with friendly staff, good food, real ale and a massive garden in the middle of central London. This is one pub that’s worth going out of your way to visit.

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