The best pub (and view) in London. Easily.

Living in Richmond you sometimes forget how beautiful it can be. So to remind yourself you can’t go wrong with taking a walk up the hill to grab a pint and take in the views at The Roebuck.

I could review the drinks, the food, and the pub itself but there’s not really any need – they don’t matter. You don’t go to this pub for those things. You go for the stunning views across the river Thames, Twickenham, Petersham and Ham.

And the scenery doesn’t just have to be enjoyed in the summer either (although this is the best time). Go on firework night or New Years Eve for a complimentary panoramic firework display. People will most probably bring their own fireworks and fire lanterns to set off from the field below too.

Alternatively, do what I did this winter and rock up with your snowboard to shred snow (and grass, but fuck it) before trudging back up on foot for a hot choccy.

I’ve added some sunset photographs that my girlfriend took here last year, some day time shots I took on Saturday and that painting? That’s paired by Turner, he lived round the corner and I expect this was one of his favourite views too. Gorgeous.

See my review of The Roebuck on Yelp too

I should build a house of cards more often

Clearing out my phone of all it’s old photo’s and wanted to share this particularly awesome selection from an immense night building a huge house of cards in The Cabbage Patch, one of many rugby pubs in Twickenham.

After a long shift working thinking about building a massive house of cards, my boss and I got to work on it and after about 14 attempts (and many hours!) we finally succeeded in reaching the ceiling. I remember thinking it could make a neat Guinness Advert – us two patiently assembling a bunch of Guinness beer mats into a tonk house of cards.

Those were the days, if only my current work revolved around planning and executing the perfect house of cards.

My 3* review of The Orange Tree Pub in Richmond

As I finished work last night I was instructed by my girlfriend’s mother to meet her in Richmond to help carry a large sofa. She was running late with the hire van so my girlfriend (an expert sofa carrying co-ordinator) and I popped into the Orange Tree pub.

We’ve lived near this pub for years, and know a little about it’s background and some history from the famous Orange Tree Theatre next door, but we’ve never once visited it. So this was our chance to try it out for the first time.

Walking through their front patio area into the bar, you can’t help but notice the extraordinary amount of businessey looking people. They’ve evidently just finished work and stand there laughing politely at their unfunny bosses whilst trying to sneak another drink onto their bar tab.

The businessey type people isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it just means that you get a slight ‘what are you doing in my local’ look as you walk in.

Anyway we ordered and I noticed a fun looking competition on the wall behind the bar. It took a few sips of my Bulmers to get the answer and when I got it I had to enter, especially as they’re on twitter.

Overall, The Orange Tree seems like a really nice pub. It’s quite large with an outdoor area and a cellar for basement jazz (we could hear them sound checking and it sounded great). Above all, I’m impressed that they use Twitter and that they seem to use it well.

My review is currently only 3 stars as I haven’ had the chance to fully experience this pub (drink, food, atmosphere, music, etc). It’s also on Yelp too.

Reckon you know the answer to the riddle? See the picture above and post your answers in the comments below.

My review of The Crown pub in Twickenham

Okay so today I was at home sitting around with a hangover and feeling really, REALLY bored. After ringing round roughly everyone I know, and getting knocked down by each of them, I decided enough was enough and I’d go to the pub.

I am now in the pub, using their free Wi-Fi, after having what can only be described as a wicked-awesome burger. It really was, it was bloody beautiful. A masterpiece of culinary engineering you might say.

I am so stuffed right now that I feel sick at the thought of more food, yet I think I could probably attempt another go at one of those bad boy burgers. In fact, I’m salivating.

I guess I had better start to describe it then. For a start, it was definitely home made, and it had that scruffy look about it that said “Hey there, I’m not your ordinary perfectly shaped burger, I’m full of flavour and the chef probably said pucker whilst making me”.

As standard, when a burger arrives before your eyes, you lift the bun lid and inspect what’s going on. I did just that and immediately noticed that there was no cheese! I asked for cheese god damn it and they’d gone and bloody forgotten it… or so I thought.

In fact, the cheese was there, they’d hidden it inside the burger! As I sat there, bun in hand, I thought to myself “this is revolutionary, the cheese is inside the burger”. Needless to say, I devoured it along with the mediocre side of wedges.

As you might expect, I’d recommend the burger. The rest of the place is good too though, the bar area is light and airy with a high ceiling and there’s a nice looking family friendly beer garden too. The only things that stopped this place getting full marks was the oily soggy wedges (would have preferred proper chips) and the slow Wi-Fi. Even the dirty stinking slut-bag chav, recommending that I go on YouPorn, didn’t sway this review (although ‘she’ did put me off my food. Slightly).

http://www.thecrownintwickenham.co.uk

Yelp! I need somebody. Not just anybody.

I recently met some lovely people from Yelp when I was at work. They came to tell us about Yelp and some exciting things coming up in the future. Unfortunately it’s taken me until now to use it for the first time, but now I’ve written my first review on The Marble Hill pub in Twickenham which you can read on my Yelp profile.