As previously discussed, I’m a pub guy. Hand pumped ales, extra cold lagers, ciders and alcoholic ginger beer on ice. These beverages are the reason I exercise. Otherwise, I’d be the Pillsbury doughboy. And while there is a perception that British drinking is purely based on binge drinking and hooliganism, the heart of a neighborhood is still the local pub. Granted, with my history of working as a bartender and restaurant manager behind me, I am a bit biased. But, I stand behind the pure hospitality and warm, congenial atmosphere created by great pub owners. A former boss and mentor of mine, John Grzywa, taught me the fundamental tenets of neighborhood pub culture when he gave me my first bar job. The feeling that Sports Brewpub gave me as both a patron and an employee gave me a sense of family and community that has carried with me throughout my entire career and life. I look for that sense of community in any place I like to frequent. It makes for an overall better experience.
My local is The Victoria – a stone’s throw from Hyde Park, a Fullers Pub, housed in a Regency building from the 1840’s and located in a small commercial corner off of Hyde Park Gardens, across from one of the best Indian restaurants in West London – (but more on that later). I’ve been here for a little less than five months but, I’ve found a place where “everybody knows your name”. On my first visit, I spent a Sunday afternoon reading the papers, eating Sunday roast, drinking my weight in Crabbie’s Ginger Beer and getting to know the motley cast of characters who work and attend this lively establishment. I was hooked by the genuine smiles, the intellectual conversation and the true heart and soul that these folks put into what they do. Instead of staying for the 30-45 minutes that it would have taken to eat my Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding, I spent four hours there. And, I return often. I’m not a daily regular, but, I’m probably there at least once a week. In fact, tonight is their pub quiz – which my flatmate, Andy and I hope to win, but, we probably won’t. It’s really hard.
But, I digress. The local pub is a necessary part of British community culture. My local pub makes me happy, well fed and nourished in ways that span the food and drink that they serve. These are places that make me feel like I’m less of an outsider, that I don’t have to be isolated and that there is life outside my apartment. All the reason to go, no?
American Expat in London 