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The Ant and Bee crawl
n Saturday 13 February the London Pubs Group held
Othe ‘Ant & Bee’ crawl of Tottenham and Stoke
Newington.
The Antwerp Arms (The Ant part of the crawl) was our first
destination. Just pipped to the starting line by the event
organiser herself (Jane), other crawlers and I soon colonised
the bar and were quickly taking in the rather cosy
atmosphere of the interior, as well as the rather tasty beer
on offer. The early comers were fortunate to hear a brief
but informative description of the pub’s history and notable
features by Ian McLaren who is one of the members of the
co-operative who own the pub. However, apparently the
name of the pub itself remains an unsolved mystery. I’m
guessing it had nothing to do with ants then.
Crossing the Grove with its squirrels and budding
crocuses, a party of extra keen crawlers visited an additional
pub, the Elmhurst Tavern. Although it had something of a
youth club feel to it (that could change however) and no real
ale on the pump, the pub did come with a very friendly
welcome and some interesting internal and external features
for the architectural historian. It’s one to keep an eye on
(the pub that is).
Meanwhile, the main body of the crawl had formed a bee
line to the next pub in Tottenham – the Beehive. Fortunately,
the local football team (not Watford) weren’t playing that
day, so that made getting to the bars a lot easier for
everyone. The beer range was good and this was the official
lunch stop of the crawl. While the majority of others chose
to tuck into to some nosh, I took a look round the pub,
feasting on the informative itinerary notes of gratuity.
Later, while another crawler and I were trying to figure out
who T E W Odberry was, most others stepped inside the
Woodberry Tavern, although actually its external features
seemed to be of more interest. The drinking part of this
pub was a slight disappointment, having to settle for a
bottle of Duvel in a half pint Stella glass before at last
getting a pint glass for the beer to settle in. As some might
remember, and in spite of the warning from Jane, I still
managed to end up with a few gulps of amber nectar on the
carpeted floor. Sorry Mr Odberry.
Having come so far, and in want of more (hand pulled) real
ale, we thought we’d take a proverbial butcher’s at the next
listed pub. You guessed it; the Jolly Butchers in Stoke
Newington was next up. It was a busy pub, as one would
expect for such a good beer range, and for me it was the
best beer of the day. However, I wasn’t making any notes
of the crawl and only remember it to be a tasty and
satisfying stout.
The interior of the Jolly Butchers
It was only later at the Rose and Crown in Stoke
Newington that I thought of doing this review. And my
notes do remind me of the delightful panel windows and
matching vitrolite ceiling. The beer was good and there
were plenty of comfortable seats to rest or sleep in too.
The Army and Navy was the final pub on the list.
Although my memory of this place is a bit sketchy, I do at
least remember it also having the same vitrolite ceiling effect
as the previous bar. It was small and cosy, and a great place
to finish the day. So all in all, it was a good crawl. Cheers!
Edgar Jephcote
The print run of London Drinker
is currently 26,500 and it is
distributed to some 1,200 pubs and
clubs in and around Greater London
by CAMRA volunteers
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