The Florence - Herne Hill

As far as pubs go, it's not often I eat in them, with some exceptions. More often than not, pub menus are littered with Thai green curries sat alongside burgers, lasagne and that pub favourite - fish and chips served disappointingly with pea puree. The Florence, in Herne Hill dahn Saaf East is different though. I first visited when The Meatwagon was cooking up some burgers. A cultish following, much has been said and blogged about their burgers. A hole was cut into the garden fence, the van was parked up, the beer garden packed to the rafters and they sold out of everything by 8pm. For them to have arranged this I figured they must be pretty serious about the food, so a mere two days later, I was back.

At 3pm on a sunny Saturday afternoon, the beer garden was again, packed. Prams everywhere, children toddling around, I wondered why they weren't dumped in the soundproof crèche that had been built three months previously. I'm not a particularly child-friendly person when hungover and seeking recovery down the boozer. Mussels and chips (£8) were perfect; sweet, plump flesh were in a cider, cream and leek sauce. Chips were crispy and salty and the mayonnaise tasted home-made. Just as I was considering picking up the bowl to drink the sauce out of, spoons appeared - "you looked like you were at that crucial sauce slurping stage". Top marks for attentive service.

A few hours later when the kids were wheeled off to bed and the walk to the bar became a bit more wobbly, we had some buttermilk fried chicken served with a coleslaw dip. Juicy and delicious, we scorched our fingers trying to stuff them in our drunken faces. There was no hint of the usual dry or stringy chicken; apparently they use a Thomas Keller reciepe whereby the chicken is brined and then marinated in the buttermilk. It's a winning bar snack.

So, another good reason to live South East. I will be back imminently (and not just because I left my bank card there); great staff, a (slightly amorous) pub dog, and I saw a burgers go past that were double patties. Meaty goodness.

The Florence

131-133 Dulwich Road
London
SE24 0NG

Tel: 020 7326 4987