Where to Drink in Hampstead: A Proper Pub Guide

Hampstead is not short of pubs. What it is short of is bad ones. The area's clientele is demanding enough that the market has sorted out the mediocre — the pubs that remain are, for the most part, genuinely good. Here's the definitive current guide.

The Spaniards Inn — Spaniards Road

The oldest pub in the area by some distance — a 16th-century coaching inn on the edge of the Heath that appears in Dickens, Keats, and Bram Stoker's Dracula. The building is authentically old: low ceilings, dark wood, fireplaces that actually burn in winter. The beer garden is one of the finest in London — a large, tree-shaded space that fills with Heath walkers on summer weekends. The food is decent gastropub. The atmosphere is irreplaceable. On any shortlist of great London pubs.

The Flask — Flask Walk

The Flask has been here since the 17th century, when it served as the collection point for Hampstead's famous spa waters (bottled and sent to London). Today it's a Young's pub with an excellent range of ales, a good-sized terrace on Flask Walk, and a traditionally divided interior that rewards seeking out. The back bar is the best part — quieter, with comfortable seating and a more local feel than the front room.

The Holly Bush — Holly Mount

Reached via the steep lanes above the High Street, the Holly Bush sits at the top of a hill on Holly Mount — a location that requires enough effort to reach that it has remained a genuinely local pub rather than a tourist one. The interior is extraordinary: a warren of rooms dating to the 18th century, with original fireplaces and snob screens. Harvey's Sussex ales on tap. One of London's best pubs, full stop.

The Old White Bear — Well Road

A quieter option on the Hampstead–Highgate border: a traditional pub with a good selection of ales, a heated garden, and the kind of unhurried atmosphere that's increasingly rare in North London. Good for a weekday evening when you want a drink without the crowds.

The Duke of Hamilton — New End

The local's local in the middle of the village: a small, unpretentious pub on New End that has somehow resisted both refurbishment and gentrification. Cash preferred. Live jazz on Thursday evenings. The Guinness is reliably good.