It’s the bank holiday weekend, so what pub in the area screams a sunny afternoon more than the Spaniards? And the other week, when we reported that this atmospheric Heathside watering hole has had a “tasteful refurb”, they dropped us a line to invite us round for a snoop, so we duly obliged.
Dating back to 1585, it’s a classic London boozer originally built as a tollgate inn on the London-Finchley “boundary”. Fact fans will be intrigued to know that even now, the tollgate is in the borough of Camden and the pub in Barnet. And its cast of previous customers is legendary: Dick Turpin was a regular, and it was immortalized in Charles Dickens’ Pickwick Papers and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. For the more gullible types, Keats wrote Ode To the Nightingale in the back garden. Perhaps.
Anyway, we love the Spaniards in a weekend-walk kind of way and were concerned that a refurb may be rather unnecessary, but stepping into the pub our fears were soothed. It all just looks a tad smarter, without any loss of character: the panelling is shining, the floor clean, and the sense of history still intact. What else? Old leather banquettes, log burning stove, the upstairs now a smart tiny dining room. And the garden? Still as delightful as it always was, and big enough to hold a small festival.
Previously, over many years of weekend lunches, we found the food a bit hit and miss, often not justifying the long waits at the bar. Now, of course, the menu is more upscale, dotted with ingredients like smoked ocean trout, violet potatoes, quail, quinoa, heirloom tomato and bone marrow.
We shared three excellent starters: fleshy, velvety scallops paired with a meaty black pudding; a Scotch egg made with haggis that was moist and runny; and, best of all, a tender crispy slow-cooked lamb breast flavoured with anchovy and baby leeks. Of all the dishes we ate, that is the one I’d return for.
Some moreish desserts: an unctuous caramel custard with lavender biscuit, a brownie both chewy and hazelnutty, and some home-made ice creams – zingy cherry and creamy peanut butter. The waiter said they now have a range of of craft beers and real ales and ciders, but we drank a decent Fleurie, its easy-going gamay grape suiting both the meat and fish dishes.
The verdict? Definitely recommended, of course; how could this place not be? And the half hour stroll over the Heath from Kentish Town is one of the best short walks in north London. The real test, of course, will be if the reinvigorated kitchen can keep up the quality with that vast garden packed with hundreds of revellers this weekend. We wish them luck.
Words: Stephen Emms
