Pubs are a very strange thing: there’s no set formula for creating the perfect one with that majestic pint-drinking atmosphere…it’s just something that happens. You can’t set out to create the ideal pub environment…no…it’s just something that grows organically from its surroundings. You can’t force it! I am very proud to say that my local pub is now The Empress. It’s a pub and a half to say the least.

From the street, a quiet residential one where nothing much happens, it looks like it’s tiny inside, but then you walk in and discover an enormous room with not one but THREE bar areas waiting to greet you. There is also a garden out the back which has tables and chairs and another attraction…the best thing about the place? The attraction, of course. Yes, They have resident pigs! That’s right, I said Pigs. Three of them to be precise. One pink one with black spots and two snorty little brown ones that grunt a lot. In the corner of their pen are three ceramic meerkat figureines & Ornaments. And punters can stand their with their pints and marvel at their little scampering movements!

This is truly one of Cambridge’s finest – of not number 1 – public house. The landlord and his staff are welcoming, there are locals with only three teeth who live in the place and are part of the furniture, and what’s more they offer decent food at a good price. Bascially it’s a perfect pub which is where you want to go after a hard day’s work, and it’s a crying shame that only the people who know about this gem get to frequent it. That said, if you are in the area – near the train station – you should pop in. The pigs will be there and they are always pleased to see you.

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That was my experience on Friday night when I went out with some friend’s from the public relations agency that I work for to a leaving party (for someone I’d never met, but that’s nothing to do with the story, really).

The do was at a pub just near Wandsworth Town rail station in London, on the banks of the Thames close to Wandsworth Bridge. The name? The Ship.

Turning up after work on a Friday night, not long before 7pm, the expectation was that, like everywhere else in London, it would be heaving. It wasn’t. Often a terrible sign for a pub not to be busy on Friday, but not in this case.

A huge garden area, with a small raised section overlooking the Thames, was well tailored to outside drinking (a large proportion of the decked space was also under a canopy). A second bar has been setup outside, making those journey’s to and from much less arduous. Of course, as is often the way with these places, the outdoor bar was less well stocked (no ales, much to my chagrin) but you win some and lose some, I guess.

Inside, the bar was excellent. A good range of ships'paraphenalia provided the theme, within a pretty trendy, clean, almost baroque interior. There are a number of rooms inside, each with a slightly different feel. Good ales on offer, and a pool table too.

They have an outdoor barbecue in offer, with food cooked to order in front of your eyes. While we didn’t taste any, it all looked pretty good.

All in all, I’d go again, and I’d recommend it to anyone interested in spending a full evening out. The range of ales lends it well to the casual drinker, but it really is a place you’d actively want to be for more than one drink.

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It’s not all doom and gloom, however - the decline of the traditional tavern has encouraged other owners to be more creative, and competitive, in attracting new customers. In a fairly typical corner of South London, two different pubs have showed how a fresh approach can get punters back through the door. The Antelope, a stone’s throw from Tooting Broadway underground, was taken over a year ago. Previously it was an inhospitable place - the sort of venue where you’d expect a tinkling piano to suddenly stop when you walk through the door. Twelve months on, it is unrecognisable: an excellent marketing campaign has established it as a quirky, original venue which has hosted comedy nights and has attracted a more diverse crowd. The Antelope has shown that with ambition and effort, there’s more than enough interest for pubs to grow in popularity.

Just metres down the road, The Long Room faces a very different challenge; just out of reach of the tube station, it stands less chance of success as a high street pub. Instead, staff have been creative with the considerable space they have available - it operates as a hotel (which is a nice change from the cheap hostels that dominate Tooting), and boasts an impressive front-facing beer garden. Rather than building a definitive image, The Long Room aims to offer something for everyone. A quiet, comfortable bar area offers cocktails and an impressive array of beers and spirits, whilst there are still the more traditional quiz machines and widescreen TVs present. The venue has also embraced the recent World Cup, showing matches in the garden area without allowing football to dominate, a mistake that many pubs make. The Long Room also hosts quiz nights, movie nights and invites customers to host their own events. It’s another direction that pubs are wisely moving into - doubling as a cinema, a function room, even a place to stop over.

There are plenty of pubs in SW17, and all over London, that have little to recommend them, and can even make the British pub feel like an outdated enterprise. Both The Antelope and The Long Room are showing that, with a little invention, this doesn’t have to be the case; in one corner of Tooting at least, pubs are still thriving.

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Once you enter this place, you see cupboard sized space with a Mickey Mouse wallpaper, that probably doesn’t even equiate the storage space in a London apartment. Once you’ve rung the buzzer, you’ll be permitted to enter the bar. There are about half a dozen small tables in a small room replete with some clutter. A ‘thirst aid’ box promises to add more inebriation for those who stay the pace!

Beers are served in 2/3 pint glasses and there’s a list of swanky cocktails that might lure you to have a sip! People tend to be fussy about this place for its small enclosure but it sure does not ruin the spirits in you. The soothing music that plays in the background is quite soul stirring.

Barts also offers a concise food menu and is small enough to make your bowels full. Nevertheless, the food is tasty and will satisfy your hunger. The food items are not that pricey either. You can get an old fashioned cheese on toast fingers along with some honey and mustard and it makes for a delicious snack.

You also get to choose from a long list of Russian drinks which features about 13 vodkas and two colorful pages of cocktails. The most popular drink at this bar is the Barts Banter which is made from Chambord, peach liquor and fresh strawberries. It is a crispy drink indeed. There are a lot of premium cocktails and you even get to customize your own drink.

Barts may be a Sloane dweller’s paradise but it is well built giving attention to minute details and anyone would get acquainted with this place within minutes.

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The Cumberland Arms prides itself on a extensive menu which changes monthly and is closer to restaurant standard than pub standard, in fact the pub is largely geared towards food service. Food ranges from £7 to $15 and is of a good standard often with a Mediterranean fusion feel. They have a Antipasti Platter to share among a group with items like a tasty hummus and tasted pita, meatballs and chicken frittata, a great accompaniment to their extensive wine choices. The wine list is varied and interesting, the house wine is of a great standard.

The staff are friendly, helpful and responsive, we spoke to someone about the wine selection and they were quite knowledgeable and helpful. They were able to make suggestions for our group on menu choices. There is however, a distinct lack of ’shareable'food, with the antipasti platter the only real option for group nibbles. No chips, wedges or similar.

Overall the Cumberland Arms is a cosy pub, with a great mid-priced menu and great wine selection.

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Hard Rock café has its outlets spread across the world, from one near chalet val thorens to multiple locations in North America, and considering the reputation of Mumbai as India’s party hub they have also opened their outlet in South Mumbai. It is a popular night spot in Mumbai and therefore I decided to make it my abode on one night. I headed to the place with my girlfriends. The place reeks of rock music and everything related to rock culture. They also have a little shop tucked away near their entrance from you can buy knickknacks or souvenirs. The café also exhibits stuff that has been used by rock stars.

The café is not lit very well however it full of enthusiasm and vibrancy. You can enjoy your food and drinks with rock music playing in the background. If you are lucky enough you might just get to listen to a live band performing. The place also gives chances to known and unknown rock bands to display their talents. Towards the end of the evening the place can get a little crowded. During sports events like cricket and football you can entertain yourself by watching the game on the cafe’s big screen

Hard Rock Café has a range of cocktails and mocktails on its menu but I was happy to satiate my thirst with some chilled beer. The café has some really comfortable seating. I’m not sure if the café reserves places in advance but you’d be really lucky if you get to sprawl on their cushioned seats.

The café tends to get a get little crowded as the evening draws closer and those looking to find a little calm and privacy should stay away from the place. The staff is really friendly and the service is just about average. The café serves French fries, pastas, burgers, tacos and so on. They food can get a little pricey though, with a burger costing as mush as 300 Indian bucks.

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The Granta is a fine English pub that everyone should visit when traveling to the university town we all know as ’Cambridge’. But of course, it wouldn’t be enough just to say it is fine, or splendid, or amazing. Hence, I shall list a number of outstanding things it does most excellently:

1) It is next to the river Cam in Cambridge, in beautiful surroundings frequented by ducks, rowers and punters! Honestly, what more could a romantic ask for?

2) It is a proper old-style pub, with class. By that I mean to say that it has good old-fashioned dark wood furnishings, and a lovely outdoor seated area where you can watch the river and its inhabitants go by. The waitresses and waiters are also very friendly, and don’t always make you go to the bar to order food. A plus!

3) A wide selection of wine and beer and spirits is always available, and the price is no more premium than any other pub around! That’s saying something in Cambridge. Many pubs charge extortionate amounts and they should take example from The Granta!

All that said, as wonderful a public house as this place is, when we were there – my gorgeous girlfriend and I – the staff were inundated with orders of every kind and struggling to cope (the price you pay for excellence, some might say). The result of this was that my girlfriend missed her train, and therefore her appointment in London to look at Leyton flats and houses for rent, which made her really quite angry. Fortunately she is even more stunning when angry, so my memories of this are somewhat fond (even though I admit that it was all my fault she was late; I was far too busy being mesmerized by the beauty of the pub – and my girlfriend, of course – to be in any fit state to be on time for arriving anywhere!)

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Jokes and humor galore has the word beer and its associated guzzlers. The word beer itself rings the sound of cheer and festivity with it. It is, therefore, no doubt going to be a festive atmosphere that one would experience at the Great British Beer Festival to be held at Earls Court London between the 3^rd and 7th of Aug this year.

One will get an update on the latest and best ales that are available in the world. Starting from ciders, perries to the most exquisite and moustache smacking international beer, it would all be there for public ogling. Knowing that the other participant in the exhibition holds similar reverence for this tasty liquid would give immense solace to be ogling together unashamed at this beauty on display.

Last time the festive exhibition had been held at the same venue around the same time. There has been a rise in participants, exhibitors (which not only means more pvc banners, but also more samples) as well as attendees, from that experienced last year. This has bolstered the spirit of the event organiser as well as the exhibitors.

Entry to the exhibition is against tickets to be purchased by filling up a form online and submitting the same to the event organiser. One also gets to be selected as a volunteer too at GBBF. Tickets, t-shirts are both available and up on sale which would permit entry into the venue as well as identify the person from the t-shirt as one of this merry making party.

Along with stalls displaying the variety of froth generating stunners there would also be enough of stalls to have fun. Pub games, tasty food that go well along with beer are also going to be available at the venue. Beer guzzlers should unite and get to be there at the Great British Beer Festival.

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Built in 1515 the once home of Earl of Stafford, The George & Dragon is the main attraction in Ightham. This 16^th century pub complete with fireplaces adorned with the knot badge of the Stafford family is a traditional style pub that at one point held prison the Duke of Northumberland who was headed for his execution in “The Tower of London”.

This pub is a charming rustic throwback to the 16^th century still maintaining a relaxed atmosphere enhanced by the charm of the staff. The friendly and complete service offers added attraction to the terrific pub and restaurant. If you fancy sitting a bit in the outdoors there is a lovely beer garden available for use in the better weather. This pub is haunting in its presence and has a vast amount of history both real and myth mixed together. The stories are endless and include tales of murder and mayhem. If only the walls could talk they would speak volumes.

If you are in the mood for a bit of an adventure and an opportunity to let your creative mind wander to what stories may have been true and which ones are just folklore, this is a terrific stop in the tiny English village of Ightham. The prices for this pub are reasonable and they serve full dinners and lunches most days of the week. The average price of a dinner is a steep £25 each person (that is about what you could expect to pay per night at hostel london) but is of good quality to accompany the excellent surroundings of wood beams and charming fireplaces.

You will regret not making this a destination when out and about. There is no end to the stories that can be told and the mysteries that have been passed on through the generations. You will have to decide for yourself which ones are truth and which are the product of overactive imaginations.

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It doesn’t matter that the future of the pub may be dying out to make way for dance bars and nightclubs, I will always find home in one pub that will never leave me: the Poacher’s Arms.

This is your classic pub of yesteryear: a basement bar with dim lights, dart boards in the corner, sticky floors and tables, cold beer, and surly bartenders; everything you can ever ask for in a pub.

I’ve been coming to this dank watering hole for almost fifteen years, and it never gets old. Whether it’s for a night out with friends or a Sunday afternoon watching football, nothing is better than “The Poach”.

My favourite times are after watching a great match on a Sunday, I get up to leave and get blinded by the repugnant natural light from that evil object in the sky, the Sun. I usually quickly make a U-turn and go back for “just one more” so that my nemesis in the sky can have time to retreat by into the heavens.

The Poach is the only place that my wife doesn’t mind me going to. She knows that this blessed drinking hole is my salvation from the dregs of the world; from the stress of everyday life. In fact, she mostly joins me on my journeys, where she’ll usually drink me under the table.

But the greatest thing about The Poach is the staff. Their traditional surly ways always puts a smile on my face. Oh how I am sick of seeing sexy barkeeps ineptly pouring my pint while they are waiting for their next botox appointment. Go back to the nightclubs, you strumpet! That’s why the ugly, grumpy barkeeps at The Poach receive my highest praise: a bartender does not have to be beautiful to do their job; they have to be able to pour a drink!

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