Red Legs drinks too much nitespot review # 1

The Garden Ladder Green Lanes

Lord knows I have my problems with North London, the bit of London, given a choice that I would least like to live. However the bearded one lives there as do several other splendid friends so the place does have it's compensations and some must like it. It is thus I find myself drinking, copiously on occassion, in Green Lanes. Green Lanes is not well endowed with good drinking holes. The Salisbury is a big beautiful old gin palace but lacks character and is poorly run, one cannot enjoy a tipple without being accosted by gentlemen selling deeveedees. The Beaconsfield is a pleasant old style boozer with a nice landlady and a sweet but grumpy pub dog, Tip. However being a footie pub it is not good for me as I hate flat screens full of deranged men bouncing around like excitable gnats... The Garden Ladder is therefore a godsend. The decor is eclectic reflecting the fact that this is very much the owners' labour of love and they are often working at the bar along with their friendly staff.


The place has lots of positive negatives: no television screens, no fruit machines and absolutely no children (oh joy!). The food is good, the Sunday Carvery a post-boozey Saturday night necessity and the cocktails a bit too moreish for my own good. The clientele are eclectic: vintage girleys, post-punks, goths, crusties, local drinkers, bluff Norf London geezers and the occassional drag queen rub along nicely, in fact sometimes very nicely. The place is way out in Haringay but if you are in the Bermuda triangle that consists of Finsbury Park-Muswell Hill-Manor House (it's an isosceles Bermuda triangle) its a nice local. Even if it is in North London. You are also spoilt for kebabs if you decide to eat after closing time...
Details can be found here: http://www.thegardenladder.co.uk/

The owners.

Interior view.

The bar.