The Marquess Tavern (Bar, Restaurant)

Top 10 things we learnt about the Marquess Tavern when we visited:

1) Located on Canonbury Street near Essex Road station, the Marquess Tavern certainly looks the part: a standalone, all-white building, situated at the junction between residential houses and a leafy public garden, it boasts a picturesque setting.

2) The terrace out front catches the sun on its rare appearances, and blankets are available from inside once the nights start to draw in.

3) The spacious interior has recently been redecorated with a whole host of knickknacks, oddities and curios – bar stools resemble flat caps, lightshades are fashioned out of gramophones and vintage tennis rackets and printing presses line the walls. Audacious, but accomplished.

4) Located near George Orwell’s old stomping ground, the venue is decked out with framed prints of the author’s book covers and a selection of anthropomorphic pigs – a twee but affectionate tribute to the Animal Farm novelist.

5) The main room and bar area offers plenty of standing and sitting room, not least with a host of inviting armchairs next to an ornamental fireplace.

6) Elsewhere, an obscure room around the back of the bar has been reclaimed from what used to be the toilets, and proves to be a surprisingly comfortable and intimate space for small gatherings.

7) The Marquess Tavern regularly plays host to events including guest supplier ale and cider tastings, themed menus, media gatherings, private events and functions. Matt, the owner, works both rooms with consummate professionalism and courtesy.

8) The Tavern’s large wine list and canny selection of ales and draught beers - including Meantime lager - ensures that getting progressively sloshed at the weekend is a varied and enjoyable pastime.

9) The gourmet pub menu, meanwhile, includes tea-smoked trout entrees; deceptively delicate but filling main courses such as pan-roasted chicken with butternut squash puree; and Pimms jelly & panacotta trifle - all reasonably priced and effortlessly tasty. The chef’s sizable Sunday roasts are also a firm favourite.

10) With quick and friendly service, and a low-key but warm atmosphere, the Marquess Tavern is a proper locals’ pub with a genuine feel for its surroundings, notwithstanding its recent, rather daring revamp....read more