I went inside to check this place out whilst walking past because I loved the quaint cinema advertising above the door. I didn’t realise that there was a little cinema tucked away here in Balham. The building itself looks like it belongs along a sea front, but instead it is overlooking the Sainsburys car park. It’s much nicer once you’re inside! The cinema shows films which are not brand new but newish so it’s a good chance to catch films you may have missed at the cinema first time round. The cinema seats about 20 and you can book for a meal deal and a film on certain nights of the week. It’s also available for private hire. The bar on the ground floor has sofas and a big fish tank with tropical fish and upstairs there’s a more formal restaurant. An interesting set up which should have something for all tastes.

This great monolith of a building overlooking the ever glamorous Sainsbury’s car park was the original style bar in the area and is still one of the best. The downstairs bar does an excellent brunch or low key lunch and is accessorised with tropical fish tanks and cute bar staff. There is a more formal restaurant upstairs and a cinema. The bar prides itself on cocktails like everywhere else these days and they are perfectly palatable. On a weekend this place is choka and it can be difficult to hear yourself think, come on a weekday or for brunch and check out the cinema as well.

Now, I was here last week, and I've been here before and know it's a better place, but I'm in two minds whether to go back.

It's a really really nice bar/restaurant/cinema, with enormous leather sofas, a wall-to-wall fish tank and great selection of food and drinks. However, last sunday I came in for Sunday Lunch, and the place was chaos. I ordered a Breakfast and a Coke, and my friend went for a Burger and a Bulmers. The drinks took twenty minutes to arrive, the food took an hour. And my Breakfast was missing it's bacon.

This could have been forgivable, as I understand they were understaffed, but what really annoyed me was there was no apology, no explanation, and when I dared complain I was met with rudeness and excuses. When you're paying premium rates for a pub experience, you expect polite staff. Not good!