White Horse

wow, what a gem this place is . would recommend this to my pals without hesitating, I have
dined in the best gastro pubs in tHe country & would put this one right at the top. the less than complimentary gentleman who had previously reviewed you should maybe stick to swigging lager & leave the white horse to foodies who know the difference between spam & parma ham !

Disappointing after recommendations from locals. A tired dowdy frontage does not improve on entry into a dingy dark interior.The welcome by the elderly lady was I'm afraid  the only cheer that could be found as the hot food particularly the veg was depressingly like that served in a Factory Canteen in the 1950's, boiled to soggy/limp. For ale drinkers the beer was warm!. I was pleased to get away to a pub in 'Premiership Class', 'The Great Exhibition' in Crystal Palace Road, East Dulwich to recover from the experience.The moral is 'if the neighborhood is extremely unattractive it's unlikely you will find a pearl'.

The White Horse (or ‘The Horse’ as it’s known by some locals) is easily the best ‘traditional’ pub in the local area. Actually, make that the best pub in the area full stop.

It’s a family run pub and at the helm is the congenial Mr. Hogan (Hogey to the regulars) and one of his sons.

The clientele are mainly locals from all walks of life who have been living in the area for a long time, but the atmosphere is friendly and there always seems to be new faces passing through – it’s not an ‘intimidating’ local, this is something that is actively avoided by the management. Hogey prides himself on providing a safe environment. Although it doesn’t specifically cater for children, its family friendly being the type of place you could take a young relative to watch a football match, or have a drink with your mum!

The style and decor in the main & back bars is “Traditional British Pub” – Think wood panelled walls and wooden floors. There is a large function room at the rear that has a more contemporary look to it. The toilets are clean and the general appearance and upkeep of the place is good. The function room is excellent for private parties as it has a separate entrance and has folding doors to separate it from the main bar area. The main bar has a decent pool table – and the quality of pool players at the Horse is pretty good (I’m no slouch!)

The Horse is an excellent place to watch football (and rugby) matches. Each area has a separate screen. It does get packed for big games, but what is good is that the Horse isn’t a pub where everyone is affiliated to the same team - so the atmosphere is good and there is plenty of banter flying around!

The drinks available are standard fare – Hoegaarden, Stella, Kronenberg, Fosters, Carling and Guinness on tap which are kept well – but not exceptionally. The usual ‘alco-pops’ and ciders are on offer (Smirnoff Ice, Crabbies, Bulmers, Magners etc) as well as the usual spirits / liquors (Bells, Smirnoff, JD, Jameson, Tia Maria, Baileys etc). Typical bar snacks are available. The wine selection is poor and not recommended & do not expect a cocktail menu, but the Horse is after all, an old school boozer.

Now onto the food. Sunday lunch at the Horse is legendary. It serves the best Sunday roast in the local area by a country mile (and I’m including the gastro’s in East Dulwich and the few newly gentrified bars in Peckham). All the food is freshly cooked and prepared on site, portion size is excellent, price reasonable (roast beef dinner is around £7-8) and most importantly the food tastes great. The menu isn’t exciting (roast dinners, lasagne, lamb shank etc) but the Horse does what it does very, very well. Be warned, the Horse gets packed for its Sunday lunch which is very popular. They stop serving around 4pm.

If you are in Peckham and fancy a pint, I highly recommend the Horse.