The Five Bells, East Finchley

They appear to have eradicated all trace of personality from the pub. All the little things I liked about the old five bells (window seats, cool metal tables, lots of arches and alcoves) have been removed. It's now all open plan with identikit furniture.

Has definitely gone down market - looks like they aspire to be a Weatherspoons. The menu used to be pretty original and had some amazing dishes (ham hock for example), now it's the standard burger, mixed grill, ersatz curry, jacket potato stuff. The wine list is uninspiring.

This is my local (or used to be!) and as you can tell, I am massively disappointed.

24 Mar 2005 09:20