White Hart

If you’re after a classic, good old-fashioned pub in Stoke Newington you can do a lot worse than the White Hart.

It’s got great food, a huge beer garden, and despite the name it’s not too dear.

To say it’s become a local staple is a bit of an understatement; it’s been there for so long that we literally don’t know how old it is, merely that it was opened sometime in the later half of the seventeenth century. Step inside today, and you’ll find a large space packed with traditional wooden furnishings, chandelier lighting, and comfortable Chesterfield sofas sat in front of a roaring fireplace. But the best bit? Is probably the beer garden. Of course, we say beer ‘garden’, but it’s actually more like a miniature park, with literally dozens of tables scattered about.

There’s a strong emphasis on games inside, with entertainments including a table football table, an ever-changing pinball machine (they’ve had the likes of Johnny Mnemonic, Judge Dredd, etc.), and occasional table tennis in the upstairs function room. And all of that is as well as the traditional big screen games & pub quizzes on offer.

Then there’s the food. In keeping with the newfangled notion that pubs should serve restaurant-quality, they’ve created a menu that straddles both the old & new schools of pub grub, with the former provided by a good ol’ cheeseburger with maple-glazed bacon or beer-battered fish & chips; and the latter provided by handmade gnocchi with oyster mushrooms & tender stem broccoli, and a smoked duck-breast salad with poached pear & roquefort.

The Sunday roasts are a definite point of pride for them,  with all rare-breed meats (Hampshire pork, Hereford beef, etc.), fillet of salmon, or a nut roast sided by piles of artfully roasted potatoes, braised red cabbage, honey-glazed carrots, broccoli, green beans, and fluffy Yorkshires.

It’s a truly Harty meal.

NOTE: The White Hart is currently closed due to Covid. You can find out more and see when they’re set to reopen at their website right HERE.

The White Hart | 69 Stoke Newington High Street, Stoke Newington, N16 8EL

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