| Barking Riverside | The latest addition to the Barking - Gospel Oak line. Area undeveloped as yet. |
| Barking | For District Line and C2C trains to Upminster, Chafford Hundred (for Lakeside Shopping Centre), Southend and Tilbury (for Gravesend Ferry).
Refreshment:
Turn left outside the station for The Spotted Dog, a traditional pub which is bigger than it looks and which also has a hidden beer garden. |
| Woodgrange Park | The City of London Cemetery is 10-15 minutes walk away for those who may be interested. Those buried here include Bobby Moore, Dame Anna Neagle, Winston Churchill's nanny, and two victims of Jack the Ripper. |
| Wanstead Park | For Forest Gate and Wanstead Flats and Woodgrange Market (Saturdays - junction of Woodgrange Road and Sebert Road). Alight here for Clapton Community FC's home - the Old Spotted Dog ground in Upton Lane. Sadly the historic adjoining pub of the same name is long-term closed.
Refreshment:
Actually situated at the north end of Forest Gate, this area was a beer desert for many years – not any more! Turn left out of the station, walk the short distance to Forest Gate Station, and just round the corner on the right you'll find the welcoming oasis of The Forest Tavern . Formerly The Railway, this large pub building was taken over in early 2013 by Antic (the same small company who took over and transformed the Red Lion in Leytonstone) and stripped back to its basic structure before reopening with a mouth-watering range of real ales. There is also a restaurant at the rear. In addition, just before you reach the Forest Tavern, The Fox & Hounds has reintroduced real ale and offers Sharp's Doom Bar plus a guest ale at reasonable prices in a down-to-earth, local-pub atmosphere. |
| Leytonstone High Road | Just south of the town centre (shops, pubs, restaurants etc). Cross the road and go down Ferndale Road to reach the open spaces of Wanstead Flats, or go for a stroll through Bush Wood followed by a drink in the North Star in picturesque Browning Road. Indeed if you're feeling energetic you could use this as a starting point to walk out towards Epping - look at a large scale map of N.E. London and you will see a wedge of green stretching out from Leytonstone towards Epping. Leytonstone Tube (Central Line) is a 5-10 min walk away.
Refreshment:
Leytonstone has up & come quite a bit in recent times (though so far without becoming too yuppified), and has quite a lot going for it these days. As you exit the station, The Mammoth Brewery has its taproom in one of the viaduct arches.
Turn right outside the station, and a short walk brings you to The Bell – Fullers London Pride plus usually a guest beer, and good value food. Turn left outside the station, walk for 5/10 minutes to the town centre and you reach The Red Lion. This massive, long-neglected pub building has been stripped down and restored in traditional style, making the most of the main bar’s grand scale and huge windows. Wide range of real ales and interesting bottled beers (discounts on ales for CAMRA members), plus gastro-style food and a buzzing atmosphere.
A major and very welcome addition to the local pub scene, What’s Cookin’, the justly-renowned roots/country music club is located at The Ex-Servicemen's Club in Harvey Road (just behind the Red Lion) - highly recommended for a great night out!
A bit further along you come to the The Birds ,recently re-named and re-vamped in honour of Sir Alfred Hitchcock who was born a little further down the High Road towards Stratford. A bit further along across the road is The Walnut Tree, a decent medium-size Wetherspoons with a good range of real ales and food. Also at this end of town is The North Star in Browning Road (turn right off the High Road just before the Green Man roundabout) - an unspoilt little gem of a traditional local in the old "village" part of Leytonstone, with an ever-changing range of good real ales and a friendly welcome. |
| Leyton Midland Road | For Leyton Orient FC - probably the finest football club in London, E10 - and Brooks Farm (city farm with some interesting animals).
Also for bus 97 to Walthamstow FC who are now in Isthmian League Div 1 North. (Essex Senior League, ground located in Kitchener Road, alight at Cazenove Road stop.
Refreshment: Literally under the station (Arch 155, Midland Road) you'll find The Gravity Well Brewery Taproom, where you can sample a range of craft beers including their signature juicy pale ales and IPAs. (Food can also be ordered, from Spicebox, a local West Indian vegan restaurant). Open late afternoon to mid-evening Mon-Fri and all day at weekends. Turn right outside the station and a 10-15 minute walk brings you to the William IV, opposite Tesco. Shortly afterwards turn left at the lights and you'll find The Spark House - formerly the Drum (Wetherspoon's), it is now a pricey keg-only establishment. |
| Walthamstow Queens Road | For Walthamstow Market, Walthamstow Village conservation area and Walthamstow Central (London Overground, Chingford Branch and LU Victoria Line)
Refreshment:
Go straight on out of the station down Exmouth Road, turn right at the end, and the bridge under the Chingford line brings you to the heart of Walthamstow Market. Manze's Pie & Mash is now closed, Japanese food these days! Turn right up the High Street and you come to The Chequers, a lively, busy pub with a range of craft keg beers, food menu and 'distressed-shabby-chic' decor and a lively atmosphere.
For the award-winning Best Pub in East London (Official), head north up Hoe Street to the utterly wonderful Rose & Crown |
| Blackhorse Road | For Victoria Line tube, Walthamstow Wetlands, local fishing and bus 123 to William Morris Gallery
Refreshment:
The Standard across the road is alas closed and demolished, but is scheduled to rise again as part of a new development. Formerly one of the friendliest gig venues in town, it saw many great gigs including occasional appearances by visiting legends (eg Arthur Brown, Suzi Quatro, Wilko Johnson, John Otway, the Electric Prunes) and local cult genius The Bevis Frond.
A 5/10 minute walk along Forest Road towards South Tottenham brings you to the Ferry Boat, an historic and agreeable pub (with garden) near the River Lea and the reservoirs, which does real ale, good wines and food. Nearby is the Blackhorse Road beer mile, a range of craft breweries and taprooms in the industrial estates, 10 mins walk from the station. |
| South Tottenham | For Seven Sisters, Stamford Hill and buses to Tottenham Hotspur FC |
| Harringay Green Lanes | For busy shopping centre with many ethnic food stores and cafés/restaurants, 10-15 minute walk to Harringay and Manor House stations.
Refreshment:
There's a McDonalds next to the station for those who like 'fast-food' offerings. Opposite in the re-vamped Arena shopping centre, a Costa Coffee, with snacks and cakes, but if supermarket shopping before catching your train, Sainsburys has a little cafe area with hot drinks, snacks and buns until 8pm. Opposite the complex road junction into the shopping centre is a classic daytime cafe, the N4 Eatery, at 351 Green Lanes.
However Green Lanes offers much much more, as the stretch north of the station and railway bridge (towards Turnpike Lane) is an ethnic foodies paradise. Many shops are piled high with fresh fruit and veg, along with couple of breadshops and Turkish patisseries. There's a wide selection of cafes and takeaways, several sit-down restaurants with a strong bias towards real and wonderful Turkish fare, a truly amazing selection of eating houses! If you can't find something to delight your taste-buds, give up! To wash your eats down, try The Old Ale House, corner of Burgoyne Rd, which has up to four guest ales, or the astounding high-Victorian gem, The Salisbury further along Green Lanes, by St Ann's Road. Fullers beers and guest ales on handpump; pricey but the ornate surroundings are worth that bit extra. |
| Crouch Hill | Across the road from the station is a real gem - the small and cosy Robin Ale & Cider House offers 6 ever-changing real ales, 4 ciders and ten craft keg lines. Food is good but basic - pies, Scotch eggs, sausage rolls and salt beef sandwiches. The manager used to run the Southampton Arms near Gospel Oak (see below). A bit further down the hill, the Old Dairy (whose fascinating decorated building is exactly that) offers Greene King beers plus meals.
At the road junction you'll find The Stapleton, restored to its old name after stints as The Larrik and Danzibar! Several cask beers are on tap and food is available during evenings. Head along Stroud Green Road towards Finsbury Park for cheaper food offerings. There are many cafes and restaurants, ranging from Pizzerias to Kebabs, Mediterranean to Mexican, Thai to Turkish, and a good chippy. |
| Upper Holloway | For Archway tube, Highgate and Holloway Road.
Refreshment:
Walking away from the station up Holloway Road towards Archway Northern Line tube station, there are several interesting local independent cafes, including a chippy. Pub-wise, heading up Holloway Road you come to the Mother Redcap, a REAL Irish pub with some surviving original tiling and - naturally - excellent Guinness. Going across the major road junction and up the Archway Road, you'll find the Charlotte Despard, North London pub award winner - a lively house with good beer, a youngish clientele but a welcome for all, opens at 5 00 - closed Mondays. Carry on up Archway Road under the bridge and you come to an absolute gem - The Winchester Hall Tavern ("The Winch"), beautifully restored and reopened after a long period of closure and uncertainty, and offering an excellent range of beers. At the top of the hill, the Boogaloo is a noted music venue with Timothy Taylor Landlord on draught. |
| Gospel Oak | For the North London Line (to Hampstead Heath, Kew Gardens, Richmond, Camden, Hackney, Stratford & Docklands). Parliament Hill Lido is a 2 minute walk from the station.
Refreshment:
The Old Oak is directly opposite the station- lively locals' pub with Sharp's Doom Bar plus a guest ale on handpump. But if you have longer to spare, turn left into Gordon House Road, go under the bridge and turn right at the junction with Highgate Road, and there (in the shadow of our one-time Highgate Road High Level station – what a pity it’s not still open!) you will find the utterly wonderful Southampton Arms. After years as an unremarkable Courage pub, this has now been taken back to real old-fashioned basics as an ale and cider house, with an awesome selection of both (mostly from small brewers and producers) plus traditional pub fare like slices of real pork pie and sausage rolls. A gem, and a must-visit…..but don’t make too many plans for the rest of the day! If you just fancy a quick bite and a cuppa, check out the little snack bar immediately on the far side of the railway bridge arch. |
| Food to travel?
One change over the last few years has been the growth of convenience store sized outlets of the major supermarket chains. A number have sprung up near to stations and we will endeavor to keep members and friends posted.
Please let us know if you think a good shop has opened within 300yds of a station that sells, for example, reasonable sandwiches, hot and cold drinks, fruit or other sundries for travelling snack meals. Also do let us know if you use any of the pubs or cafés, whether or not you have a good experience, or we hope not a bad one. If there were complaints, we would go and have a look ourselves if possible. Happy eating and drinking! |