London ILB - FAP?

FYI, on the way home from Wembley last night I passed through London Bridge and stopped in the Royal Oak. I was relieved to see its lights shining at the end of Tabard Street.

It was quiet. I don't know the owner but he was the old geezer behind the bar. He seemed to be just talking and drinking, not serving. The kitchen was closed.

Listening to others while I finished reading the match programme, and then talking to a West Ham United fan who had also been at Wembley, I gathered that this was nothing less than THE LAST NIGHT of the old Royal Oak - of its ownership, at least. The WHU fan stated that nothing would change in future. I suspect he was just going on a half-baked memory of Harveys' tweet, rather than any more solid and recent assurance.

So if my understanding was correct, one could pop in from today and see a different Royal Oak; or the same Oak under new management. Or will there be a hiatus, a temporary closing of doors? That was not indicated anywhere in the Oak that I saw.

I went back to the Royal Oak last night: a brief reconnaissance mission.

At some level I feared great change; at another I trusted that not much could have changed, not this soon.

The same on the outside. Inside it was busy (c.7pm). The saloon bar was unchanged, the public bar just a bit rearranged.

The old Harvey's pump badges had been replaced. I regret this. It's utterly superficial yet it changes my impression; of the beer as well as the pub.

More to the point, had the beer changed? Sussex Best was still on and one can assume it's the same. Versions of Mild and Old Ale were on I think. Pale Ale, which I had adored in this place, was gone. In its place, Harvey's IPA. IPA is Pale Ale, of course. So is that the same thing? I drank a half, couldn't tell. I suspect it's not quite the same, but a related replacement.

The beer was quite cold.

All the above mostly isn't much to quibble about.

The menu, though, had changed a lot. The old daily special list was gone from the wall; a blackboard was up, but empty. The old regulars menu was gone also.

In their place, what seemed a daily-specialized menu, one page covering starters, mains, sandwiches, desserts. Very limited overall; much, much less choice than before.

The menu included:

sausage & colcannon
steak & red wine pudding with chips
fish & chips
Thai inspired spicy quinoa burger with chips
Ham, egg & chips

It's quite good to see this last item present, as ham, egg & chips was a staple of the old Oak. This menu is ... OK. But it's limited. Overall it gave me the impression that fears - mine if no-one else's - had been realized.

But I suppose that if you go purely for a drink, the whole Oak experience won't be that different.

Thai inspired spicy quinoa burger with chips

Slippery slope.

they shd sub in tapioca and whisk us back to our childhoods

http://www.yeoldeoak.co.uk/imgtransform/yeoldeoakcouk/17_03_14_yoo_jumbo_hotdogs_560g_W211_H350.png

as an ex londoner and ex ilb fapper I appreciate these royal oak status updates, hope they become a regular feature.

ILB fappers who are also HIDDEN LANDSCAPE pledgers who do not yet have their book (= whose addresses i do not yet have) can you please email me to receive same!

( = woof and daniel_rf i believe )

or we can FAP and i can bring them along and save on the postage but the send out is next week

I was going to propose FAP also.

We can ferociously debate Patricia Lockwood and William Empson in person rather than online.

i think we should invite john lanchester put him in the corner and don’t let him go until he’s explained himself. flick peanuts at him etc.

I can mail my address, but a quick FAP at some point would be good

i think we should require him to describe and explain us (also peanuts)

xp excellent :)

Idea: next Thursday 14th for FAP?

yes, that would be the only day i can do until after easter.

i will be attending the bob stanley / chris o'leary Q&A that evening sadly

That is a pity but I am inclined to say we go for next Thu as a chance to test the new Royal Oak as ILB has not done before?

That is a pity but I am inclined to say we go for next Thu as a chance to test the new Royal Oak as ILB has not done before?

woof and daniel: my email is marksink3r at googlemail dot com

I can't come along :-(

dipping into this thread to note that while i hope you have a good time the phrase

Thai inspired spicy quinoa burger with chips

makes me v much glad to not be in england

Turns out I'm busy on Thursday also - there's a small chance I might be able to drop in late doors, which I will if I can.

woof and daniel: i need yr addresses by end today or it will have to be by hand when we next meet :)

(which is not a problem for me but everyone else will get theirs first)

Sent you a mail

got it!

i think this will probably a bad idea for me this thursday. i’m under the weather and absolutely wiped at the moment. so maybe we can wait until we’re the full quire?

Agreed, no FAP this Thursday.

The terrible weather we've been having reminds me we should perhaps do a summer FAP?

I can do next three weeks 20th, 27th, 4th. Not the 11th then all good.

I could do the 20th, can't do the 27th, would prefer the 4th and anything after the 11th is basically science fiction as far as I'm concerned.

that's good bcz the 11th is when i download all yr brains onto a hard drive anyway

You're gonna need a smaller hard drive.

Everybody else ok with the 4th?

it's my mum's 84th birthday so it's good not bad

Not a substitute for anyone else's FAP but a Royal Oak note: I am going for a birthday pint there this Friday 21st June. Please join us.

Still on for Thursday?

I'm in!

I am also.

Oh yeah could you bring your copy of "The Unseen"?

I could and will.

i am also in

this time i will arrive with enthusiastic editor's tales of a very different underground: less hawkwind, more soundsystem-rave-dubstep -- the 'nuum!! hola! (i hate that half-word so much lol)

with important crossover figure youth of killing joke allowing us to posit that dave brock invented hip house

I doubt I'll make this, my (older) sister's down in London because she's going to see Rammstein in Milton Keynes (no, seriously) so I'll probably have to keep her entertained.

I would like to attend this FAP but will definitely not make it till 8pm, perhaps later.

This is good see you then.

Tom D - bring your sister along I am sure we can all entertain.

ILB cosplaying RAMMSTEIN:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH-ycguHLBU

Might be able to come to this after all, my sister's had to delay her trip for a couple of days because she's suffering from severe migraines at the moment - which hopefully should have cleared up by the weekend because I, for one, wouldn't fancy going to a Rammstein gig with a migraine.

Aiming for six or earlier

Amid almost total disagreement about the LRB last night, we did not mention Andrew O'Hagan who is back in the current issue.

Does anyone agree that he is a bad, very affected writer?

Was it him who did that awful Grenfell piece?

My favourite moment of a very pleasant evening was when we realised that "The Last Samurai" was DEFINITELY named as a pun on "The Last of the Summer Wine".

gyac: yes it was.

I was just reading his article on Lillian Ross, full of pretentious gossip about whom he knew (half of the names are nobodies and / or he doesn't properly explain them).

Despise O'Hagan, he has nothing to offer.

So this was very enjoyable (and thank you Tim for lending me yer book) apart from the pie at Royal Oak. No game anymore and standards have sorta slipped now :-(

Hope to see everyone again in autumn - enjoy the summer!