… PUBS UP 3!

I recently received a most cryptic invitation asking me ‘whether I would like the Cheshire Cheese’. Sure! Never tried it but… Of course, when you have spent your childhood in France, you are bold about cheeses! I therefore confirmed…

Surprise! This invitation was not for a gourmet evening of Cheshire cheese; it was for a drink, or two, in one of  London's oldest pubs: Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese.

A Grade II listed public house at 145 Fleet Street, initially set up in 1538, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese was rebuilt shortly after the Great Fire of 1666. The interior is made of flagstone floors, dark wood panelling, some considered to be original, and there is not a single right angle in the tiny rooms! The vaulted cellars are thought to belong to a 13th-century Carmelite monastery which once occupied the area. The entrance to this pub is situated in a narrow alleyway and is very discrete except for the names of all the monarchs who have reigned in England during the pub's time, written to the right of the door.

Once inside, you are literally  ‘puzzled’ with the layout as it looks like a Cluedo board where you have to stoop your head and dive down the most amazing and cramped staircase to find out all the bar rooms.

The pub oozes history and literature as the walls are covered with plaques showing famous regulars such as  Twain, Tennyson, Conan Doyle, Dr Johnson, The Rhymers' Club (a London-based poets, founded in 1890 by Yeats and Rhys) and even Voltaire! Charles Dickens was also a regular and mentioned the pub in a famous scene of 'A Tale of Two Cities': Sydney Carton invites Charles Darnay to dine in Fleet Street, ‘up a covered way, into a tavern’  for ‘a good plain dinner and good wine’.

And guess what? There used to be a ghost! The ghost of a midwife
who haunted the place until she induced the residents to dig up the bones of many dead children she had killed and buried there… At least, this is what a 1680 ballad called ‘A New Ballad of the Midwives Ghost’ tells…

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese truly encapsulates years of London history and tales. In this month of celebrations, stories about magic and with the help of  a couple of beers, you may encounter the Spirit of Christmas in one of the tiny rooms…
Happy festive season!

Written by Florence Tilkens. Florence is Social Media and Marketing Manager at FOCUS.                                                      

For more information please visit www.focus-info.org  

Should you wish to share your expat experiences in the UK, please contact us: office@focus-info.org

....PUBS UP!!

Every expatriate in London must have felt the desire to immerse himself or herself deeply in this great city’s life and soul!   What better way than a drink in a pub to get a grasp of it? Sadly pubs are disappearing everywhere in the country…

The Grenadier in Wilton Row, Knightsbridge

Well, for those who are ready to dive in… a pint of beer, a glass of wine or… engage in a ghost chase, there is a public house called The Grenadier which will offer all of these thrilling experiences.

 

 

The Grenadier signboard

Tucked away from hectic Knightsbridge, hidden in a Belgravia cobble-stoned mews with an air of a country village, The Grenadier welcomes the visitor with its bright red and blue colours, its vermilion entry box and its signboard picturing… a proud grenadier!

 

Inside, the main room is small and cosy, with wood panelling and a low ceiling, and there is a big bar with the original pewter top.  A few sabres, a bugle and other military objects remind the visitor that The Grenadier was originally built for the First Royal Regiment of Foot Guards in 1720.  At that time, it was the Duke of Wellington’s Officers’ mess, and drinking and gambling were performed in its cellar.  In 1818, it became a licensed public house, “The Guardsman”, before being named “The Grenadier”.

Sausages and mash

Freshly cooked traditional pub food such as fish and chips, burgers, sausages and mash and of course the “Sunday Roast” are served in the main room or, for more privacy, in the rear dining area. A large selection of wines from around the world (Chili, Spain, Italy, New Zealand, Argentina, Australia, etc…), ciders, and ales can accompany a “traditional British” meal.

Inside The Grenadier

 An old and honourable institution indeed…  But what makes The Grenadier very special is its fantastic lodger from a by-gone age: the ghost of a young soldier who, one sinister night in September of a long-lost year, was caught cheating at cards and beaten to death by his fellow-players. Every September since, a tall, silent shadow has been seen, wandering endlessly in The Grenadier, filling the otherwise cheerful rooms with a strange chill or a soul-tormented sigh. Weird tales have been heard: a Chief Superintendent from New Scotland Yard was once burnt by an invisible cigarette as he was trying to reach what seemed to be the source of smoke he could see…Anxious footsteps have been heard on stormy nights… A face appeared behind a window…

Do not hesitate to go and enjoy a glass of wine while waiting for the spirit of the place. A crispy, chilly glass of Chablis – Domaine Thierry Mothe, another “old and venerable” institution - will undoubtedly hasten the strange encounter!

Written by FOCUS member Florence Tilkens.

For more information about FOCUS visit: www.focus-info.org