Crown & Anchor

The Crown & Anchor sits on Brixton Road, a 10 to 15 minute walk from either Brixton or Stockwell stations. It was the first pub in Brixton to take craft beer seriously, more than a decade ago, and it has kept chasing the best UK and international brewers since. The taps are the reason to come.

This is a beer drinker's pub first. Up to 25 lines run at any one time, so it rewards anyone who likes to work through a flight of unfamiliar brews. If you want cocktails and table service, this is the wrong room. If you want range and a proper Sunday roast, it delivers.

The pub keeps a relaxed, unfussy feel, with a long bar of rotating taps and a patio down the side for warmer afternoons. Brixton Blog credits it as the pub that brought a proper beer selection to the area, and notes the CAMRA recognition that followed within its first year. The fit out stays out of the way of the beer board.

The Brixton Road location sits between the station crush and the quieter residential streets, which keeps it busy without tipping into chaos. The side patio is the prize seat when the sun is out.

The draw is the tap wall, up to 25 lines of rotating craft beer from local and international brewers. The range changes constantly, so the move is to ask what is fresh and order a third or a half to taste widely. The kitchen leans into big Sunday roasts, with beef, chicken, lamb, pork and a vegetarian nut roast, and the neighbouring Booma serves North Indian dishes from a charcoal tandoor.

The crowd is a Brixton mix of beer enthusiasts, locals and weekend roast bookers. Weekday evenings stay relaxed, while Friday, Saturday and the Sunday roast service bring the busiest stretches. The patio fills first on warm days.

Find more with our London craft beer guide and the London bar guide. Nearby and citywide, pair it with Brick Brewery Taproom in Peckham, BrewDog Camden, or Three Sheets in Dalston. For more reading, see our best craft beer in London pillar and our London hidden gems guide, or browse the craft beer near me hub.