Kings Head, The

The Kings Head is a vital part of the leafy suburb of Winchmore Hill, and from its position on top of the hill it looks out over tracts of suburban London. But as Footloose Magazine put it, 'There's no stripped pine and designer suits here', and manager Alex Sellers sees to it the strain of originality which runs through the operation is maintained and encouraged. Certainly it commands the respect and affection of the locals who flock there in large numbers, often with three generations of the same family round one table. A large garden gives ample space for overflowing as well as barbeques, and there are about six major car parking spaces within easy reach of The Kings Head.

Another major advantage centres round its association with the Geronimo Inns group, to which it belongs. Geronimo have an enviable track record of running high standard, well managed pubs of character, with equal balance given to food and drink and no prisoners taken when it comes to the convenience of their customers. Not for nothing where they in amongst the finalists for the Evening Standard Pub of the Year in 2004.

Head Chef Paul O'Keefe runs a three menu system, lunch, dinner and bar. Bar snacks deal with passing pangs, those in a hurry and people who can't remember what time of day it is anyway, and they number around 12 dishes, plus some deli jars, of which more later. Top price is £12.95, for satay, BBQ spare ribs, a selection of dips and parsnip crisps, average around £7.50, for seafood skewers with sweet and sour sauce. Whole tail scampi, the house cheese burger with home made chips and wild mushroom risotto with truffle oil all help to maintain the inner man.

Lunch has five starters with smoked salmon and crab fishcake, goat's cheese log with roasted red onion tart and rocket salad, and there's some very attractive crusty bread served with oil and balsamic vinegar. Main courses come up with Bombardier battered haddock and chips, calf's liver with bacon creamy mushrooms and onion gravy, or a 28 day aged Angus beef 12oz cote de Boeuf with customary trimmings and sauce Béarnaise. To their eternal credit tap water is always available.

For dinner quite a few familiar culinary faces, but some new dishes as well such as the Niçoise salad, grilled tiger prawns with chilli and garlic, and the soup of the day. They take their soup very seriously here. Main courses add on pan-fried chicken with mushroom and tarragon sauce with mustard mash. A broad bean, pea and mint risotto makes a pleasant change from some of the duller varieties of the breed, but I would be steering towards the calves liver and bacon, with onion gravy and mash potatoes.

And the deli jars? Well, really sort of tapas, £1.80 each or three for a fiver, chosen from hummus, tzatziki, grilled baby artichokes and marinated feta cheese.

The Kings Head is a neighbourhood pub and their variety of air conditioned spaces means that they are well able to cope with both family and corporate events. They have their own DJ, and a dedicated bar separate from the main pub.

A guiding spirit of Geronimo Inns is Managing Director Rupert Clevely's father John, who just happens to be a distinguished Master of Wine, so its follows that some very interesting, and extraordinarily good value bottles of wine are available to support Paul O'Keefe's culinary achievements. As Sir Winston Churchill once remarked on this subject. 'I am easily satisfied with the best'.