A Roast in The Sun of Camberwell

Rarely do I venture South of the River, particularly on a Sunday when the usually slow train service often just stops. But last Sunday, I headed for Loughborough Junction in the name of a friend's birthday pub roast in The Sun of Camberwell on Coldharbour Lane.

It was my first pub roast of the season but the the beer garden was still flooded with sunshine, warming the drinkers and provoking a party atmosphere.

Wacky yellow

Inside, The Sun has lots of character too: the walls are covered with obscure collections: old snooker cues cases line one wall while another had framed shirt collars nailed to it. The wacky ladies loo had an assortment of old monochrome portraits, all sporting silly expressions cobbled on the yellow walls.

I kicked things off with a Bloody Mary which only needed a few more splashes of tabasco and worcester sauce - (I like mine spicy and brown) and then I moved onto a pint of inoffensive Tribute pale ale.

On to the food: I normally avoid roast chicken due to its dry tendency but I was persuaded by the chefs' method of partially poaching the bird in a water bath, then roasting it to make sure it stays moist- and it did. Traditional trimmings of crunchy baby carrots, buttery cabbage and crispy roast spuds were cosied up inside a yorkshire pud, made nicely soggy with the oniony gravy.

For pudding? I squeezed in a deconstructed blackberry and vanilla cheesecake: The bland vanilla could have been punctuated more with the juicy seasonal fruit and the two sticks of what can only be described as sweet uncooked spaghetti were unnecessary.

The pub is a 10 minute stroll from Loughborough Junction station, made interesting with some snazzy architecture flats with yellow perspex balconies. If you're based in this neck of the woods, you are lucky to have this friendly, fun pub as your local and if not, it's worth the trip.

The Sun of Camberwell, 
61-63 Coldharbour Lane, 
London, SE5