The Holborn Whippet

From the guys behind the Euston Tap and its cider-based sibling, this Whippet’s kennel is a former Italian restaurant on Sicilian Avenue – a colonnaded corner of Palermo in not-so-hot Holborn. The clunky wooden interior is a work in progress, but amusing young staff do their best – especially when it comes to working the 20 or so taps that sprout from the brick ‘beer wall’. Big-boy global brands are banished in favour of sterling stuff from Black Isle, Dark Star, Adnams and Essex brewer Mighty Oak. There are plans to sell pizzas, char-grilled steaks and burgers, but the line-up of spirits and wines needs beefing up – Picpoul de Pinet was so under-subscribed that our barmaid couldn’t recall how much it might cost. However, cider fans can rejoice: the Whippet offers Harry Sparrow, an amber joy named after a 1930s Norfolk cider trader.