The Wells

Another local – you cant move for the abundance of gastropubs in North London, and this is one of the goodies.

The Wells is a lot more posh than my other favourites up North. The pub lives in a leafy Hampstead street where one can only dream of residing in (4 storey properties and the like). There is seating outside, as well as upstairs – but the downstairs has no booking policy. It tends to get busy with the walkers, plus dogs are welcome, so its even more lovely in my opinion.

Foodwise – delicious. I again went for the simple burger choice but it was lovely and meaty – as a simple dish like this should be. It came with homemade coleslaw and probably some of the best chips id had in a long while. It costed around the £8 mark so not extortionate. My companion had the roast – and this was huge. At £15.95, i think he got a decent meal and the plate had a healthy portion of meat, oven roasted veggies, yorkies and gravy. If i was feeling very hungry, this would be it. There was a decent array of other choices, fish, duck, pies – but nothing seemed too overpriced and other diners did seem to be enjoying it all.

Puddings – i refrained but companion had the sorbet which looked lovely – other choices were banoffi pie and eton mess – everything i saw others eating looked very well presented, not just plonked on a plate. The Wells obviously takes a lot of pride in presentation/

Im giving the Wells good marks because service was great and it certainly has a very good and cheery atmosphere. The food i had was delicious, and its one of the few pubs where im sure ill break my ‘one time only’ rule and will be back. Its ideal for a stop over after a leisurely walk in Hampstead but just make sure you are hungry and ready to feast!

My wife and I have liked the Wells for quite a time – it is about the only restaurant in Hampstead “proper” that we like to go to – casual and busy downstairs, welcoming and intimate upstairs (longer, better menu). I did go off it for a while having reported what appeared to be a breach of hygene regulations which I witnessed – even though it was properly investigated (which resulted in an assurance that the person in question was not involved in food preparation in the kitchen). However, we went to an amusing play at the New End Theatre (W is for Banker) and four of us thought we'd give the Wells restaurant (upstairs) a try.

I am very glad we did, and so were the others. The setting is great – even though it was raining – and on a bright summer's evening takes a lot of beating. The bread was seriously good (hearty, real bread and not the refined white flour tasteless sort) and the people serving seemed genuinely concerned to ensure we were properly looked after. The attitude was not the purely efficient and competent sort one finds at places like the Wolseley, but less detatched, less arch, and more homely. The Petit Syrah was incredibly good value for money too, which helped keep things cheerful.

The menu is not long, but we found no difficulty ordering from among the starters. The Jerusalem Artichoke soup was familiar but good, the different salads delivered “what it said on the tin”. The main course I had of confit duck leg with dauphnoise potatoes was again familiar but hit the spot and the red cabbage which came with it was unsurpassed as far as I am concerned. My wife agreed (she made the same choice). The rib-eye steak looked good and was enjoyed, the same is true for the vegetarian risotto. The deserts were very tempting, but we were all being good.

We left full of praise, and we will be back soon…

A friend recommended the burgers here, and we weren't disappointed.

A lovely pub with a warm, comfortable atmosphere.

We had a burger with cheese and bacon and the grilled aubergine. Both were very well cooked and extremely tasty. We're on a quest for the best London burger to fill the gap from our favourite burger place in Sydney, and this burger is topping the bill.

Locals reserve tables, so it may be a good idea to book a table in advance.

We will definitely be regulars.