The Florence is a brewpub located in the heart of Herne Hill. The ambiance is contrived and frustrating. The place adopts an aesthetic of ’manufactured comfort’. It’s what a pub would look like if you hired a team of consultants to furnish a pub based on market research of what well-heeled Independent readers think they want in a local. The service was barely acceptable, my barwoman acted as if she wanted to be anywhere else but work. The selection was curious - there were 2 house brews on offer plus a bunch of boring, paint-by-numbers ’premium’ macro options. Why would a brewpub offer such lazy alternatives to their own beer? The house brew I tried wasn’t in good condition. Of course, previous Florence beers I’ve tried haven’t been good anyway, so I probably wasn’t missing out. The prices were actually more reasonable than I thought they’d be, a lone bright spot on my visit. Overall, yeah, I don’t like this place.

Just the two house brews available on hand pump, although they both may not always be on. The beers are lacklustre unfortunately, the venue itself leaves a lot to be desired.

Great local gastro and brew pub. Be sure to try the microbrewed beer house beers.

Modern young-leaning spacious brew-pub with four taps offering up to three, but usually two, of the pub’s own Florence beers at any time plus guests. Also note one or two interesting kegs such as Vedett. Central island bar, subdued lighting and comfortably-pitched background music, along with a colourfully decorated beer garden. I experienced both disappointing and then surprisingly good service, in that initially there was a long (15min) wait for table service despite the bar area being quite empty. Once I received service the waitress was very professional, attentive and helpful. I enjoyed my food - the steakburger - from a fairly simple but tasty food menu, and the fish goujons were very good too. Overall, I enjoyed my visit and indeed stayed longer than intended. I will return.