The Southampton Arms

"This old-school boozer, a 10-minute wander from the lido, is one of north London’s most celebrated haunts and the Southampton Arms' bar snacks aren’t too shabby either. Sit with a crisp pint and a roast pork bap smothered in apple sauce and topped with crunchy crackling for good measure." - heidi lauth beasley, jake missing, sinead cranna

"The owners of this very wonderful establishment have done an amazing job of creating a fantastic local pub that attracts an eclectic mix of both original regulars from its former guise and new visitors. All the ales and ciders stocked here (18 handpulls in total) are from small independent UK breweries. You can accompany your pint with a choice of tasty meats, we recommend the warm pork bap with apple sauce. Vinyl is played from behind the bar, with excellent live music provided on Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday nights. Quiz night is Monday and take note, it’s a cash only bar." - Chrissie Macdonald & Andrew Rae

"An ale-focused pub serving baps with half a pig in them sounds extremely ye olde England, but stick with us. The Southampton Arms is a little pub just five minutes from the Gospel Oak end of Hampstead Heath, and serves one of the best sandwiches that’s less than £10. The roast pork bap, complete with crackling and apple sauce, is a thing of pint-soaking beauty." - Team Infatuation

"An ale-focused pub serving baps with half a pig in them sounds extremely ye olde England, but The Southampton Arms exists very much in the now. Aside from this little pub being both excellent and just five minutes from Hampstead Heath, it also serves one of the best sandwiches around. Its roast pork bap, complete with crackling and apple sauce, is a thing of tear-inducing, pint-soaking beauty." - Jake Oliver, Rianne Shlebak, Sinead Cranna

"Hampstead Heath Whether it’s blisteringly hot, bitingly frosty, or greyer than the sopping Irish wolfhound that’s just dried itself on your cords after a dip in the dog pond, Hampstead Heath is one of the great London spots for a stroll. Everyone has their own preferred entrances, exits, and route but, one thing is for sure, you should always ensure that The Southampton Arms is involved somewhere. The Gospel Oak pub was once a CAMRA stronghold but these days there are just as many walking boots as there are Blundstones. On colder days the fire crackles, but ale is flowing all year-round. Their famous pork bap—oozing with apple sauce and topped with crackling—is a classic, but the vegetarian scotch egg might be the best pub snack of the bunch." - rianne shlebak, daisy meager, sinead cranna, jake missing