Camden Town Beer Hall: what to order and when to go

Open today (Wednesday) 12:00 to 22:00, kitchen 12:00 to 20:00. Book a table if you are coming with a group. Camden Town Beer Hall is the taproom of Camden Town Brewery, at 55-59 Wilkin Street Mews, NW5 3NN, under the railway arches opposite Kentish Town West station. Strictly speaking it sits on the Kentish Town side of the border, not in Camden Town proper, but nobody at the bar is checking your postcode.

What it is

The Nudge describes a 200-seater taproom under a set of railway arches, with fresh beer, pizza and brewery tours. It is Bavarian-inspired: CAMRA describes two linked drinking areas where big shared tables are the norm, attached to a brewery now built into the arches. The brewery has been making beer under the arches since 2010, and Hells Lager, its best-known beer, arrived that autumn. The hall itself opened on 7 June 2021, as reported by Hot Dinners and Kentish Towner.

One thing to know before you arrive: CAMRA lists no real ale (cask) here. This is a keg and fresh-from-the-brewery sort of place. It lists the hall as family friendly and dog friendly with a garden, and the brewery’s own site welcomes “the whole gang”, dogs included.

What to order

Start with the lager. The hall has 24 taps. Kentish Towner reported it pouring Hells Lager, Pale Ale and Off Menu IPA, plus limited small-batch beers exclusive to the hall. Hells Lager is 4.6%, a cross between a Helles and a Pilsner made with German malt and hops, and it is the obvious first pint. Kentish Towner argued there is nowhere in the capital fresher for unpasteurised beer.

If you want something stranger, ask what is on from the Arch 55 small-batch series, the one-offs The Nudge says come from that arch. Launch-era tips included an Ice Cream lager (4.7%) and a Belgian IPA (6.6%), but those were 2021 picks and may not be pouring now, so ask at the bar.

Food leans Italian, not Bavarian. Chef Theo Randall oversaw the launch menu, which Hot Dinners said mixes Italian cooking with beer-hall dishes: burrata with roasted asparagus, burnt butter and sage, and a sharing platter with pretzels or focaccia. The Nudge lists an ‘nduja pizza with fior di latte mozzarella and sage and delica squash ravioli, and calls the menu mainly Italian. Restaurant Online noted that apart from the pretzels, little of it is conventionally Bavarian, so do not turn up expecting schnitzel. The menu has changed since launch and the brewery’s site is the place to check what is on now. I have no current prices to give you, so look at the menu before you commit a group to a platter.

When to go

Hours on the brewery’s contact page:

• Beer Hall: Monday to Thursday 12:00 to 22:00, Friday and Saturday 12:00 to 23:00, Sunday 12:00 to 22:00.
• Kitchen: closed Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday 12:00 to 20:00, Friday and Saturday 12:00 to 21:00, Sunday 12:00 to 20:00.

So Wednesday and Thursday are the sensible weekday picks if you want dinner as well as a pint. Friday and Saturday evenings are the likeliest to be packed, which is a judgement from the hours rather than a promise, though a past visitor review noted the place gets very busy at times. Eat early, because the kitchen stops well before the bar does.

Booking and the tour

The Nudge recommends reserving a table, and reservations go through the brewery’s website, as do tours. The brewery tour, called Beer School, takes in the brewhouse, includes tastings and covers the brewery’s history. The Nudge gave the price as £25 per person, but that page is not recent, so confirm on the booking page. TripAdvisor rates the tour 4.6 out of 5 from 319 reviews, with guides and the tasting flight singled out. There is also a merch shop on site.

Getting there

Visit London puts the hall opposite Kentish Town West station on the Mildmay line, and an 11-minute walk from both Chalk Farm and Kentish Town tube stations on the Northern line. Kentish Towner mentions Prince of Wales Road as the approach to Wilkin Street Mews.

For after: the Southampton Arms

The beer hall has no cask, so finish at the pub that does. The Southampton Arms, 139 Highgate Road, NW5 1LE, is a historic pub that CAMRA says has an interior of special national interest, with seven changing cask ales, up to six real ciders and a small garden. The Nudge describes a traditional neighbourhood pub serving only UK beer and cider, with no exposed bulbs or bare brick. Order whichever cask ale is on and a half of cider to follow. Its hours vary by day and split between lunch and evening sessions, so check before you set off.

Sources and details: Camden Town Brewery contact page, The Nudge, CAMRA, CAMRA on the Southampton Arms.