I first reviewed Truman’s Social Club in London E17, when it launched in July 2021. At the time, it promised to be ‘the biggest socially distanced pub and garden’ in London but during Covid we were only allowed to sit outside and ‘slots’ had to be prebooked.
Since restrictions had been lifted, I was aware it had taken off as a nighttime destination with the young crowd, but it wasn’t until a chat with neighbours, that we realised that it opened during the day for lunch. We took advantage of a sunny March morning to walk along the River Lea, through Tottenham Marshes before calling in at the ‘club’ which is the tap room of Truman’s Brewery.
Truman’s is part of what has become known as the Blackhorse Beer Mile: which comprises of several breweries and associated tap rooms, located in a business park near Blackhorse Road tube on the Victoria Line. We’d read that Truman’s was the biggest but were still surprised at the size of the huge tap room which was akin to an aircraft carrier with high ceilings and lots of sociable communal tables as well as smaller more discrete areas.
Above the bar was a chalkboard of the 10 beers and 2 ciders which were available (they change regularly) and we chose pints of the two ciders – number 5 Traditional and number 12 London W9. We took them outside where there is a huge space full of picnic benches. Whilst you can order drinks at the bar, the menu is only available via the QR code which is also used for ordering food. The menu had various burgers and chips and surprisingly Thai food. However, we plumped for simple bacon rolls in a brioche bun at £5. They were excellent and we enjoyed our experience so much we returned.
This time, we had a longer walk, through Walthamstow Wetlands, and whilst we knew it was the school holidays, we hadn’t imagined they would impact the tap room. Having ordered a pint of the cider we’d had before, London W9, the other cider was called Golden Delicious, a really pale coloured cider which could have passed for lemonade except it was 5.5%. It was a little cool to sit outside and so we plumped for a table near the open kitchen. Although there were few others around us, the kitchen kept up serving a procession of food, which was being delivered to a side room. Once again, we ordered bacon rolls, but this time with a side of chips. We waited and waited, as the orders kept flowing until after 30 minutes, I asked what was happening. Initially our order appeared lost but having been found, we were told it was still not at the front of the queue, and so I asked for it to be cancelled. However, whilst we were finishing our pints and discussing options, the food was brought to the table, and we were told we would be reimbursed. On leaving we peered into the side room and found it absolutely full of small children and parents, attending a special Easter holiday event. Lessons learned.