Raynes Park Tavern

This bar doesn’t have anything above and beyond any other I’ve been to, but it does have sentiment and community.
This place has been my father’s local for more than a decade now, and I still see others there from back then — the days in which I would skate down at closing time, just to be able to join my father on the walk back, and talk to his friends (amongst who I was infamous).
I made my first visit there in over 18 months, which in turn was my first in many years, for the Sunday night quiz. It’s nothing major, compared to some — free entry, winning team gets 8 free pint tokens. But it’s fun. The groups are often the same, know eachother well, banter between them and in particular with the host of the quiz. Following the quiz is a raffle, of which the winner enters a Deal Or No Deal scenario with 7 envelopes, ranging from £50-£1300, and the choice to ‘sell’ his pick for a few hundred, funded from the bar (£1 per ticket, and not THAT many people).
Other nights can yield the big screen sporting event of the night, or live acts.
It felt a little like a miniature Cheers.
«Sometimes you want to go, where everybody knows your name.»
They didn’t when I entered, but the mere uttering of the words «This is my son» as I entered, changed everything. By the end, it was full of «Nice to finally meet you“s and «Come back soon“s. And to be honest, whilst I hate to be back late on a Sunday night, I believe I just may.
As to the drinks, it’s basically your average pub. They do nothing special, and to be honest, I didn’t look for anything special. It’s not where you go expecting a fancy cocktail night or entertaining a special friend, but the location for a nice night with some friends.
The food has always been good, in my brief and far between experiences. Again, average pub food, but people swear by some of it.
A pool table (I only noticed one, may have been a second in another part) and numerous gambling machines are dotted around, with apparently a darts board somewhere, make for a fairly ‘classic’ feel to this place.
Seats outside, off licence across the road on one side (for when you run out of cigarettes), and food places just down or across the road for your other late night needs. With a station visible across the road, with bus stops going both ways right there, and even a cab company right there for the worst case scenario (fear not, for you have 2 equidistant cash points from the pub), makes for a very easy journey after.
So, as long as you’re not looking for anything particularly high-​key or upmarket, it’s well worth a visit later in the day whilst in the area. Not a destination spot, however.