Bars
The 6 Best Pubs in Highgate
Village boozers on the hill, log fires below the Heath, and one of north London's best walk-in roasts.
In short: our top picks are The Flask, The Red Lion & Sun and The Wrestlers. 6 places in total, chosen on merit, with the full reasoning below.
Highgate keeps its pubs the way a good village should: old, warm and quietly pleased with themselves. You can climb from Archway to the top of the hill and drink through four centuries without repeating yourself, from Dick Turpin’s old haunts to a Top 50 gastropub garden. The cluster around North Road and the High Street is dense enough for a proper afternoon, and the Heath-edge taverns give you somewhere to land after a long walk. These are the six we send people to.
| Place | Area | Price |
|---|---|---|
| The Flask | Highgate | ££ |
| The Red Lion & Sun | Highgate | £££ |
| The Wrestlers | Highgate | ££ |
| The Spaniards Inn | Hampstead Heath | ££ |
| The Gatehouse | Highgate | ££ |
| The Angel Inn | Highgate | £££ |
-
Editor’s choice
The Flask
Why we pick itLow beamed ceilings and a terraced front courtyard on a 1663 site draw a Sunday crowd for Fuller's cask ale and proper roasts.
historic pub
-
The Red Lion & Sun
Why we pick itHeath Ball's Top 50 gastropub cooks dry-aged British meat over coals; the garden fills fast on a warm Sunday afternoon.
gastropub
-
The Wrestlers
Why we pick itA snug local on an ancient 1547 site, with open fires, well-kept cask ale and the old Highgate Swearing on the Horns ceremony.
traditional pub
-
The Spaniards Inn
Why we pick itDick Turpin and Dracula both feature in its legend; the walled garden behind this 1585 tavern is a Heath-walk institution.
historic tavern
-
The Gatehouse
Why we pick itA grand mock-Tudor corner pub on Highgate's oldest inn site, with a long-running fringe theatre upstairs and cask and craft below.
historic pub
-
The Angel Inn
Why we pick itThe Red Lion team's second Highgate site does an unusually good walk-in Sunday roast and a short, seasonal British menu.
modern gastropub
Before you book
Highgate tube on the Northern line drops you a few minutes from North Road, though the walk up from Archway past the Flask is the nicer approach. Book the Red Lion & Sun for Sunday lunch, since the roasts sell out; the Angel is walk-ins only, and the Wrestlers and the Flask take walk-ins but fill by early afternoon. Most have a garden or courtyard and welcome dogs, which makes them ideal after a loop of the Heath or the cemetery.
Common questions
What are the top picks in this guide?
The Flask is our editor's choice: Low beamed ceilings and a terraced front courtyard on a 1663 site draw a Sunday crowd for Fuller's cask ale and proper roasts. The Flask, The Red Lion & Sun and The Wrestlers lead the guide, with 6 places in total, all chosen on merit.
How does Lamplit London choose its recommendations?
Every place is chosen on merit, after first-hand visits where possible, with no pay-for-placement. Read our full method at https://www.lamplitlondon.com/how-we-choose/.
Related guides
Dining The Best Pubs in London
Open fires, good cellars and proper food: the London pubs worth crossing town for.
5 places Read guide →
Bars The Best Beer Gardens in London
Sun traps, riverside terraces and leafy hideaways: the best beer gardens in London for a sunny day.
5 places Read guide →
Bars pub crawl london
A walkable Soho run of five characterful pubs, from a grand Victorian gin palace to the half-pints-only bohemian bolthole.
5 places Read guide →From the Journal
Drinking
An Excuse for Champagne
Nobody really needs a reason for champagne. That is the secret of it. A glass of something cold and serious turns a Tuesday into an occasion, and the only thing standing between you and that small ceremony is the deciding to do it. London understands this better than most cities. We will toast a promotion, […]
16 Jun 2026Read →
Drinking
London in Summer: The Terrace Months
London does not do summer by halves, but it does do it briefly. For a few weeks the city forgets itself: the light stretches past nine, the pavements warm up, and everyone you know suddenly has plans that involve being outside. This is the season the rest of the year is quietly jealous of. It […]
11 Jun 2026Read →
Drinking
Behind the Unmarked Door: London’s Hidden Bars
There is a particular thrill in a bar you have to earn. Not the velvet rope and the clipboard, which only test your patience, but the door that gives nothing away. A buzzer beside a barber’s chair. A bookshelf that turns out to be a hinge. A telephone box at the back of a hot […]
29 May 2026Read →Readers also viewed
Bars The Best Private Members Clubs in London
Six of London's notable private members clubs, from Annabel's to 5 Hertford Street, with honest notes on what each is for and how membership actually works.
6 places Read guide →
Bars The Best Bars in Canary Wharf
Skyline rooftops, a floating steakhouse bar, a velvet-lined speakeasy and a Nelson-era riverside pub: the Wharf after the trading floors empty.
6 places Read guide →
Bars The Best Pubs in Greenwich
From a Dickens-haunted riverside tavern to a robata-grill gastropub, Greenwich pours the finest pints in south-east London.
6 places Read guide →
Bars The Best Jazz Clubs in London
Six London rooms where the music is live, the lights are low and the night runs late.
6 places Read guide →