This pub has been voted by our readers as one of the best in Peckham and Camberwell. See the full list of winners here.
A no nonsense pub for those who don't like nonsense. Hermits Cave (their lack of apostrophe) curves away from Camberwell Green, leading onto the minted slopes of Grove Lane. Inside and out, it's dressed in dark browns and greens, dotted with oddball paraphernalia such as mounted animal heads and fossilised bottles of Cutty Sark. Add to that a roaring fireplace in the winter, and a smallish TV screen with BBC news on it, and you've got yourself a properly relaxing place to sup.
What is there to sup on? Hermits Cave's draught beer selection is small but decent: aside from the usual bad lager and Guinness, there are two or three cask ales on pump, quite often ELB and Adnams. A flat cider is often to be had on tap, along with an unfussy range of spirits.
This place attracts a mixed bunch: wet behind the ears art students from Camberwell College of Arts, and taciturn locals who look as though they've been sitting on the same stool for 100 years. It's a world away from Stormbird across the road, and that's why these two coexist so well.
Last updated November 2015