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VERSION:2.1
N:Founders Arms
FN:Founders Arms
TEL;WORK;VOICE:020 7928 1899
ADR;WORK:;;52 Hopton Street;SE1 9JH
URL:http://www.foundersarms.co.uk/
NOTE:Back when the idea of Britain having a modern art gallery was as likely as Lord Howe running the marathon, the Founders Arms was a bit of an anomaly. It was, for a start, a Modern Pub; a polygonal affair of brick and smoked glass, sat by an abandoned power station on the wrong side of the river. Quite awkwardly, the interior made a stab at being late Victorian, creating a faintly surreal sense of anachronism that I find really rather endearing, but which didn't earn it many punters. Even on a Friday evening one could amble along the shabby stretch of Bankside and find it half empty, and then sit there watching the dome of St Paul's across the river. Then the regeneration of the South Bank happened, along with Tate Modern and the Millenium Bridge, and even before they were finished there were suddenly thousands of people ambling along what had previously been a deserted stretch of river. The owners of the pub, Youngs, astutely decided to alter the appearance of the place. Out went the 1970s smoked glass and faux-old furnishings, and in came wooden floors, clear glass and food. It worked; the place was mobbed and has remained so ever since. On a warm day, if you're lucky enough to find a free outside table, the views across the City are spectacular, and it can be very calming to sit staring at the river slopping past this way and that. The beer, being Youngs, is excellent, and the food is first-rate pub grub too.
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