London Pubs Group

Campaign for Real Ale

Campaign for Real Ale

Pineapple

51 Leverton Street,
Kentish Town,
NW5 2NX

This too is both a grade II listed building and one of London’s Real Heritage Pubs and the description is as follows: “A tucked-away small corner local of around 1868 which was, fortunately, saved in the face of a closure threat in 2001 by a vigorous and effective local effort. The Pineapple has been opened up and there is now a single bar that wraps round the serving area. But here there is a truly spectacular feature which justifies the pub’s inclusion in this guide. This is the bar-back, a three-bay piece which is one of the best such examples from the mid-Victorian period anywhere. It’s made of mahogany and has, at the top, panels advertising ‘whiskies’, ‘brandies’ and ‘wines’ in painted and gilt glass. The strips dividing the panels are florid Corinthian capitals. In between come etched mirrors with urns bursting with foliage and, below them – of course – pineapples. Another fine example of an 1860s bar-back fitting is to be found at the Victoria, Bayswater, W2. The bar counter seems original as is the marble fire surround on the left-hand side. Above this is a fine mirror advertising Bass ales, signed by ‘J.R. Dunning & Son. 30, Mulkern Road. N’. On the right is a further mirror for Bass pale ale, this one signed by ‘S. Trennes & Son. Gray’s Inn Rd. W.C.’ showing a couple of herons, one of them fishing. There’s a pretty cornice all around the front bar and dado panelling round the walls.” The listing description is as follows: “The Pineapple public house. C.1868. Builder unknown. Yellow stock brick. Stucco-faced ground floor, moulded stone window arches. Double valley roof not visible behind parapet. EXTERIOR: three-bay elevation, three storeys high, with doorway to centre flanked by windows with three-panel aprons; all openings are segmental-headed, with pineapple motifs to keystones. Upper windows are 2/2-pane sashes. Ground floor is faced with channelled rustication, with moulded imposts, radiating voussoirs, and a modillion cornice at first floor level, carried on acanthus-enriched brackets at each end. Curved corner to south-east with raised quoins of brick. Side elevation to south continues ground floor rustication, with subsidiary door (now blocked) and window; three windows to first floor (western pair blind), one to second floor. INTERIOR: altered, but retains good behind-bar screen with etched glass mirrors depicting vases of flowers with pineapples below; frieze contains mirrored lettering reading WHISKIES BRANDIES WINES; frieze is carried on four Corinthian pilasters with mirrored strips decorated with lotus leafs; rear counter is carried on consoles with pineapple decoration. Ceiling to main bar retains decorative plaster cornice. An unusually exuberant example of a mid-Victorian pub serving a newly-built development of suburban housing, which, in spite of internal alteration, retains a fine behind-bar screen.”

The Pineapple featured on the Evening Crawl of Kentish Town in April 2004, the Highways, Archways and Tramways: Daytime Crawl of Highgate, Archway and Kentish Town in June 2010, and the From Wrestling to Assembling: Evening Crawl of Highgate and Kentish Town in August 2015.