The Flask

On a hazy spring evening Thomas and I took a stroll up Highgate Hill. Well, that was the idea, it ended up being more like a vertical climb for which I was completely unprepared. In any case, it was a lovely day so we ventured to an area fairly local to us that we had not previously explored.

At the summit of the hill we were glad to see a pub where we could rest up and get some dinner. The Flask sits prettily on a fork in the road and offers fairly standard traditional pub food in a relaxed and lively atmosphere.

We ordered our food at about 8:30 and were sadly too late for our first choices. The kitchen had run out of the burger (which Thomas wanted to have), the sausage and mash (which I’d hoped to order) and the steak. Disappointing.

We were served bread, 2 slightly paltry looking slices with some olive oil and balsamic. It was okay, but somehow seemed at odds with the place, something you’d expect in a restaurant or at least a more formal section of such an establishment, not in a pub garden. We were sitting outside, they have a large covered seating area decorated quaintly with fairy lights and foliage.

I had the fishcakes of which there were 2 and they were decidedly on the warm side rather than hot. It was listed on the menu as accompanied by a side salad and saffron mayo. The side salad was a rather limp and wilted bed of rocket which was very wet. See it glistening?? Without a discernable dressing, it was a bit soggy for my liking, lacking even the subtle bite that should come with rocket.


The mayo was a bit sickly, there was an awful lot of it but I was pleased to see it had slithers of saffron in it. This did provide a good contrast in consistency to the fishcake itself, which I’d assumed would be salmon but tasted like tuna. If it was tuna, it was anaemic, either that or it was cod.

Thomas surprised me by ordering the roasted squash with beetroot and goatscheese. So disappointed was he that there were no more burgers I thought he’d sworn off meat for life! The squash was hit and miss, some pieces too hard and some too pulpy. I rather liked the goatscheese, it’s a brilliant partner for the sometimes boring beetroot. It was served as a salad and was okay.


The place was full, no mean feat on a Monday evening and considering they had sold out of several dishes it seems to be a popular venue for locals. They must be doing something right, were I to come back it would probably be for drinks or to try those sausages.

Boo's profile     Other reviews by Boo     Boo likes    

Pleasant surprise; is one way to describe this rather well hidden yet large pub with all its character, pampered with young trendy folk with a big beer garden out front, heaters and a canopy. It’s quite hard to believe that something this big is just around the corner from the quiet village high street, but its there. Once journeying through the furniture outside and up to the main building, one finds the pub steps upwards onto a plateau, from where a bar sits with its back to the entrance wall, and beyond is a wooden room with lounge-like side-rooms and cabinets about the place displaying antiquities and trophies. The service is very fast and quite friendly. The selection behind the bar is intriguing, I pluck a Jamaican beer from the procession of bottles and thoroughly enjoy it.

Overall the Flask is a fun pub which draws a popular crowd, great in both winter and summer months with something for everybody.

Greg's profile     Other reviews by Greg     Greg likes    

"A lovely cavernous pub, with a separate non-smoking room with an often roaring fire in the winter, lots of outside seating for drinks in the summer, reasonably priced, more expensive then the Wetherspoons down the road but worth it for the atmosphere. Young laid back crowd and they serve food!"

"Great pub - looks good - nice beers - but extremely rude management. Expect abuse if your order is wrong, late or mishandled."

"I took some friends here on Sunday. There was no draught lager, no guinness, no roasts, no BBQ, and no chicken left. As rediculous as it sounds we were forced to choose from either Steak or Warm Salad for the main and drink only small bottles of lager. There was a 1 hour wait for food. It was not particularly busy."