Kilburn. Turn left along Shoot Up Hill, then turn right at the traffic lights down Mill Lane. You'll find the pub on your right after a few minutes, just after the road has crossed the railway line. West Hampstead tube: turn right (from either of the national rail stations in West Hampstead, turn left) and head up West End lane. After the Thameslink station, turn left up Sumatra Road, and walk up that until you emerge on Mill Lane. Turn left and head down the road until you reach the pub on your left.
Rather in the manner of a D-list 'celeb' seeking attention, this pub undergoes regular makeovers; usually to the utter indifference of the wider world. One has to ask what the point of it is in the case of The Alliance. It is, and has always been, a perfectly reasonable neighbourhood boozer for people. The latest changes - to a clean, airy (sanitised?) modern look - are presumably designed to appeal to the more upmarket residents of this neighbourhood - a demographic which is not famed for its love of pubs. Apparently an experiment with a separate dining area failed, presumably due to lack of interest. The end result is that you get the same people - there's still a strong working class and Irish element here - coming to a place which is trying, and failing, to attract someone else. It's not a bad place to drop in for a drink - the Guinness is pretty good, and we liked the black and white photos by local photographers - but we do wish they'd just leave the place alone.
reviewed: 18/3/2007
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posted by Paula Love - Tuesday 4th December, 2007, 8:50am
We lived in the neighbourhood of the Alliance for 5 years and are proud to acknowledge it as our 'local'. Mick and his team there are really friendly and it was a great relaxing environment to enjoy a pint (or 2). They specially put the Allblacks rugby games on sky for us and also let us hold my 30th birthday party there. Now that we're back in NZ we still hold fond memories of our times at the Alliance!
click for directions to The Alliance from wherever you are
Sky TV (big screens)
pool table
darts
jukebox
