Driver, King's Cross  

The Driver appears to have been going through an identity crisis of late, changing from a decent, relaxed pub (with good food) that we rather liked, to a more upmarket affair. And, at one point last year, we were told the pub had become a private members' club - we weren't sure what to make of it. However, we were recently informed by the management that the Driver is not entirely private and is indeed open to the hoi polloi, so we popped along to have a look. Externally, the 1930's building now has a living coat of plant life and is a striking contrast with its rather more industrial surroundings. Internally, however, the view is much more conventional - standard gastro pub decor (at least on the ground floor). There's a central bar, with a few decent ales on the hand pumps, a pretty standard range of beer and lager on tap and an extensive and attractive wine list. Glancing around you'll notice that almost all of the wooden tables are laid for dining, just two or three left for casual drinking and conversation - the Driver is now almost totally given over to eating - it has a full-blown restaurant upstairs too (and there really is a private members' club at the very top). It seems the merely thirsty are relegated to small area close to the pub entrance and it's diners who are the target market. So despite the fact you can get a good pint here, to us it's not really a pub, it's a restaurant. The surrounding King's Cross area is working hard to shed its image as an insalubrious termination of a couple of major rail routes and, currently, we Londoners are not sure what to make of it. It seems to us the Driver is also trying to find it's niche, we will be popping in from time to time to monitor progress.

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