Flask

Two buildings now forming one pub in an attractive leafy part of smart Highgate. The original, possibly early 18th-century, three-storey section (partly rebuilt about 1767) has a plaque noting an earlier incarnation, ‘The Flask 1663’. In this part there are two old rooms with a servery between them. This has sets of impressive, well preserved glazed sash windows while the shelving and panelling inside seem of real age (possibly mid-19th-century if not earlier). The public can now walk between the two areas but originally they were separate as the surviving woodwork suggests. There was an extensive makeover in the 1930s from which time we have the plain counter front, spittoon trough, panelling and (now door-less) telephone booth. There are two typical 1930s fire surrounds with thin brickwork. The pub has expanded considerably to the left and rear and the atmosphere here is quite modern.