The facade of the building sets the tone – pavement-to-roof terracotta tiling with colourful tiles adorning the porch. Inside, the Victorian interior (untouched by recent renovation) is dark and handsome. It’s the sort of place that makes you say “great British pub” and “this is how they should be”.

The long mahogany and brass bar stretches down one side, etched glass divides seating areas and black and white prints of ye olde London (said to have been found in the attic) cover the walls. Lovers and groups of friends should bag one of the three cosy snugs at the back.

The Fox & Anchor is a beer-drinkers paradise. There are six real ales on tap (always changing) including their own Fox & Anchor Ale, one locally brewed lager and a cider from Suffolk. Bottles of beer include an interesting range of stouts, wheat beers and fruit beers.

Food wise, it’s all about top-notch pub grub. We’re not talking hot pots and ploughmans. We’re talking oysters on ice and home cooked pork pies on the bar. A menu of steak, kidney and oyster pies, pan-fried monkfish cheeks, cockles and mussels and onglet steak, chips and béarnaise. Side dishes include chips cooked in goose fat, duck fat roast potatoes and honey roast carrot and parsnips.

Oh and if you happen to be passing by one morning (7-11am, Mon-Fri), pop in for a pint and a full English – a bargain at £7.95. The Fox & Anchor is literally a stones throw from Smithfield meat market, back in the day local traders would go in for brekkie and a pint around 5am. These days you’re more likely to find local business folk, trendy Clerkenwell-ites and tourists propping up the bar.

We had a dinner reservation for 8pm. The pub was busy and the restaurant fully booked. Walking in, you could immediately sense a great atmosphere. Couples and groups of friends were deeply ensconced in conversation. Candles gave the pub an intimate glow while the background music was subtle and not in your face.

The menu was hard work. I wanted the smoked salmon (beetroot cured), the homemade Scotch egg and the fried skate knobs (despite the dodgy name). And that was just for starters. For mains it was difficult to choose between the fish cakes, gypsie eggs (a tomato based bacon and ham soupy stew, with two fried eggs on the top) and the cod in beer batter, chips and mushy peas.

The wine list was extensive - I think there were about 85 bottles - ranging from £12.95 Montepulciano’s to £125 Chablis’. We plumped for a very smooth Dinastia Vivanco Rioja Crianza (£19.95).

After much deliberation, I chose: the fried skate knobs with caper mayonnaise for my starter and the fish and chips as my main. I demolished the lot. My boyfriend James made fast work of his ham hock terrine with piccalilli “so meaty and it just falls apart”. His steak, chips and béarnaise sauce was “tender and full of flavour” – as you would hope from a pub opposite London’s premier meat market.

Despite my choice of two full fat, fried dishes, they were both surprisingly un-greasy. “That’s what you get when it’s done properly” James informed me stuffing another chip in his mouth. Ahhh, the chips. They should be listed on the menu as “The Chips”. Cooked in goose fat, they were crunchy and chunky and impossibly indulgent. I would go back to the pub just for them. James has an ongoing chip-o-meter, he gave them a 10 out of 10, I gave them an 11.

Pudding would have sent me over the edge. I’d loved to have tried the rhubarb crumble or apple and stout fritters. But the fear of self-combustion was too great.

The Fox & Anchor ticks all the boxes. It wasn’t just the food and ambience, it was the hospitality that makes this pub a winner. The lovely Irish landlord Scott Malaugh is the kind that mucks in with his staff, chats to all the punters and would remember a face the next time you walked in. All the staff were clued up when it came to the menu and wine list. And they also clearly enjoyed working at the pub. If I lived around the corner, it would definitely be my chosen local.

Starters from £4.50 - mains from £10.95 – sides £3 - puddings £5.50.