The Three Stags pub in Kennington Road, London has been awarded a three star rating from the Sustainable Restaurant Association for its efforts in creating a sustainable pub.

Mark Linehan, managing director of the Sustainable Restaurant Association said: "Richard and his team at The Three Stags have proved that sustainability is just as achievable in the heart of London in a pub as it is in a fine dining restaurant in the depths of the countryside. The Three Stags is a brilliant example of how a commitment to the values that most customers now demand can achieve the very highest standards of sustainability."

Richard Bell, licensee of the Greene King leased pub and chef James Brown have been working towards the rating for the last year by ensuring they locally source produce for their daily changing menu including the honey and herbs produced in their very own roof top garden.

Read the full story at Eat Out magazine here.

Kennington isn’t an area short of pubs, and certainly not pubs of the modern, gastro variety. The Tommyfield and The Old Red Lion are a couple of them which have been reviewed and very positively rated in this paper over the last year.

The sense of community at The Three Stags blows the competition out of the water, though. It’s tangible from the moment of stepping inside; this is no dining room with a bit of space for people to drink, rather this is a proper pub that just happens to serve food.

With that in mind, the sheer quality of food on offer is a brilliant surprise. A ham hock terrine served with homemade piccalilli and toasted spelt bread makes a satisfyingly butch and hearty starter, whilst a main of roast pork belly - which comes from the same Chiltern farm as the meat for the terrine - boasts unctuously soft meat nestled teasingly beneath an almighty roof of audibly crispy crackling.

Hat’s off to the chef, because it can’t be far from being perfectly executed.

Read more on No Rum at the Inn.

With demand for local and seasonal food ever increasing, what better way to guarantee local supply than growing your own?

Emily Manson explains that even if space is at a premium there's always room to cultivate some produce and a great sustainable story.

"Locally sourced" has been one of the favourite phrases in restaurants' vocabulary for a while now, as customers increasingly want to know more about what they are eating and where it came from.

It's hardly surprising that to try and accommodate this growing passion, operators across the UK, rural and urban, are looking to use space either inside, outside or near to their businesses to grow their own produce.

The Three Stags has a roof garden with a vegetable patch and a beehive, although owner Richard Bell admits he's not the one with green fingers, only the drive. "We have a beekeeper and a gardener looking after everything," he explains.

Bell started the garden last year and soon realised that some crops weren't very efficient. "We had loads going on at first but we'd only get a handful of something once in the summer as opposed to something that grows in abundance like rocket. We've learnt huge lessons," he adds.

This year they are limiting themselves to spring onions, shallots, rocket, baby carrots, pak choi, ruby chard, pea shoots, parsley, lovage, rosemary and possibly radishes, beets and some wild garlic.

"We've realised we need to grow a few items that are sustainable, will grow in abundance and keep going throughout the summer," says Bell.

He is also looking at a patch of land near the pub, which would be big enough, if used as an unofficial allotment, to support half his fruit and vegetable requirements for the year.

For more information on sustainability, read the article on the Caterer magazine site here.

Sitting on the corner of a crossroads, with the Imperial War Museum opposite, The Three Stags could best be described as a prime example of an old London pub. Built in 1891 the pub and its bar has many original features including a snug that looks like it’s been unchanged since it was originally fitted out. Under the ownership of Richard Bell, The Three Stags has, like many London pubs, been transformed, adding ‘gastro’ to its description in recent years.

In talking to Richard, he is an enthusiastic supporter of sourcing produce as locally as he can, indeed, some from his own rooftop, and in recent times he has become a member of the Sustainable Restaurant Association. He proudly told us that in his short period of membership he has already fulfilled 15 pledges with the association.

Full review here.

Flavour Magazine’s June 2011 Interview with Richard Bell, Owner of The Three Stags.

Download the full article here

Flavour Magazine’s Interview with Richard Bell, Owner of The Three Stags and the Sustainable Restaurant Association

Read more: Interview: Flavour Magazine, April 2011

"An airy corner pub with a relaxed local vibe, the Three Stags has signed up to the Sustainable Restaurant Association, & strives to combine quality ingredients with care & creativity. A frequently changing menu might feature silky chicken liver pâté followed by a juicy, crisp-skinned salmon fillet served alongside stewed pepper & apricot couscous with a delicate saffron dressing, then rhubarb & custard tart as a neat sweet treat.

To drink, pick from a decently priced wine list that includes bottles from the Chapel Down winery in Kent, or ask one of the friendly staff to mix you a cocktail – perhaps the ‘all fall down’ (Tequila, rum & Kahlúa), which would have been an appropriate tipple for Charlie Chaplin’s father, who regularly drank here until he toppled."

http://www.squaremeal.co.uk/restaurants/london/view/104902/Three_Stags

"Recommended by Charlie Chaplin’s pissed-up father who was in here so often they named a corner booth after him."

Full review: http://www.fluidlondon.co.uk/Three_Stags_SE1.Bar_Restaurant