Boathouse

Head north on Chesterton Road and you'll find yourself at the sort of pub that gets busier on sunny afternoons than it has any right to be—and there's a reason for that. The Boathouse sits right on the water, which means you're getting views of the Cam rather than a car park, and that genuinely changes the mood. It's the kind of place where you'll spot rowers stumbling in still damp from practice, students sprawled across the garden, and regulars who've clearly claimed their favorite spots years ago. The Greene King operation runs smoothly enough—proper ales on tap, standard pub food that doesn't pretend to be anything fancy—but what keeps people coming back is the location and the fact it still feels like a proper local's pub rather than a theme park version of one.