Golden Lion

Walk into the Golden Lion and you're stepping into the kind of pub that gets better the more you visit. It's not trying to be anything other than what it is—a proper neighbourhood spot where locals prop up the bar and the barstaff know what you're drinking before you ask. The vibe here is relaxed but never sleepy; this is where Watford types come to actually talk, not scroll. Real ales rotate regularly, and the food's the kind of thing that makes sense at the end of a day: proper portions, honest flavours, nothing overthought.