where shall we meet? The Flask, N6

In dinky Highgate Village stands the Flask, a favourite North London drinking haunt. The interior of the 17th-century building, named after the barrels in which the healthy (well, healthier than what flowed through the plague pits around the Fleet) Highgate spa water was transported, is composed of little rooms on different levels containing two or three tables and a variety of prints and Victorian fardels. Drinks include mulled wine (£2.10) and a pleasant whisky toddy (£1.60), plus a weekly guest ale. Now that there's a sniff of spring in the air hardier souls might want to sit in a front yard with a pleasant view over Highgate's salubriousness which still suffers from the loss of the cherry trees that used to grow there.

The Flask, 77 Highgate West Hill, N6 (0181-340 7260)

Serena Mackesy