Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Good Beer Guide

  • Leicester – Sir Robert Peel

    Leicester – Sir Robert Peel

    Working through the Good Beer Guide, CAMRA note that this pub has been operated by Everard’s since 1901. It’s an interesting survivor on Jarrom Street, as there was once a row of houses here, but only the pub has survived.

    http://specialcollections.le.ac.uk/digital/collection/p15407coll5/id/969/

    This photo is from Jarrom Street in the 1960s (taken by a forward-thinking photographer named Dennis Calow who recorded Leicester housing before it was pulled down), so I’m guessing that there was some slum clearance going on.

    There was a friendly welcome at the bar from the staff member and it was evident that there was plenty of character in the pub. Interesting and quirky decor, there felt like some heritage here. There was an element of it feeling like a locals’ pub, but in a positive sense and the atmosphere was laid-back. There’s one large room at the front, that was once divided, with a courtyard area to the rear.

    They don’t tend to name pubs after Prime Ministers any more, but here’s Robert Peel.

    This was the Harvest Pale from Castle Rock Brewery, which in my opinion was a bloody dreadful beer and I struggled to get any flavour of anything out of it. The nearest taste I could claim this had was to water. Completely pointless as far as I was concerned, although it seemed to be well-kept. For me this was an appalling beer, although I’m sure others might have a very different experience of it. I thought back to the decadent and exciting choices that I’d had at the Real Ale Classroom a few hours before, a more joyous list of beer options.

    I felt the need to have a beer from Titanic to balance things up a bit, and the stout tasted as it should. This is one of the few beers that I’d rather not have as a keg version, which was what was available here, the cask to me has a richer flavour. This was a happier experience.

    The choice of beers here wasn’t really what I was looking for, there was a nod towards the generic and bland as far as my taste is concerned. I think that is evident when looking at the Untappd ratings for the pub, there are a relatively low number. There’s nothing wrong with the pub though, it was clean, the staff were welcoming and there was a choice of different real ales, so I can see why it’s been listed in the Good Beer Guide.

  • Leicester – The Two-Tailed Lion

    Leicester – The Two-Tailed Lion

    I may have mentioned (several times) how good the Hop & Vine pub is in Hull nd nowhere has yet exceeded that for me, although Goose Island in London comes very close. This pub in central Leicester was though really quite marvellous and certainly one of the best that I’ve been in.

    It’s a micropub in size, although they don’t refer to it as such. There’s a very on-trend feel to the whole arrangement, but it doesn’t seem to be formulaic and nothing is forced. That’s a screen with the live menu on at the end of the bar, they’re using UnTappd to power that (which also meant that I got to see my photo at the bottom of the screen when I rated a beer using UnTappd, a reminder that I need to get out more….).

    They have cask and keg options, the first photo is the Gatekeeper beer from Buxton Brewery and the second photo is of Julie beer from the GlassHouse Beer Company. I thought that the latter was particularly refreshing, a fruit beer with raspberry running through it which gave it an equal mix of sourness and fruitiness.

    They’ve got a room to the rear of the bar which is all quite airy and there’s an upstairs which I didn’t visit. Everything was clean, tidy and organised, with the beer selection covering most styles and there were some interesting options. However, it was the service which lifted the pub even further, with the barman being friendly, engaging and personable. I asked for recommendations for other pubs and he was keen to help, giving some excellent suggestions and helpful information. I will be trying out the recommendations that he offered, even though a few of the pubs are a little bit of a walk.

    It’s not exactly difficult to do, but I also liked how he acknowledged customers when entering, even if he was serving others and some pubs fail to do that. I was also interested to hear about what happened to the Head of Steam in Leicester, something that had intrigued me, but ultimately it seems they were too ambitious with their plans and lasted months rather than years.

    As for why I though this pub tipped towards exceptional, it’s just the element of friendliness which many locations can’t get right. They’ll be polite, but my measure is to imagine someone new to the area who tentatively goes in a pub to hope to find a local and meet friends. I feel that anyone in such a position would feel genuinely welcome here, very much the Hop & Vine approach. Maybe a little intangible, but there’s something all very competent and fun about this place.

    There were no negatives here for me, it was a well-run, comfortable pub which had excellent customer service at its heart. Quite rightly listed in the Good Beer Guide, it’ll be hard for any other pub in Leicester to beat this for me.

  • Paisley – The Last Post

    Paisley – The Last Post

    As I was walking through Paisley yesterday, I thought I’d visit one last Good Beer Guide pub before my flight back to London. This is the JD Wetherspoon operated Last Post, which I chose as the other pubs listed appeared to be primarily sports led and I wasn’t going to risk that.

    It’s a grand building that JD Wetherspoon have converted, what was formerly the main Post Office in Paisley, hence the pub name.

    The upstairs in the pub, which wasn’t overly busy, just as I like it, nice and peaceful.

    And the downstairs area, which was a little busier.

    A half pint of Buffalo from Fire Island organic craft beer.

    And the large bottle of Elvis Juice, which came with the meal.

    With the meal being the chicken jalfrezi curry, which was very reasonably priced and towards the lower end of the price bands that the chain has. The food was all fine and cooked well, with everything at the appropriate temperature, so the usual value for money. Service was excellent, with a friendly team member bringing the drink and food, they offered a check back and also checked if I had enjoyed the meal. The environment was clean and comfortable, with team members visible cleaning tables down on a regular basis.

    I’ve noticed that the average Wetherspoon pub seems to score around 4.1 on Google reviews (I accept that I really need to get out more….), so this one is a little more negatively reviewed than the usual. Many of the reviews are the general complaints about slow service or tables not being clean, although I didn’t experience that. The complaint:

    “Went for breakfast, sold out of poached eggs but could still get eggs on a fried breakfast, so basically who ever is in the kitchen can’t poach an egg!”

    I’ve seen a few times from customers who don’t realise that JD Wetherspoon just reheat pre-cooked poached eggs that are shipped straight in. Another angry customer left them 1/5 noting:

    “They have my favourite poached eggs Benedict on the menu but they don’t serve it, something to do with the poached eggs being cooked off site!!??”

    For a busy kitchen, I like this approach, there’s a consistency to the process and it should be impossible to get a hard poached egg, although Richard has managed a couple of times. Anyway, I’ve digressed into writing about poached eggs in Wetherspoons, which is a bit pointless as I didn’t even order that. Back to the reviews, one customer commented “I got two camping chairs stolen in the pub” which sounds an exciting story as the criminal “grabbed them and ran straight past me”.

    There was a choice of five different real ales, so I can see why the pub has been listed in the Good Beer Guide, and since the interior also has some historic interest, I’m pleased that it has been listed. All rather lovely.

  • Glasgow – Pot Still

    Glasgow – Pot Still

    I’ll mention now that the photos in this post really aren’t ideal, the lighting conditions made for some slightly blurry images, but they’ll have to do. This is a Good Beer Guide listed pub which specialises in malt whisky and real ale, with a reputation from some people I spoke to for being the best pub in Glasgow.

    That back bar is far more exciting and interesting than this photo suggests, but the service here was on point throughout. Actually, I’d go further and say that it bordered on exceptional, with a real connection between the staff members and customers. The pub was full when I arrived so I asked if it was OK to sit at the bar, something which isn’t allowed at some places at the moment, which they were happy with.

    One customer came over to the barman and asked for the best whisky of the several hundred that they had. The barman gave what I consider to be the correct answer, and one which I heard given at the English Whisky Company in Norfolk, which is that the best one is the one that an individual likes the best. Everyone will give different answers. The customer asked the barman what was his favourite and he replied that he wasn’t going to give an answer, as he wanted to help the customer get the best whisky for them, not the best for the barman. The customer persisted, asking which whisky had won the most awards, with the barman replying that nearly every whisky now has won some sort of award. The barman did keep trying to ask what kind of whisky the customer wanted, but I’m not sure that they knew themselves. He ended up with a Glenfiddich.

    I’m with the barman on this. If someone asked me what the best beer was I’d be conscious that my answer is unlikely to be the ideal choice for anyone else. Although the answer here is the 8th Anniversary Pecan Cookie Stout from Westbrook Brewing Co, for which I’m already planning a trip to South Carolina, but that’s not entirely relevant here.

    The pub has become something of a destination for locals and visitors to Glasgow, as is evident from the fact that they do t-shirts and postcards.

    There’s a strong focus on whisky, but the bar doesn’t neglect beer with number real ales, craft beers and all manner of other quirky drinks. I opted for half a pint of the Born Blonde from Born in the Borders brewery and Goldihops from Kelburn Brewing Company, both well-kept.

    The pub has numerous pies, which looked rather lovely and if they had the chicken & leek one I’d have been sold on that, but they were offering haggis and similar options. I’m sure they’re rather delicious, but I decided it was a bit decadent for me in terms of the taste, although the prices were reasonable. Beer prices were also reasonable, there’s no attempt to take advantage of customers here. I messaged my friend Richard about this pub and I’m fairly sure that he would definitely have liked this place (I make no comment about Bells) and I can imagine that he would have had a decadent pie, a decadent whisky and then another decadent whisky.

    There are nearly no negative reviews for me to pull out, but I liked the owner’s robust response to someone who complained that the pub was busy.

    “We’re disappointed you didn’t enjoy your visit with us. However if, as your other reviews suggest, you enjoy quiet, relaxed and tranquil places, then perhaps a Glasgow city centre pub, any of them, on pay weekend isn’t an ideal fit. We’ve thought about issuing slippers to patrons at the front door to keep the noise down but it didn’t get much support from the regulars. Likewise plastic cups instead of our normal glassware to dampen the clinking.”

    Nicely done I think. But, the response to “5 stars if you are a whisky drinker but 1 star if drinking decent vodka and coke. Surly staff” is perhaps one of the best and most robust replies that I’ve seen and I love the “hello again” at the start from the landlord.

    “Hello again. After seeing your Yelp review I thought you might, as you did on the night, try and moan to anyone who’d listen. And so I find you here. I can’t help that you can’t believe me. Nothing I could have then, or could now, would convince you otherwise.

    You think I’ve swapped the “decent” Smirnoff ordered for another vodka on a busy Saturday night. I barely have time for a break on a Saturday night, let alone waste time giving you anything other than what you ordered.You think I was surly. If your business was being trashtalked by someone to anyone in earshot but you, you might be a touch peeved as well. Again, because you would rather run your mouth off to anyone at the bar you could arrest the attention of, rather than deal with the perceived problem with me directly, you were getting no more to drink in the pub in any eventuality.

    You are annoyed that you were not immediately furnished with a new drink for free. If we haven’t made a mistake, we’re not giving out free drinks. We’re not apologising for imagined wrongs. I’ve made an arse of things many times, apologised to numerous people. I probably will again in the future. That’s just the way things go sometimes.”

    As a pub, this was a delight and I’m grateful that the Good Beer Guide listed it. All very lovely and some really knowledgeable and on the ball staff. Definitely a proper pub.

  • Glasgow – The Raven

    Glasgow – The Raven

    I’m slightly surprised that this pub is in the Good Beer Guide because there’s a strong emphasis on craft beer, but I’m glad that it has been listed. It was busy on a Friday evening, but I liked the engagement from the staff member at the door. When we were at the bar, he came over and pointed us towards where a table had just become available.

    There was an excellent choice of beers available, covering most styles, with a couple of real ales as well.

    I went for half of the Juice Springsteen from Alphabet Brewing and Mango Unchained from ShinDigger. Although the barman pointed out carefully which was which, I got muddled up and had to work it back out again when at the table. Fortunately, the Mango Unchained was packed with mango flavour which helped the identification.

    The music was a little loud, but not entirely overpowering, but everything felt safe and well managed. There’s food served throughout the day and the menu looked interesting. They’ve also got some electronic darts set-up which isn’t something that I’ve seen in a pub before, a bit of creativity there…. I can imagine that this would be a good place for groups, although it’s a bit far to come up for Norfolk en masse for. Definitely deserves to be in the Good Beer Guide as far as I’m concerned.

  • Glasgow – Laurieston Bar

    Glasgow – Laurieston Bar

    As my friend Jonathan was in Glasgow after faffing about doing something, he agreed to come with me on my evening’s Good Beer Guide pub visiting. This is an interesting pub just south of the River Clyde, which is also on the CAMRA’s historic interior list (the pub, not the river), primarily it seems as they haven’t really updated the interior since the 1960s. But, why change a winning concept?

    The bar design is old fashioned, but everything was clean, albeit dated. There are lots of modern and contemporary bars and pubs in the city though, it’s nice sometimes to go to somewhere a little different. There are no credit or debit cards accepted though and just cash, which is the first pub I’ve encountered in some months with such a policy.

    There’s a lounge bar and saloon bar, both with their own bars, another little slice of history.

    An old hot pies bit of apparatus on the counter, which is apparently still used today.

    My half pint of Hurricane Jack from Fyne Ales, which was well-kept but lacking in any real depth of flavour. The Quavers were delicious though and I was impressed at their selection of crisps.

    The pub might be traditional in its look, but the staff were friendly and the environment was comfortable enough. It was a busy bar of mainly locals it seemed, but the pub owners pride themselves on being welcoming to all. The toilets need modernising, it’s probably pushing it too much to try and keep those in a traditional state of repair. There’s a slight irony here that a traditional pub for locals is potentially going to end up becoming on-trend by mistake by offering an authentic experience.

    As for whether this should be in the Good Beer Guide, that’s more challenging, as the real ale choice was limited to one and the pub likes to source from Fyne Ales. For the experience, the welcome and the environment, I’m glad it is listed in the book though, as otherwise I might not have meandered over the river to get here (albeit on the subway).

  • Glasgow – Scotia Bar

    Glasgow – Scotia Bar

    The Scotia pub in Glasgow is listed in the Good Beer Guide and it also couldn’t really be much nearer to the hotel I’m staying in. As with many cities, there’s competition and debate as to which is the oldest pub, with the Scotia claiming that they are the earliest having opened in 1792. It has gone through numerous incarnations, some periods when it had a bit of a reputation and some when it has become more peaceful and a haven for authors.

    The service was friendly and I must admit to having expected a slightly more generic interior, but there’s a real feel of character inside.

    It wasn’t overly busy when I was there, although the barman said that the folk band were arriving soon and that it would become more lively.

    There are old photos, maps and illustrations on the wall. This pub has also seen its fair share of performers, not least Billy Connolly and Gerry Rafferty. The pub also advertises that they’ve had a horse in there drinking a bucket of Guinness and The Scotsman newspaper notes a local saying about that incident:

    “We’ve had a horse in here, drinking. It was a wedding reception. They brought the horse in, the horse got drunk, whereupon it went out and collapsed in the road. The council had to get a crane to lift it.”

    I was just little disappointed that the beer selection was slightly generic, for some reason I thought Belhaven would have something slightly more interesting. Then I realised I had forgotten something, which is that Belhaven is owned by Greene King. I make no further comment on that…. I opted for the 80 Shilling Ale from Belhaven Brewery which was OK, but that’s about as far as I’d go, although it was at least well-kept.

    Anyway, this is a proper pub with some real heritage, so visiting is recommended as the service is friendly and the environment is clean, albeit slightly dingy. Glasgow has been a bit lax at times in maintaining its historic buildings, so there aren’t as many old pubs as there perhaps should be, so that makes this one even more special. A couple more innovative guest ales would be nice, but there’s a unique feel to this pub and I did like it. I can clearly see why this beer is in the Good Beer Guide, although I feel that’s more down to the atmosphere and heritage rather than down to the real ale.

  • Glasgow – Society Room

    Glasgow – Society Room

    The Good Beer Guide is always a reliable source of pubs for me and I’m slowly working my way through as many venues that are listed in it that I reasonably can. For the first time, I’m a little unsure about where it’s recommending me in Glasgow, the choices are sometimes a little generic whilst some really decent places are missed out. I do understand the process for how pubs get listed, which is to do with the local CAMRA group, but the balance seems a bit off here with a focus towards the chains. Anyway, this is another JD Wetherspoon listed pub that is in the book, so I popped in for a quick half.

    As for the pub name, I might as well just quite JD Wetherspoon, who note:

    “West George Street was once home to every bank and insurance company of note. Among them was the Star Life Assurance Society, which was housed in the building on the site of this Wetherspoon pub. Established in 1824, the Alliance Assurance Company was at 151 West George Street from c1880–c1970. In its early days, the Alliance was managed by Stewart Lawrie. He was also ‘local secretary’ of the Westminster Fire Office, another company at this address.”

    This is one of the Lloyds branded pubs which JD Wetherspoon have, so there can be music and other general noise on weekend evenings. During my visit, it was all quite peaceful and quiet. Incidentally, the toilets are really badly signed here, I can’t recall seeing as many customers looking for them as in this pub (they’re downstairs, the entrance to the steps is to the left when entering….)

    This was a little bit of a surprise, the Fraoch Heather Ale from Williams Brothers Brewing Company, who seem to have a deal with the Wetherspoons round here as I’ve seen and tried a few of their beers recently. It was actually something quite innovative and this is apparently a 4,000 year old Scottish style of drink. I can’t say that a heather beer is something that I’ve had before, but it’s quite herby and I liked the strength of the flavours. For a beer that cost £1 for half a pint, this really is quite impressive.

    For a Wetherspoons, this is quite a well reviewed pub, so the local management must be pretty decent. Anyway, this was another perfectly good pub and I can see why it’s listed in the Good Beer Guide given the range of well-kept real ales. As for the pub, it could have been a little cleaner, but the staff were friendly and helpful so it seemed a welcoming enough environment.

  • Glasgow – Sir John Moore Pub

    Glasgow – Sir John Moore Pub

    And another JD Wetherspoon outlet, which I visited on my pursuit to go to as many Good Beer Guide listed pubs in Glasgow (I say Glasgow, but my efforts are national….) as I had time for. This one is in an unexceptional building which was formerly a row of shops. It’s named after Sir John Moore (obviously I suppose….) who was a locally born British army general. He lived between 1761 and 1809, serving in the military from 1776 until he was killed in action. A monument was erected in George Square in 1811 to commemorate his life, the first to be put there.

    The interior, which is functional but there’s nothing overly exciting here, it’s not a grand conversion of a bank like some of their other pubs in the city.

    The beers were fine, the first photo is of the Pentland IPA from Stewart Brewing and the second photo is of the Seven Giraffes from Williams Brothers Brewing Co. Both beers were well-kept and at the appropriate temperature and all that, but the Seven Giraffes was quite bland and unexciting. The Kettle crisps were delicious.

    Service was polite enough and the environment felt comfortable and safe. There was a choice from seven different ales during my visit, with nothing standing out to be exceptional, but at least there was a choice. Another failure though in providing any range of beer styles, the beers were all quite samey and there were no dark options.

    I had a little look at the reviews of the pub and noted one angry customer complain about the staff and note “I only spoke to 3 staff but all had attitude issues”. I don’t know how some customers manage this, I’d struggle to find three staff in a year who I’d say had anywhere near attitude issues, let alone three in one pub in one visit. Actually, I do have a clue what the problem might be here…..

    And another review that noted:

    “Absolute shambles standing at the bar for 15 minutes waving a tenner around at a bar with no more than 1 layer of people being served. Staff should use their eyes! Pointed this out to be told you’ll be served when someone is available… well the 5 of you serving were available several times and the only reason I hadn’t been was your staffs poor bartending.”

    I’d be willing to bet that the staff had used their eyes and had managed to ignore the customer that was waving their notes about. The amount of customers that I’ve seen over the years sticking their notes out towards bar staff as they walk down the bar, or bang coins on the counter as if that will help…..

    Anyway, I digress. There was nothing particularly wrong with this pub and the prices were inevitably cheap and affordable as it’s operated by JD Wetherspoon. I can’t think of anything overly exciting to note about the place and it seems to have got in the Good Beer Guide for the valid reason that they have a lot of well-kept beers.

  • Glasgow – Drum and Monkey Pub

    Glasgow – Drum and Monkey Pub

    After a lovely meal and selection of beers in Shilling Brewing Company, I started to work through the list of Good Beer Guide pubs and came to the Drum and Monkey. I realised when I arrived that it was run by Nicholson’s (part of Mitchells & Butlers), who have a consistent ability to deliver a poor range of beers, so my expectations were low. The interior was though interesting, it’s another former bank that has been converted into a pub, so my hopes were raised a little.

    As I wasn’t welcomed into the pub, I just went to sit down. I then discovered that the pub’s entire draught beer selection was Peroni, Tennent’s and Carling. No real ale, no craft beer on tap, just generic rubbish. They did have some craft beer options in cans, which I’ll credit them with, but they were overpriced and there was nothing of any real interest that couldn’t be picked up at Tesco.

    I walked out again without ordering anything. Why this pub is in the Good Beer Guide I have no idea, but perhaps it’s usually better in terms of beer options and the welcome from staff.