Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Two Julians

Cromer – Kings Head (Two Julians)

The second pub of the day was the Kings Head in Cromer, but unfortunately it was closed. It seems that they having some work being done so I’m sure they didn’t want to be shutting their doors on a day when the town was packed with tourists, all something of a shame for them.

The Kings Head has been a pub since the 1780s, making it one of the oldest in Cromer. They were unfortunate enough to go through the cycle of Brent Walker, Pubmaster and then Punch Taverns who are still the owners, so all credit to the pub for carrying on. There is food served at lunchtimes and in the evenings with CAMRA noting that there are usually four real ales available.

Hopefully we’ll return in the future as it seemed a decent pub.

August 2, 2023
Cromer – Wellington Pub (Two Julians)

The first pub of the day was the Wellington on Garden Street which has been operated by the same family for thirty years. It’s been a pub since the beginning of the nineteenth century when it was converted from fishermen’s cottages, but it was rebuilt in the 1890s after a fire. After a period as an S&P pub it became part of the Watney Mann estate, but they sold it in 1970 and it has remained free trade since.

There was perhaps an absence of welcome if I’m being honest, but the service was efficient and the pub was busy with the staff concentrating on a few larger orders when we arrived. There were no tables free when we arrived, so we sat at the bar and everything was clean and tidy. There was certainly quite a variety of customers in the pub, including families, solo drinks, different ages and it gave it a community feel to it which I rather liked.

There were three beers available, Ghost Ship from Adnams, Wherry from Woodfordes and Golden Jackal from Wolf. I went for the Golden Jackal and that was well-kept and tasted of a good quality, with Julian’s Ghost Ship also being agreeable.

I’ve been out of the trade for so long that I’m no longer aware of new drinks, but I hadn’t heard of the Disaronno Velvet before. Sounds suitably decadent though.

The entrance to the sizeable courtyard. The pub usually serves food but for whatever reason it wasn’t when we visited. A customer came and politely asked if they could eat their chips in the courtyard given that there was no food available, but the staff member said they couldn’t. I can imagine the pub has difficulties with people doing that without asking, so I can see why they wouldn’t want to.

It’s a decent courtyard space and gives more seating options given that it was full inside.

The reviews are a bit mixed, but I can imagine it’s challenging running a venue which is popular with tourists as that creates all sorts of staffing complexities. I had a look at the reviews though as I like to read about a bit of drama.

“My husband and I visited this pub today on a lovely day we had a glass of Aspall cider each and I realised my glass had a big crack so I went to the bar and asked if I could have a clean glass but you will never guess what the barmaid did??!! Well this barmaid poured the cider I had in the cracked glass into the clean one!! 😳, I just couldn’t believe it, what if there are splinters of glass in it!!!”

A customer not happy with food service times:

“Amazing food in the Smokehouse but….. Closes at 4pm (yes 4pm ffs!) during the week. I know it’s Cromer but that’s a ridiculously early closing time. Really wanted to eat here again but somewhere else that’s open until a grown up time got my money….”

But I liked the venue’s response:

“Hope you enjoyed your grown up meal!”

Sub-optimal….. Anyway, I digress. The Wellington have four rooms for those who want to stay the night and their food offering is the Smoke Kitchen where the meals sound delicious although there’s no pricing on the web-site. Anyway, we enjoyed this pub, it had something of an atmosphere to it, everything was clean and it seemed to be welcoming to all. A very solid start to our day.

August 2, 2023
Norwich – Edith Cavell Pub

The Edith Cavell is back open again, so Julian and I thought that it would be only polite to go and have a little visit. In normal Two Julians style, this post will also be appearing at our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/. It’s a Victorian corner pub which was known as the Army & Navy Stores until 1981 when it changed to its current name. There have been a few periods when it has been called other things, including rather oddly Coles, with some slight variations to the name along with some troubled times for some operators of this venue.

Edith Cavell is something of a local hero, she was a nurse from Norfolk who was working in Brussels at the outbreak of the First World War. When the Germans took over the city of Brussels, Cavell started to assist British and French soldiers there to leave the occupied territories so that they could fight against the Germans. So, the Germans shot her in October 1915 with the defence that:

“It was a pity that Miss Cavell had to be executed, but it was necessary. She was judged justly … It is undoubtedly a terrible thing that the woman has been executed; but consider what would happen to a State, particularly in war, if it left crimes aimed at the safety of its armies to go unpunished because they were committed by women.”

Cavell was buried at Norwich Cathedral and there’s a memorial to her located opposite to the Edith Cavell pub.

Back to the pub, the interior of the venue has been redecorated and it has a cosy and warm feel to it. I’m not sure how functional some of the seating is as I prefer tables, but it’s all inoffensive. It was also clean and warm, with the reduced lighting adding somewhat to the atmosphere. It seemed inviting and it’s in a beautiful location in Tombland and overlooked by Norwich Cathedral.

Apologies that the lighting made it difficult to take a clean photo, but there’s Camden Pale, Camden Hells, Lagunitas IPA, Brixton Pale Ale and Tiny Rebel Easy Livin’.

And apologies again for the photo, but Birra Morretti, Amstel, Beavertown Neck Oil, Guinness and Cruzcampo flavoured water. My first impressions were that I found the set-up a little depressing as it’s nearly identical to some of the Ibis hotels that I’ve stayed at recently, but no point being too judgemental too early.

Julian had arrived before me and asked about their range of real ale, but they don’t sell that. It transpired, as we have similarly highly developed ordering strategies, that Julian and I both tried to order the Tiny Rebel Easy Livin’, but they had run out of that. The service was polite though and it’s cashless, something which I have a lot of sympathy for, but it’s going to be a challenge for them in terms of reviews as there are some militant cash is king customers around who will make their views known when they realise.

I went for the Cruzcampo flavoured water, which Heineken are throwing huge marketing spend at in a bid to position it as a reasonably priced premium beer. It’s not a great surprise to see it so badly reviewed on Untappd, it tasted bland, generic and pointless to me, it perhaps needs to be served in a hot environment so it’s a refreshing option at least.

The pub is owned by Stonegate, who had to force their way in earlier in the year to “make it safe”, so it’s had some very recent challenges. This presents some problems for the new tenants as they’ve now I assume hit the Stonegate tie, which is forcing them to go for some rather generic keg options. Julian is a real ale man, whereas I’m more excited by decadent keg options such as offered by the Artichoke, Leopard, Plasterers and Malt & Mardle, all a relatively short walk away. There are no beers here which surprised and delighted me, with the problem that some of these drinks such as Beavertown are a chunk over £6 a pint, which is a brave position to be in given the current economic climate.

The venue is planning to open a separate gin bar on the first floor in a few weeks, in the space that was formerly used by Prime to serve their steaks. They’ll be able to get some decent mark ups on that sort of drink and I can imagine it’ll be popular on Friday and Saturday evenings, although there’s the limitation that the venue is relatively small. I imagine there will be a rush to sell cocktails as well, another gross profit winner. I’m sure that they’ll make a decent job of the interior of the first floor to ensure that it remains comfortable.

For me, this isn’t a venue that I’d return to on a regular basis, although I can understand the attraction and don’t want to be negative. Writing just for me, I don’t mind whether a pub does real ale well or craft beer well, there are some smaller breweries offering both types of beer which continue to surprise and delight me. But, just as I don’t run to the bar with excitement when seeing Greene King IPA, I’m not going to rush for premium priced keg beers that I can get in any number of other places.

But, positivity is the key, the owners are trying something new, they’ve ensured that the pub is open for the local community and I’m sure it’ll be the offering that many customers want. And variety is the spice of life, it would be a nightmare if every pub was the same with the same choices at the bar. The pub was clean, the staff were friendly, the atmosphere was inviting, it felt safe and so that’s all to the good.

PS, apologies again for the poor quality photos!

July 27, 2023
Norwich – Weavers Arms

The Weavers Arms on Muspole Street has recently reopened, so Julian and I felt the need to pay it a quick visit (this post will also be appearing on our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/). The venue has gone through a succession of owners, as well as new names, but the incoming tenants are also behind Brick Pizza and the Yard restaurant, so they have some considerable experience. There is another Woolpack in Norwich, operated by Greene King, which might be the reason that they haven’t returned to that name, although it’s always a shame when heritage is lost.

There’s some religious heritage to the site, as not only is it opposite St. George’s Church it also stands on the former site of the residential property used by the Prior of the Augustinian Priory of Our Lady Walsingham. It has been a hospitality venue called the Woolpack since the middle of the eighteenth century, hence why its recent change of name feels sub-optimal. The listed building record notes that there is an re-used sixteenth century wooden beam on the ground floor which is likely from 1510 and so it might have been in the Prior’s living room before the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

There were four real ales available and there were a couple of new beers here that I hadn’t had before. The combination of having a local brewery along with some ales from further afield that customers haven’t had seems eminently sensible.

And there were some craft keg options as well, although other drinks such as coffees, cocktails and generic keg are also available as well. For the size of the venue, the choice of drinks seems entirely reasonable and met my expectations.

The back bar arrangement. The service was attentive and polite, with the venue being relatively busy on the Saturday evening that we visited. Julian is excited and delighted about their extended hours on a Friday and Saturdays night, as we both share enthusiasm for longer hours in pubs so that we’re not forced into visiting cocktail bars. Which has been known.

To ensure that our research was thorough, I had half a pint of all four of the real ales, with the prices for these being around £2.10 each which isn’t unreasonable. They were all well kept and at the appropriate temperature, so there’s clearly some cellar knowledge here. The lighting was a little dark when we visited, but that seemed to fit the inviting and cosy nature of the venue, this isn’t somewhere that needs fierce lights. We sat at the bar, carefully ensuring that we weren’t blocking the view of the beers, where the seating was comfortable and the interior redesign has been sensitively done.

I went for the Slap Bang Citra from North Riding Brew Pub, which has a decent flavour to it but really needed more citra with a beer name like that. Brother Rabbit is one of the few beers from Thornbridge that I hadn’t tried, it’s a suitably decadent golden ale. Then comes the old reliable of Encore from Lacons Brewery and the session bitter of the JHB from Oakham Ales.

Although we had arrived too late for dining, the pub is offering food, with some tempting delights including the chicken & tarragon pie and the beef shin & Guinness pie. For those who don’t go straight to the pies section of the menu, there are also salads, steaks and fish options. It feels like a compact and manageable menu, I suspect the food quality is very high given the provenance of the owners. There are three rooms in this venue, but as it was busy I couldn’t easily go around taking photos.

Onto the toilets, which are in a more recent extension to the building. My friend Gordon also visited the pub this weekend and sent me some photos of the venue’s rather more, er, revealing artwork in the facilities although I hadn’t noticed those. One thing they’ll need to resolve is actually putting male and female signs on the toilets, the whole arrangement at the moment is confusing and a customer was commenting about it to a staff member.

Julian has decided to make extra visits to the pub to ensure that his high standards are being met, and I’m pleased to note that his considerable research efforts have confirmed that all seems well. The pub is a little bit tucked away and unlikely to get much passing trade, which all means that it’s going to have to get a solid reputation to ensure that customers go out there. However, from what I’ve seen, it looks likely that they’ll make a success of this pub.

July 24, 2023
Two Julians – We’ve Got Our Own Place!

I’m aware that my blog has been a little slow recently and so partly as a combination of that (don’t worry, the new server is sorted and the problem should be fixed very soon) and wanting our own space I’ll like to announce that the Two Julians also now has its own website 🙂

The content will still be posted here, but have a look at our latest study tour at Beccles along with an archive of older posts at our new place.

We’re at www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/.

July 6, 2023
Beccles Pub Day – Two Julians

This content is also available at our web-site at http://www.norfolksuffolk.org.uk/.

Another day, another study tour. This time to Beccles, to see what delights could be offered in this fine Suffolk metropolis. I boarded the X2 bus at the bus station, whilst Julian boarded a little further down the route and he marched magnificently down the aisle like a strutting peacock.

Safely in Beccles, we were starting our expedition at the Ingate. And the list of pubs that we visited were:

Ingate

Wine Vaults Bar and Restaurant

Bear & Bells

Waveney House Hotel

King’s Head Hotel

Unlike in Wymondham, where we completed all nine venues listed on Untappd, we had a little more difficulty completing Beccles. The Butchers Arms doesn’t open until later in the day and nor do two of the social clubs. We also missed out the Caxton Arms, partly because their lack of real ale meant it didn’t show up on the CAMRA map. However, we’re not amateurs at this, oh no. We’ll be back on another study tour and will also take in some nearby countryside pubs. We’re not one trick ponies who just do urban pubs, we’re two trick ponies who cover the countryside as well.

I would have much liked to have gone in the Ale of a Time shop which was selling a range of beers, but unfortunately they have limited opening hours. Good to see this sort of place opening though.

I make no comment.

We made time to pop into the town’s church.

And off we go at the end of the day. Julian made the ridiculous comment that I needed a new bag, but I ignored that. My McCain’s bag has been going strong for over a decade and it’s not going anywhere (well, technically, it goes loads of places, but you get the idea). Safely back into Norwich, we had enjoyed yet another marvellous day out.

The Ingate is a fine pub, which very much deserves to be in the Good Beer Guide, that was a surprise and delight. The Wine Vaults was more food focused but they were welcoming to drinkers, with the same being true of the Waveney House Hotel and its fine views of the river. The Bear & Bells wasn’t what I expected, but it was hard to fault the King’s Head, which is the JD Wetherspoon venue in Beccles. As mentioned, we’ll be back soon enough, but our next adventure is to Cromer, the pearl of North Norfolk, as well as a trip to Ipswich to add to the mix. And we’re not ruling out doing some even wider straddling and might perhaps treat ourselves to a London study tour at some stage.

July 6, 2023
Beccles – King’s Head Hotel

The final stop in our study tour of Beccles was the JD Wetherspoon operated King’s Head Hotel. For the purposes of these days out we try and avoid eating in Wetherspoons as we want to ideally experience some food in an independent pub, but the Bear & Bells finished food service early and we were left with no other options. I’ve been in this pub before JD Wetherspoon took it over in February 2013, but I can’t recall the previous layout internally as the renovation was quite extensive.

A little information board in the pub notes that the venue’s history dates back to at least the seventeenth century and there’s more about the heritage of the building at http://relicsofbeccleshistory.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-kings-head-hotel-re-opens.html. It’s a shame that so few photos of the interior of pubs exist, but as Julian mentioned, it was hard to take photos inside dark buildings which often had smoke and often had people moving around quite a lot. That means although there are generally plenty of exterior photos of venues, there are few photographic records of how it all looked inside.

The King’s Head was for a long period the main coaching inn of Beccles, with the building being substantial itself as well as having numerous outbuildings. There are likely few operators would could have coped with such a large building, but JD Wetherspoon have utilised nearly all of the ground floor for the pub, the toilets are inevitably upstairs and there’s direct access to their hotel rooms.

There were six real ales which were priced between £1.71 and £2.68 per pint. Not only that but there were some interesting options that I haven’t seen before and a range of beer styles to choose from which included a dark beer.

Using two of my 50p off vouchers this was nearly the cheapest round of the day and we ordered pints here unlike in the other pubs….. The pricing for food may have gone up, but the price for drinks remains one of the lowest around. The service at the bar was polite and they’re operating a queueing system here. This seems to be the latest controversy for some people in this chain’s pubs, where now orderly queues form rather than there being something of a free for all at the bar. I must admit, I don’t much mind what a pub does, as long as it’s clear where I’m supposed to stand.

Tastefully decorated, the pub has plenty of nooks and crannies. The restoration of the venue by JD Wetherspoon feels as though it has been sensitive and they’ve also modernised the accommodation as well for those wanting to stay overnight, with twenty rooms available. I have stayed here before and I remember the rooms being well appointed, quiet and also the prices were reasonable. There’s a lot to be said about this historic venues, imagining the number of coroner investigations, birthdays, wedding parties, fights, drunken behaviour and mischief to think of just a few.

The Red Rocks from Peerless Brewing, a very agreeable and well kept ruby ale.

I went for a chicken and bacon salad which looked well presented and I was surprised and delighted to find a heap of bacon hidden at the bottom as well. For the price point, I felt that this was very acceptable and the service time was ferociously quick. There were also numerous craft beers available as well, I went for the Devils Bridge IPA from Kirkby Lonsdale Brewery, a nice citrus flavoured beer.

Julian was ready for his food. We were at this table as it was one which had a convenient power point for my phone, which once again needed quite a lot of attention as it was a bit worn out. Rather like me really.

And soon after it arrived. I think Julian was content with his food, with the staff offering check backs to ensure that all was well. The collection of empty plates and glasses was also efficient, the venue was well staffed.

What looks like part of the former stable area with the green doors is now used as the pub’s beer cellar. These stretch out further along the building into the large beer garden. It might not look it, but the pub was relatively busy even for a weekday afternoon, with a fair few families in where they’ve taken the kids after school.

The dessert cost £1.70. I’m not suggesting that it was Michelin quality, but it was a biscuity and ice cream mini treat.

And to finish off, the delicious and once again well kept Black Adder from Mauldons.

And some information about carpets in Wetherspoons, which are all unique. I had a little look at the on-line reviews and it’s reviewed about as well as any other outlet in the chain, so they’re clearly doing plenty right. This review amused me for reasons unknown….

“Staff member cleaning the table of plates from previous customers passed me the cloth and asked me to wipe the table myself. I explained I had just washed my hands to eat and would rather not. Staff member argued the cloth is clean enough. She wiped the table, said ‘you’re welcome’ sarcastically and walked off”

And then the endless dogs debate, as they’re banned entirely by the chain. It’s quite awkward at this pub as there’s plenty of external seating, so they have to advertise quite clearly the policy. But it annoys some of those people who love taking their dogs for a little drink.

“I am so very annoyed.Today we went in to Beccles town center with our little dog.We went to sit at the tables a long the side of weatherspoons on the pavement and all the tables said ‘no dogs at these tables’thats surely not right.firstly the tables are on the pavement area at the side of the weatherspoons so its not their private area.we was so looking forward to sitting outside there with our dog having a meal when the weather is nice,but now we will never go in their again.”

This review was posted two weeks ago, so certainly wasn’t a reference to us:

“Full of loud local drunks.”

In the bin 🙂

“We ordered our food from a table that had no number so used next table a long.which the people sitting there were very helpful. The wine came with in 5 min. We waited for our food for 45 minutes it did not arrive. Thought a bit strange so I went in and asked politely if there had been a mix up. The waitress replied ‘o yes it’s in the bin’.”

But, I mustn’t spend too long reading reviews, however tempting it might be.

I am aware that there are some in CAMRA, and indeed some not in CAMRA, who are not best pleased about this chain for various reasons. However, they offered us the widest choice of real ales in the day, they offered the widest choice of craft beers, they were the only pub serving food in the afternoon and their prices were the lowest. The service was efficient and attentive, the surroundings were clean, the atmosphere was inviting and this felt like a professionally run pub. There is far more to a pub than being the cheapest or even having the most beer options, but given everything combined this venue certainly surprised and delighted me.

July 6, 2023
Beccles – Waveney House Hotel

I have visited this pub before, not least for the wedding of friends Rob and Jade a few years ago. It’s a grand building by the River Waveney and the venue’s early history is detailed, quite magnificently, at https://waveneyhousehotel.co.uk/history/. From when it was built in the mid sixteenth century, this was the grandest residential property on the street and it was turned into a hospitality venue in the nineteenth century. One of the owners of the property was John Leman (1544-1632) who became the Lord Mayor of London and the school in Beccles is still named after him.

Here’s how the building looked in the 1960s.

There’s a pleasant conservatory area next to the main dining area, but we were rather more taken with sitting outside in a rare departure from our normal very internal drinking policy. Outside is so often full of dangers such as wasps, bitey insects, snakes, seagulls, pigeons and local drunks that it’s not worth risking, but we didn’t encounter any of those potential issues here.

Not a bad view of the Waveney River. I can see why people have weddings here and there are also 12 rooms for those wanting accommodation.

I went for the Southwold Bitter from Adnams which was well kept and surprised keenly priced given that there was some decadence to the hotel. Although to be fair to them, the service was informal and friendly, I think they’re keen to attract drinkers and diners in so want to be reasonably priced.

The lunch and evening menu. Unfortunately we were too late for lunch and too early for the evening meal….. The dining environment looked clean and comfortable, with the on-line reviews being positive, so I’m sure it would be delightful.

The on-line reviews are generally positive, but I particularly liked the response to this one:

“Had Sunday lunch today with the family.The main coarse roast beef was very poor, the presentation of vegetables was a disgrace. The roast potatoes were very poor. The price was £16.00. Will not be going back. The previous owners food was much superior. If you want a good Sunday roast avoid this venue.”

With the reply being:

“Same owner for last 20 years plus first complaint about roast seriously in that time”.

And then loudchildgate kicked off one night….

“We was on the top floor, we was only in the hotel a maximum of an hour before we went out for dinner. While I was out I had a call (8:30pm) saying there had been a complaint made about me and my kids. “There was banging and a constant baby crying for two hours!” Firstly my “baby” is a 3 year old that if she did winge it was a maximum of 5 minutes. And also we wasn’t even there for two hours.. the “banging” that they was insisting of was my son waking around. (He has autism and adhd and won’t sit still for any period of time) however he does not make any noises or bags.. I explained all this and I was told “just to be respectful of others”. So right away it was ruined, I didn’t even want to go back after dinner. And I couldn’t go down for breakfast in the morning so went elsewhere. But if a child winges, or there is a little bang or two and THAT is warrant for a phone call on my private number while out having a meal, it’s ridiculous. And the way the dealt with it was awful”

But anyway, I digress from our core responsibility of meandering around pubs on our study tour. This venue exceeded my expectations, I had expected something a little more stuffy and expensive, but yet the atmosphere was laid-back and inviting. The view over the river is really most pleasant and we deserved a little decadence on our tour.

July 6, 2023
Beccles – Bear & Bells

Next on our list of pubs to visit in Beccles was the Bear & Bells. We were hopeful of getting food here and I’d been looking forwards to coming to the pub as I’ve spent plenty of time waiting at the bus stops opposite waiting to get the First high speed thunderbolt bus back to Norwich. The pub building dates back to the early seventeenth century and it was known as just the Bear for a long part of its history. There’s more about the history at https://suffolk.camra.org.uk/pub/35, with a suggestion that there might have been two pubs, one called the Bear and one called the Bell. That would make sense and often the most obvious explanation is the right one.

Here’s the exciting real ale selection. I wasn’t entirely surprised and delighted.

The next slightly less than surprising and delighting factor was that they were finishing food service early, so we weren’t eating there either. Here’s what we could have won….. It looked an interesting menu, I would have been very tempted by the fish and chips.

The drinks were the most expensive of the day, so again I can’t say I was thrilled at the whole arrangement. The Blue Moon tasted as expected and had the requisite slice of orange, so that was all good. The drinks range was weak though, it wasn’t what I had anticipated from a town centre pub. However, in fairness, the pub said that they had a delivery issue and so perhaps that was the cause of the problems.

I’m not sure that I’ve seen as many dead flies in a pub for some time and they were covering numerous surfaces. Perhaps the pub was collecting them though for some purpose that I wasn’t aware of. I like the effort being made with holding various events though, they’ve got a quiz and comedy night, with that curry night looking most delightful. Unfortunately, we were a day early for the curry.

There’s an historic feeling to the interior of the pub and the service at the bar was prompt, so that’s all to the good. I actually suspect if we had arrived on a different day when they were serving lunch for the full hours we might have had a very different experience, not least as the recent food reviews are all very positive. There were a few other customers in during our visit, with the atmosphere feeling safe and secure.

The outdoors area offers a view over the square and would be a marvellous place for anyone who fancied taking up bus spotting. As for the pub, this was the most disappointing of the day and not really what I had expected. My expectations were more of a cosy little traditional pub with a selection of real ales and a clean and comfortable environment. However, I don’t want to end on a down point, as it’s always great to see that pubs are still trading and serving their local community. As we still needed food, we would have to rely on visiting the large JD Wetherspoon pub in the town, and I wondered what delights we could expect there.

July 5, 2023
Beccles – Wine Vaults Bar and Restaurant

This venue has two entrances, the main bar accessed through a door to the left (next to the A-Board) and there’s a cellar bar accessible via a different entrance to the right (just out of the photo).

The entrance to the cellar bar is on the left through that fire door and the pub’s kitchen is ahead.

The pub’s menu, which isn’t served all day, but is available at lunchtimes and in the evenings.

There were three beers on which were the dreaded Greene King IPA, Old Speckled Hen and Fuller’s London Pride.

I went for the London Pride, a reliable beer and it was well kept and at the appropriate temperature.

The ground floor of the pub. There’s a strong food focus here, but it’s still welcoming to those who just want a drink. I know very little about wine, but there seems to be plenty of choice available on their wine list, which is appropriate given the pub’s name. As I understand, this naming is though more to do with the cellar bar formerly being used to store wine though rather than to highlight their wine selection.

And the upstairs. The venue is very well reviewed on-line and they have numerous events such as live music. I can’t say I’m overly keen on the “booking enquiries made via email will not be replied to” on their web-site and I can think of more than a couple of people I know who would move onto another venue which had an on-line booking reservation system or who replied to emails. The Sunday roasts look appealing in the photos, I can imagine that it’s worth making the effort to book a table to experience those.

The service was friendly and engaging, with the pub being clean and well maintained. It’s a quirky building with plenty of character and the food coming out looked rather tempting. They might not have been the most exciting variety of real ales, but in all fairness they had three different ones to choose from, with the environment of the venue feeling inviting. Anyway, as I may have mentioned before, all rather lovely.

July 5, 2023