It was great to go and check out Northern Monk's centre of operations, as I've rarely seen their…read morebeers west of the Pennines. The Old Flax Store where they're based is a Grade II listed mill and located in the industrial Holbeck area towards the outskirts of the city centre. Spread over three levels: their brewery on the ground floor; The Refectory and bottle shop on the first floor and event space (Chapter Hall) on the top floor, it's been lovingly restored both inside and out. Despite how separated they are from the main hub of bars and restaurants, there were quite a few people enjoying their afternoons here with a beer, hot drink or bite to eat (they serve food throughout the day). With a small selection of board games (alas, pretty much all of them had vital parts missing), I'd advise bringing your own if you fancied entertaining yourselves in this chilled out space for a while before you ventured onwards. Tip: they have a small free car park out front for the designated drivers.

Northern Monk Refectory is a fantastic spot for food and beer. It's situated in Holbeck so it is a…read morelittle bit of a walk south of the city, about 10 minutes, but this distance at least when I've been there recently means it's not overwhelmed by the crowds you would expect on a Friday or Saturday. Those that venture out are discerning and looking for a quality beer and great food and that's what you receive from the guys at Northern Monk and their food collaboration with Grog and Grub. The bar features 20 draught beers (not sure whether this number includes their 2 on handpump) it is about 50% their own beers and 50% guest, with this number of beers they do a good job covering a range of styles so you should not be at a loss to find something you like. In fact all the beers I had were very nice Track Sonoma, Curveball Pirate Porter, and Northern Monk Salt Lime Wit.

This is one of my favourite pubs in the world and was my local when I lived back in my home town of…read moreKnareaborough. Whilst it's been 15 years since I lived there permanently I always make sure I pay Blind Jack's a visit every time I'm over seeing friends and family. It's a small pub but very cosy and full of character. The landlords are extremely welcoming and all the staff are friendly and knowledgable, more than happy to offer their advice and samples of beer if you can't decide what to go for. You certainly won't find any of your mainstream lagers or bitters here (thank goodness) but instead there is an ever-changing array of craft and real ales from breweries such as Brew Dog and Magic Rock, as well as an increasing number of their own very excellent brews. If you're a real beer lover and looking for a great pub to sample some top ales over a chat with your mates (it's strictly no music) then make sure you pay Blind Jack's a visit. Warning, it can get very busy!

With visiting my wife's family in Knaresborough a few times a year - I'm absolutely spoilt with the…read moreamount of pubs on offer in this lovely market town just down the road from Harrogate. But the main one which I really can't go without visiting is Blind Jacks While Manchester isn't exactly short on quality pubs and craft beer, Blind Jacks offers something special which is easy to explain. A lovely, quaint, ancient building with loads of tiny rooms making it the perfect place to hang out and relax - combined with a revolving selection of amazing craft beer on tap (as well as some great local breweries). Put it this way - just on this visit they had beers from Stone (Ruination), Oskar Blues, Ska (Modus Hoperandi) and Brewdog (Punk and Hoppy Xmas) Paul and Debbie the landlords are always very friendly and up for a chat, as are the team of younger bar staff. You can always get a sample or recommendation, plus they brew their own beer out the back which all the staff seem to know about - their chalk board in the bar also has details of what they're brewing next so the regulars can keep up to date with what's next in the pipeline. Their milk stout and pumpkin head ones are firm favourites! Like them on Facebook for the latest updates on beers on tap, special nights (like their BBQ night in Jan) and all news going on. I may have just heard a rumour that they're opening up a distillery too so even if you don't live in Knaresborough it's worth making the trip here just to check out a great selection of drinks in great surroundings - you won't regret it!

We came, we saw, we conquered! And by that I mean we added this great new addition to the 'tap'…read morefamily (Euston, York, Sheffield taps) to Yelp, enjoyed a couple of great beers each from their range of at least 30 draught/ 100 bottles and went twice in the same evening - starting our night here and finishing it off in style with the return visit! As with all the taps, they have a fantastic mix of UK breweries and American craft, Belgian and European brews - plus a bottle menu with beers ranging from a few quid to some very special ones (hello Hopping Frog at £18 and unfortunately not in my price range!) I had an amazing Tiny Rebel/Dark Star collaboration with my wife enjoying a Belgian fruit beer - we were both very very happy with our choices! The actual venue is pretty cool and just the sort of place you want to hangout in, with a clientele of all ages into good quality hoppy stuff! Special mention has to go to the amazing pork pies on sale - £2.50 a pop and from the excellent Elite meats. Mine was amazing and made even better by having 'Sierra Nevada Mustard' served with it - mega yum! Basically Harrogate Tap is a great excuse to miss the train - make sure you check it out if you're into beer, you won't regret it!

With a healthy supply of draft beer on cask and keg, and a large fridge filled with cans and…read morebottles, the Tap should always be on your list of pubs to visit in Harrogate. Don't forget to grab a couple of train beers on your way out of town.

As of July 2025, at a different location than indicated in Yelp. Now near the Museum Gardens at 14…read moreLendal. Three level pub will great selection of beer. I found an 8% abv IPA from Deya that was the best beer I've had in the UK this visit. Funky decor: lots of antlers, crucifixes, cherubs, and paintings of nude women. I'd definitely go again for a pint. Didn't try the food.

Fantastic ambiance and decor. This multi level bar is not a bar per se but beer and gin joint. It's…read morein need of a bit of a cleaning but at night your probably don't notice, lol. All in all kinda a fun hang out.

It was only about 15 minutes off the M6 freeway to the Hawkshead Brewery in Staveley, Cumbria. The…read moreroads weren't that windy and were wide and well-paved so this is faring better than expected already. We arrived to where the brewery showed on my map, but it wasn't there. The brewery was slightly up the road within a small shopping inlet next to a coffee shop. We parked and approached the brewery and were pleasantly surprised with how impressive the set-up was. The building was large and beautiful with large wood beams, huge windows, and comfy leather seats. It was so quiet in there I didn't know how much noise we could make without being rude, so we opted to sit in the corner so we could strategize about which beers we wanted to try and how much time we wanted to spend off the road. I ordered the Lakeland Lager which is a 5%ABV Lager/Pilsner and Sean had the Cumbrian 5 Hop 5%ABV Golden Ale. I really liked the Lakeland Lager because it was crisp and refreshing with a great hop flavor on the back-end. Most of their beers were "real ale" style, but the lager wasn't. It was a nice change from all the real ales available. I also really enjoyed the Brodie's Prime with is a dark porter-style beer and is 4.9%ABV. It has a very smooth mouth-feel and is extremely drinkable. We sampled almost their entire beer selection and overall their beer was very good. The styles were done well and the beer was clean and clear and cheap! We were there around lunch time so we went ahead and ordered some food before they stopped serving. Sean ordered the beer cheese soup and I ordered the mushrooms with Stilton blue cheese on toast. The soup was served with large pieces of sourdough bread and butter so it was very filling for a good price. I tried some of the soup and it was really good. The mushrooms were sautéed in butter and the cheese was melted on top of the toast so it was damn delectable. I savored every bite of that toast. The soup was something like 2 pounds and the toast was 4 pounds. I think we walked out of there spending about 10-15 pounds total? Pretty decent if you ask me. Also, they refused to accept our tips. I am accustomed to giving tips always, but they politely declined my offer. Great service, delicious food, cheap and amazing beer and no tip?! It was one of the highlights of the trip.

I'm often in Windermere for the weekend, and having a pint at the Hawkshead Brewery in Staveley…read moremakes for a great start to it. It's a big venue, with a large downstairs area next to the bar, and further seating on a mezzanine upstairs. There's then a further bar (only open sometimes) through the back. There's large glass panels to let you see into the actual brewery itself, so it's interesting just being in the place. There's outside seating too, in the car park, so it's hardly picturesque, but it's fine too when the weather is mild or if you want some peace and quiet away from the buzz indoors. It's a good atmosphere, very laid back and friendly, with plenty of dogs. Staff are pleasant and helpful, and know their beers well. The beers are good - all sorts from your pale ales through to your dark stouts, and last time I was there I had a raspberry sour. It wasn't great if I'm honest, but you can't win them all :-) Hawkshead seem to be quite an adventurous brewery, so there's always something new to try. My favourites are the stouts. There's a range of food too which seems to be mostly traditional 'Northern' food - Shepherd's Pie, Yorkshire pudding, Venison burgers - mostly very meat heavy, so I've never tried anything, apart from the chips. The chips are good! They do a fantastic beer festival. We went this year for the first time, and it was brilliant, we had such a good time. You get a menu, and can just work your way through the ones you fancy the sound of. They're categorised into the different bars, so it makes it quite fun to work your way about trying different ones. They had a massive marquee when we were there, with a crazy and very entertaining jazz band. It's a family atmosphere, with kids there too, so the adults are sensible and nothing gets too out of hand. I'm hoping we can go every year! With regular weekend checks ins until next year.

The Black Sheep Brewery was my latest brewery I got to try that was abroad from the the United…read moreStates. The Monty Python's Holy Grail Ale was the beer that Steve and I had and enjoyed. I usually write about breweries in the United States so I find this beer, it's referring to a Monty Python film and where it was made to be genuine and authentically British all of the way. For this golden ale we joyously detected flavor features of hoppiness, maltiness and sweetness. The flavors definitely put you at attention because this beer recipe isn't all that common place in the United States. Very glad to have had the opportunity to try a beer from Black Sheep!

Came to the brewery for a tour, which was very informative on the brewing process & which beers…read morewhere right for the 3 x 1/3 pint taster for you, which was part of the tour ticket. Decided to have lunch afterwards. The staff very attentive & pleasant, food was very good quality & reasonably priced. A very good visitor attraction in Masham North Yorkshire. Would

Theakstons was such a unique and great experience. The tour of the brewery was different than any…read moreother beer tour I have ever been on. This is due to the fact that the brewery is nearly 200 years old. The staff clearly takes pride in what they do, and the company they work for. They serve most of their beers on cask and the quality and freshness is top level. They are still innovating while keeping things traditional. I would highly recommend going to Theakstons.

Full marks for this tour…read more We rocked up at a few minutes to 1pm, when the next tour was due to start. However, we were told there wasn't one and the guy who would be doing it was at lunch. After a couple of minutes the lady at the till said she would take us on the tour. It cost £27 for 4 peeps. Our tour guide, Lynne, was fabulous: knowledgeable, warm and friendly. Lynne went out of her way to answer all questions without a problem. It's fascinating to see the equipment which has been used to brew the beer all this time. Amazing. The last stop was the onsite pub where we all had a voucher for a pint. Delicious.

excellent hospitality. cracking pint of john smiths. brandy not too shabby. to quote alan wicker…read morewish you were here 0

Oh my oh my. My budget is suffering now. However, it'll have to struggle a little bit more yet…read morebecause I've just discovered a quite simply stunning and deluxe bar, the Lure Luxe Bar. Now this is grand to the extreme. This mother is one stylish player with decadent furnishings and a sophisticated feel. What's more you get tables that light up, built in ice buckets and a real baby grand piano. To make me even giddier, they do fizz by the glass. Is this place for real? You don't even have to move because a delightful hostess will see to your every need (within reason). The drinks list is awesome too. If money is no object then go for a deluxe Champagne. Or try one of the zillion or so cocktails that will blow you away. If you want aged rums, no problem. Plus, you'll find some of the finest cognacs. James Bond wouldn't look out of place here. The food isn't bad either but I'm singing this little babies praises for some serious drinking action. Make sure the credit card isn't maxed out though; you'll need every penny you can muster. Extreme to every level but marvellous if costly.