I haven't reviewed this place sooner despite numerous visits I was torn between a 3 rating and a 4 rating.
This is a very popular pub a stones throw from the city. It doesn't feel like a city pub, which paradoxically is why it's so popular with city types. On any given weekday, if the temperature is above freezing, there are more people drinking outside than there are inside, strewn around all over both sides of the roads that meet there, like a group of rioters that have simultaneously forgotten just what it was they were rioting about.
So far it doesn't sound like I really like it but I have also dropped by at the weekend where its actually possible to get inside the pub and to the bar where they have an excellent selection of drinks, with a number of ales. I have found the staff and weekend drinkers there to be friendly types.
They also have 2 TVs for the sport and this is where I finally found something to tip me off the 3 star/4 star fence. I mention sport a lot in my reviews, either from going to see it live or enjoying it in a pub. I'm a big fan of both cricket and football, but when a pub chooses to show to random Spanish football teams (not even the big teams) playing each other ahead of the national team playing cricket it annoyed me and finally made up my mind. I know it probably says as much about the state of the sport in the UK as it does about the pub, but at least I finally get to write my review of this football.
In conclusion I would highly recommend this pub at the weekend, if you're not a cricket fan. read more