BITE user comments - Guzzleguts
Comments by Guzzleguts
This place has as split identity and is more commonly known locally as "Angelo's" because of the Italian Restaurant on the premises. Hardly functions as a pub but I am told you can just call in for a pint if you can find a spot among the great hordes of diners. I settled for Italian bottled lager, which was fine, and then joined the eaters in a restaurant sold out on a Wednesday night.
Not your cutting edge modern Italian - with swooshes and reductions and odd ingredients - but none the worse for that. Old fashioned Italian and English cooking in large portions and with strong flavours. And if all the languid, can't really be bothered kids working in pubs and cafes want to see how it should be done they should spent a night here. This is ten out of ten service.
Thoroughly enjoyable night.
12 Jul 2016 20:25
Recently attended a family party and dreaded the idea of your typical, pub buffet. Need mot have worried. The food was exceptionally good and could have served twice the number.
Not as wide a selection as some of the places favoured by local beer aficionados but quality was top notch and the place was rammed on a midweek evening when there was Euros footy on the box.
The place has recently undergone a very impressive top-to-toe makeover, including a superb outside seating area, and one local told me that the pub had "put some community life back in the village."
The taxi driver who drove me and my daughter home told me she is always busy ferrying old folks to the pub because of the lunchtime OAP specials.
Staff were quick and chatty and gave the impression they were proud of the pub and the service they were providing. With good reason in my view because this is as close to being the ideal village/community pub as you are ever likely to get.
I rarely mark anything ten out of ten but in this case I am making the exception because the Black Boy is everything it sets out to be. Bravo.
12 Jul 2016 20:17
The Strutt Arms Hotel, Milford
Signs of life at the Strutt. I'm told that the builders are in and that it will be refurbished and relaunched after years of closure. First thought was that it would probably be another addition to the Carehome Corridor along the A6 but apparently not. It is going to be a "high spec" pub, whatever that involves. With three successful boozers in close proximity, it will need to have its wits about it but superannuated jazz and blues fans like yours truly will be keen to see what they do to what was once one of the best music pubs in the East Midland.
5 May 2015 03:36
Forget everything you've read or heard about this place. The Fish has been through the mill in recent years but It is now under new ownership and has just been voted joint first with the Hollybush at Makeney in a "Best Pubs" competition in the local rag.
There could be no higher praise in my view so I popped in and was not disappointed. It will have to go some to match the 'Bush's reputation long-term but it is already a far cry from what went before on this scenic spot just outside Belper.
The new owners clearly know what they are about, the welcome is friendly without being cloying and there is no longer - praise be - any pretension to cutting edge gastronomy; just good pub grub at decent prices.
Free of Marston's yoke, they are now able to offer a pleasing and imaginative choice of beers and have had an enthusiastic response. A mate who called last Friday night said the place was "absolutely rammed."
Belper has regained another "proper pub." Bravo.
26 Jan 2015 11:56
Story in the Derby Telegraph today says the Spotted Cow's owner has been heavily fined and banned from running any food establishment as a result of a series of inspections by the local hygiene police. Also says the pub is no longer in operation. Can't imagine it will reopen with the Dead Poet's on its doorstep and the Hollybush at Makeney and the Queens Head at Little Eaton not far away.
27 Oct 2014 18:38
Still closed but a hive of activity as builders carry out a make-over. One told me they are working "under the cosh" to get things ready for re-opening early in December as a satellite of the Exeter Arms. The Ex seems to be permanently rammed with diners these days - no doubt as a result of recently underlining its "award winning" status, so expansion is a sensible development. Martin Roper and his team seem to have cracked the formula but drinkers (as opposed to diners) will hope their custom is given a little more priority at the Silk Mill.
28 Nov 2013 00:44
Wouldn't bother with this Chatsworth branded pub unless you have a Range Rover, a braying laugh and kids called Cressida and Ptolemy. Food looked okay on the Sunday lunchtime when we called in but we only wanted a drink and got the distinct impression we were in the way.
28 Oct 2013 09:54
Surprised to see that the average rating for the best pub in the best beer town in Britain is a modest 7.2. Should be nearer 9.5 in my view with half a point shaved off because there is no such thing as perfection ...... unless it's the Holly Bush at Makeney. I've been drinking in the Ex for the better part of 40 years and was virtually a resident when Barbara Gibbon ran it but stopped going when she left and the Pedi became barely drinkable. Now it's back in its pomp and although some people carp about the balance between drinkers and diners, I'd say the owners have got it about right. They have got it absolutely spot on with the staff, who are the friendliest and most able in town and very clued up about what's on offer. I note that the Ex has just been voted Derby's Pub of the Year for 2013 and when you consider how many other exceptional boozers there are in and around the town, that's speaks volumes. Bravo.
28 Oct 2013 00:22
Found myself in Matlock with nothing to do for a bit and decided to trek up to the Sycamore for a nostalgia fix, having been a (fairly regular) customer donkeys years ago when it was run by Arthur Bassett, a legend in both Rugby Union and Rugby League after representing Wales and Great Britain at both. Glad I did. Decent selection of well-kept beers. Cheerful staff. Food looked good. And best of all, there was a really good, friendly atmosphere about the place. Wish it was down the hill rather than up it but will certainly not leave it so long before heading back.
6 Oct 2013 02:29
Found myself in Matlock with nothing to do for a bit and decided to trek up to the Sycamore for a nostalgia fix, having been a (fairly regular) customer donkeys years ago when it was run by Arthur Bassett, a legend in both Rugby Union and Rugby League after representing Wales and Great Britain at both. Glad I did. Decent selection of well-kept beers. Cheerful staff. Food looked good. And best of all, there was a really good, friendly atmosphere about the place. Wish it was down the hill rather than up it but will certainly not leave it so long before heading back.
6 Oct 2013 02:29
A rogue spellchecker kept changing the word "there" to "their" in the previous review. Just wanted you know the error wasn't my fault.
4 May 2013 08:18
I note that the average rating is 4.7 for this establishment and suggest that this is now out of date and possibly libellous. New management has been installed only a few weeks but is already establishing a great reputation for an imaginative and well-kept range of beers, excellent food and a "come back soon" atmosphere. The chap running it - previously at the Red Lion in Litton - sets a friendly and chatty example for the staff but unlike some over-eager places not far away they are not all over you like timeshare touts.Made a flying visit this week and found beers from Abbeydale and Blue Monkey, including Moonshine and 99 Red Baboons. Opted for Ascension - perfect - and could happily have settled down for a long session.
A couple who ordered food told us that they had been there for meals three times in the last week and raved about the quality and the portions. A quick gleg at Tripadvisor revealed that everybody who posted a review their felt the same. Overall, a great comeback from an old favourite previously fallen on hard times.
4 May 2013 08:13
Called in recently after visiting an exhibition of wildlife photography at the Pavilion and being handed a voucher offering free tea at the 'Pond, which is situated directly opposite. What a transformation. The potential for a really thriving pub in Matlock Bath has always been there and now it has been fulfilled - in spades. The whisper is that the owner has spent well over a million doing the old place up and is now investing more to launch a new restaurant upstairs. Imaginative range of ales, mostly locally sourced, extremely cheerful and helpful bar staff and - a new one on me - superb craft-baked fresh bread from their own kitchens on sale at the bar. The old "function room" is now serving for regular gigs by what I am reliably led to believe is a very good standard of local artists/bands. Bravo. A very impressive addition to an area not over-blessed with aappealing boozers.
2 Oct 2012 20:26
The Lescar Hotel / Hunters Bar, Sheffield
Previous unfavourable comments about staff appear to have been heeded. Couldn't fault them during a four hour visit for a graduation celebration and same applied to the excellent range of well-kept beers. Decent bottled stuff and Fentiman's soft drinks underlined the concentration on quality and the food (in plentiful portions) was first-class and good value for money. The atmosphere in late afternoon and early evening was cheerful and lively and the only regret I had on leaving was that I live an hour's travel away from a pub I would happily have as my local.
22 Jul 2012 13:28
Bit mystified by this place. The beer is always in good nick, the food is a class better than what you will find elsewhere in the area, especially now the menu has come down market a bit, and the decked area outside is the perfect place on a summer's evening. So why is it so sparsely populated whenever I call in? Perhaps people don't feel comfortable this close to to a cemetery. Or is that with the exception of one cheerful young lass, the people behind the bar seem a bit dour and uncommunicative.
15 May 2012 15:02
A rousing "bravo" for the Derby Brewing Company. Another dreary and outdated pub has been given a new lease of life and the Queen's is an impressive addition to this thriving stable. The DBC has a tried and trusted formula, first tried at the Brunswick and then polished at the Brewery Tap and the Greyhound, and they have stuck to it with excellent results. Some may carp about the degree of emphasis on food but this is still a haven for the drinker who values quality and variety. With the Hollybush and the Dead Poet's in close proximity, this enclave north of Derby is becoming a major attraction for that fraternity and I look forward eagerly to DBC pushing into Belper for their next venture.
15 May 2012 14:44
Like most village pubs in out of the way locations, the George has had to build up the food trade to survive but when the food is this good and drinker is still well looked after, what's to moan about? Booking is essential at weekends, when the place is rammed, but in the week and epecially at lunchtimes this is still a characterful country boozer where the drinker can settle down in characterful surroundings and enjoy well-kept Pedigree - which is not as common in these parts as it should be. Young chap behind the bar very chatty without gushing all over you and the place is spotless, another thing you cannot always guarantee in this region.
4 Nov 2011 12:06
Recently subjected to a long overdue and extremely well done refurbishment and now under the same management umbrella as the Devonshire at Beeley. Outstanding selection of mainly local beers, well kept, and an imaginative menu which relies heavily on produce from the foodie's paradise of Chatsworth Farm Shop elsewhere in Pilsley. Manager and head chef both chatty and relaxed. The only fear is that the place will quickly be swamped by diners around the clock. First visit, days after the reopening, found the place sparsely populated with locals in early evening. Second was absolutely thronged with tweed and corduroy brigade on a midweek afternoon.
11 Dec 2010 01:16
Recently subjected to a long overdue and extremely well done refurbishment and now under the same management umbrella as the Devonshire at Beeley. Outstanding selection of mainly local beers, well kept, and an imaginative menu which relies heavily on produce from the foodie's paradise of Chatsworth Farm Shop elsewhere in Pilsley. Manager and head chef both chatty and relaxed. The only fear is that the place will quickly be swamped by diners around the clock. First visit, days after the reopening, found the place sparsely populated with locals in early evening. Second was absolutely thronged with tweedy and corduroy brigade on a midweek afternoon.
11 Dec 2010 01:16
Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, Nottingham
There may be times when the Trip gets overrun with trippers and gawkers but pick your times and this is not a problem. All the beers tried on three recent visits were in good nick and the food was top class - especially the steak and ale pie and the beef wrapped in Yorkshire pud. Give me the Trip any day in preference to the dozens of trendy bars that have sprouted all over Nottingham.
25 Feb 2010 21:05
Far and away the best pub in the Derby/Duffield/Belper area on virtually every count. I've been visiting for donkeys years and have never had a bad pint. Imaginative selection of beers always beautifuly kept and still one of the few places where Pedigree (from the jug in this case) is worth drinking. Cooked food good and plentiful and the pork pies, from Whites of Burslem, are world class. Caters for broad spectrum of customers in cluster of bars and snugs plus a conservatory for kids and beer garden for sun worshippers and smokers. Thinking of having my ashes scattered here.
9 Jul 2009 01:43
The Cricket Inn, Totley
This is, I suspect, very much a diners pub but that doesn't stop them from serving an excellent range of Thornbridge beers. I was talked into their chocolate stout, a very odd choice for me, and it was the perfect antidote to a miserable, rain-lashed afternoon. Food is pricey but all five in our group thought it was very good and my fish and chips portion would have fed two.
The décor is very much "corporate goes country pub" but is by no means lacking in character. And if the sun ever shines, the village cricket ground offers bucolic entertainment to gild the experience.
This is far from a spit and sawdust boozer as you can get but of its type the Cricket Inn is a very pleasant example.
12 Jul 2016 20:34