BITE user comments - RealAleHarrier
Comments by RealAleHarrier
Visited this pub for the first time in November for the beer festival. Fantastic character and, most importantly, great beer. Nice roaring fire too with lovely settees and child-friendly during the day which is a blessing when you like ale and also have kids.
29 Nov 2011 21:00
Fantastic pub, very friendly and, most importantly, excellent quality of ale. I've only eaten here once and it was nice food. Great beer festivals twice a year too in May and September.
29 Nov 2011 20:57
This is my local and it could be a cracking pub...if it wasn't for the beer and the food! It's a nice location next to the Birmingham to Worcester canal and there is a large garden which has been redeveloped and looks nice with lighting etc and a kids play area that my children appreciate. However the beer quality ranges from barely palatable to below-average and is always too cold. You wonder why Marstons allow their beer to kept so poorly. The problem is this pub must make them a lot of money - it is always busy assumingly because of where it is. Lying just the other side of the South Birmingham/Worcestershire border it is a haven for Brummies looking for a taste of the country. They can't all be first-timers so the mystery is why anyone would go out of their way to come back after visiting once. I live around the corner and call in occassionally so the kids can use the play area, or after walking the dog. I hope in vain that the beer will have miraculously improved, it never does. Oh and we've eaten here twice and whilst it was marginally better than the food, it was distinctly average and typically chain pub affair.
29 Nov 2011 20:45
I encountered the surliest and downright rude barmaid I have ever had the unfortunate experience to be served by in this pub. I'd heard a lot about Bishops Castle and their two brewery pubs so when I was camping nearby with my family at the start of this month I was eager to try them out. I took with me a two-pint and four-pint container to enable me to bring some away with me to enjoy over the next couple of days. Having tried some halves of the available beers in both pubs I actually slightly favoured the Six Bells so returned there armed with the containers. I'd noticed that it shut at 2.30pm but as it was only just gone 20 past and it was only going to be a fleeting visit I thought that would be fine. I walked in to discover the towels already on the pumps. To be fair the lady in question did agree to serve me but that's when the problems started. The four-pint container is brown and not see-through so you never quite know whether you're going to get a full measure. But in my experience, it certainly needs to froth over the top to get somewhere near the four pints. But the two-pint container is actually clear with a line showing the two pint mark, so you can see exactly what you're getting. Therefore when she presented it to me with at least half a pint of froth at the top, I asked in a perfectly pleasant and polite manner whether she would be able to top it up. The venomous response I got back was unbelievable. She claimed it was a measured serving and if I wanted any more then she'd charge me for it! She did eventually bedrudgingly top it up slightly but still not to the two-pint mark and slammed it back on the bar. When I explained that I was purely trying to get the amount of beer that I was paying for, she complained that I'd come in 'after hours', which I didn't, and even then it's not an excuse to serve a member of the public in such a rude and discourteous manner. I could understand it a bit more if it was a backstreet boozer that wasn't used to such requests, but this is actually a pub with an on-site brewery! I was very shaken up by the whole incident and my disbelief was raised further when I logged on to their websit on my return from holiday to discover that it was actually the landlady of the pub that served me. It beggars belief that someone would run their business in such a way, no wonder there were only four people in there on a sunny summer's afternoon.
12 Sep 2011 18:42
The Boringdon Arms, Turnchapel
I stayed overnight here with my wife and two small children on the way back from a holiday in France and we were treated superbly.
Even though we arrived after the advertised end of evening meals, I was able to choose from the whole menu. I went for the fish and chips and it was enormous, hot and very tasty. As it was late, my wife took our childen to bed and they even brought the food upstairs on a tray for us.
Washed down with some very nice real ale, I would highly recommend this pub for the quality of its beer and food and friendly welcome for all ages. Oh, and the breakfast the next morning was also delicious!
25 Jun 2009 11:30
The Harriers Arms, Kidderminster
Beer is normally well kept but there has been the odd occasion when it's been too cold.
Generally good and they show all the live footy on a big screen and 2 other small TVs.
But if you're coming to Kiddy for a Harriers game then the best place to go for nice real ale is the King & Castle by the train station where the beer is always excellent and a friendly atmosphere is guaranteed no matter who you support.
24 May 2007 12:08
The Tynllidiart Arms, Capel Bangor
What a cracking little pub! Great place to go for a tasty pint of real ale and some nice grub - particularly when the sun is shining and you can sit in the raised decking area at the back of the pub and enjoy a refreshing drink while watching the lambs frollocking in the field a few yards away.
I tried their own brewed beer and it was excellent. What was even better was that every time I went to get my glass refilled the friendly and professional bar man asked me to "take a big slurp" while it was settling, before he filled it back up to the top.
Great service and definitely one of the best pubs I have visited - and I have been to hundreds!!
23 May 2007 15:22
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The Wellington, Birmingham
Always my first choice for a pub to visit when in Birmingham. Great beer choice (normally up to 15) and always kept well. It is pricey but if you like real ale then it's well worth it.
29 Nov 2011 21:05