BITE user comments - derekwinchester
Comments by derekwinchester
Popped into this pub for the first time during an 'away day' pub crawl yesterday and found out the landlord had only taken over the day before. It seems a very good back-street traditional pub and we stayed for three pints each, having only planned for one... it's a place you really should support if you like proper pubs and the landlord wants to hear what beers people would like to see. We had the Rebellion Fat Cat and it was excellent, very well kept. The landlord seems a friendly bloke and a genuine fan of real ale, so this great little pub is well worth a visit. About ten minutes or so from the town centre. Hope it goes well for him.
3 Feb 2013 19:34
Superb pub - hope it continues to be so. Best wishes for the new management. Please keep this pub unspoilt and excellent! One beer plea - make sure Tiger is always on. A wonderful beer you hardly see around York (and in my exile of London) otherwise.
9 Dec 2012 22:00
The Marquis of Granby, Cambridge Circus
Has been undergoing a big refurb with the pub shut, but last week the hoarding outside was advertising an opportunity for a bar, restaurant or pub... chances of it being a pub again?
9 Dec 2012 21:56
How long did that gastro last? Two years maybe? Yet another pub destroyed by being turned into a restaurant that nobody wanted. So much for the gastropub success story.
9 Dec 2012 21:52
Dead as. Boarded up. I guess it'll become flats now. Sad to see any pub close but to be honest The Goldhawk was up itself, often dodgy quality beer, poor atmosphere, intended merely for the beautiful young people with fixed gear bikes and happy to pay through the nose. Joins the Stinging Nettle and Grand Union in the list of pretentious-rubbish-thought-they-were-so-clever pubs now dead in Goldhawk Road.
9 Dec 2012 21:50
Two things I've always liked about Sam Smith pubs: 1) always very traditional, unspoilt. 2) Very reasonable prices. The Angel definitely scores on the first one, but... 11quid for a bottle of Taddy Porter and a bottle of Pale Ale??? Look, I know that as a central London/St Giles/Soho/Covent Garden type of drinker I'm going to get exploited a bit, and bottles are always going to be more expensive, and I'm not going to get the same price as the Nag's Head in Chapel Allerton or the Crystal Palace in York, but 11quid does seem a little, well, steep. Extortionate is another way to put it. The brewery's pub nearby, the John Snow, also has these ridiculous bottle prices. I had thought Sam Smith's was a much better than normal company. Not at those prices (and, yes, the Old Brewery on hand-pump is cheaper, but seemed very ordinary in this pub).
What is the Sam Smith's pricing strategy now: exploit central London drinkers? We're not all tourists or on 50k a year...
9 Dec 2012 21:44
Popped in after a walk in the area and very impressed on my short visit: just how a proper village pub should be. No mucking about with gastro this and that, just traditional, welcoming, good beers. Close to the station (7-8mins max walk) so a great waiting room. Well done.
6 May 2012 20:34
Changing yet again soon by the sounds of it.
Oisin Rogers @Mcmoop
I'm taking over the Thatched House in Ravenscourt Park with @philwhite101. We'll be sorting it in March and opening it new in early April.
Will anyone ever get it right? Or loads more money thrown down the drain? Here's a suggestion: it's a pub. So treat it like a pub. The gastropub era is drawing to a close, thank goodness, having done huge amounts of damage to pubs across London.
19 Feb 2012 15:31
Used to be good but this place is steadily getting worse. As soon as the cutlery is laid out on ordinary pub tables you know it's on the slide as a decent option for drinks. I heard a rumour there are going to be DJs on a Friday evening, so the manager is clearly going for a kids' crowd, despite the fact that on a Friday most customers are from local businesses and council, after work, and are often the slightly older crowd. DJs belong in clubs and cr*p bars. This is a pub. Expect trade to nosedive and a 'revamp' within a year. Come on Fuller's - sort it out before it's too late.
19 Feb 2012 15:22
Called in for the first time on Saturday during a day out/beer crawl from London. Excellent pub with a superb beer selection, and well worth the 10-15minute walk from Reading station. Seemed friendly and had a lively atmosphere. Busy enough at 3/4pm on a Saturday afternoon to obviously be doing something right. Good pies too - but order early or you may be left with only the veggie option...
19 Feb 2012 15:15
Have to laugh - I was about to leave a comment (copied below), then saw another frustrated comment also from Feb 1! I popped in for a pint after work and was annoyed at the pub, which has been great in the past, but the place was useless tonight. Then saw the comment from 'gress'. I left about 6.15 and that comment from 'gress' appeared afterwards. The door was wide open on the coldest night of the year. That's nothing to do with any excuses - it's just f*cking stupid. No excuses possible: treat your customers with disdain and you won't have any left soon. That simple. Two lots of customers within about 30 minutes you have managed to annoy. Good work!
My initial comment:
Great way to run a pub:
1) have a barmaid who doesn't understand 'salt and vinegar' and insists on giving you cheese and onion instead. You end up having cheese and onion because it is impossible to make her understand otherwise.
2) keep the front door open on the coldest day of the year and make up some some rubbish about health and safety/windows steaming up etc.
The place: Pillars of Hercules.
Date: tonight.
1 Feb 2012 22:45
The Stinging Nettle, Shepherds Bush
If you want to visit the wonderful Stinging Nettle now you may be out of luck - went past today and it is boarded up and advertised as 'to let'... as a shop. What are Young's playing at? This pub should be a cash-cow. Great position. But in the former-brewery-now-leisure-company's wisdom it doesn't matter. The Stinging Nettle, former Bushranger, is dead. In one of my other posts on BITE about a Young's pub I noticed Young's commented afterwards trying to justify themselves. Maybe they would like to let us know why they have shut this once very popular pub? Popular before it was run by Young's, of course. What a coincidence.
5 Jan 2012 23:19
Will be shutting soon for another 'refurb' according to the sign I saw earlier this week. Don't expect too much... maybe the prices will become even more shockingly expensive than now. Has been plunging in quality for several years now.
11 Aug 2011 22:17
Hadn't been in here for years but it is pleasant and last weekend had Timothy Taylor Golden Best, which is very rare even for York. A great pint and it was pretty cheap. Decent pub and well worth a visit I reckon.
22 Nov 2010 22:11
Seemed to be closed for refurbishment. Fingers crossed it isn't ruined. The back room in particular was a lovely spot.
22 Nov 2010 22:08
Utterly brilliant pub. Never disappoints. If you are the type of drinker who likes O'Neill's and Slug and Lettuce, stay away and don't spoil this amazing place. Anyone with soul and taste should head for the Golden Ball. You won't want to leave.
22 Nov 2010 22:04
Never used to visit this pub much but judging by last weekend I've missed out. When it's raining outside and like the Arctic, the room at the back is very appealing - roaring fire, cosy, dark like a proper pub and all with a good pint of Copper Dragon. Wonderful.
22 Nov 2010 22:00
Last time I visited earlier this year (I no longer live in York) I was very concerned about this pub - it seemed to have lost its way. But I was there last weekend and I'm delighted to say it now seems to back to normal: excellent! Good beers, good atmosphere, no terrible music, a decent mix of people (no idiots and no Micklegate Runners off the main track). Please keep it this way... it's one of the very best pubs in York when it is on form.
22 Nov 2010 21:55
Have been meeting friends here sometimes for a few years now and although the selection of beers remains very good, and the pub is pleasant, traditional and friendly enough, I would say the food is going downhill. Still ok quality but I remember having pies a couple of years ago with big portions of veg etc with them and now those portions seem rather sad and definitely reduced...
5 Sep 2010 17:33
The food here is so tasty and such great value I ate here with a mate two days running. Huge portions. Bit of advice - if you are on a beer crawl go here earlyish, say 5.30, and eat, then go for a long walk before starting the beers again!
12 Jun 2010 19:18
I'm slightly worried about this pub. When I've been back in York (I live in London) I've always gone there and loved it but last time I was in, about a month ago on a Friday night, it was quieter than usual and the mix of people was not the same as before. The music and the atmosphere was rubbish - are the owners trying to turn it into a 'just off the Micklegate Run' bar? Please don't ruin it! Maybe it was just a bad night (it was my first visit since Christmas) but it definitely seemed different. I've been going there since about 1992, not that often at all now, I admit, but if it continues like this the Golden Ball and Swan minutes away will be a better bet.
12 Jun 2010 19:14
The Triple Crown Inn, Richmond
Proper pub with proper beer and staff who care, but it is hidden away so you don't get the morons coming in. If you like All Bar One avoid the Triple Crown as much as possible - because you would only upset the people there, who appreciate what a pub should be like. Keep it this way. It's wonderful.
8 Dec 2009 22:32
OK when you can go outside but an odd pub at this time of year. Small but not many places to sit. Could make a much better use of space - two fruit/quiz machines take up the room you could fill with two tables with about four chairs round. Usual-by-now sofa in the middle, very obtrusive, and uncomfortable high, thin tables/chairs (why do pubs have an obsession with these???). No bar stools by the actual bar at all, so the middle of the pub looks like it's a vertical-drinking style bar. Still, it's run by the leisure company that is Greene King so don't expect any improvement. The Fuller's pub opposite is much better all-round.
8 Dec 2009 22:27
Not a pub. It's a restaurant. No big problem with it being a restaurant, but don't expect a pub if you go there. Owned by Fuller's - rapidly becoming a leisure company rather than a brewery. Bit rich of them to keep claiming how much of a traditional brewery they are. They are showing every sign of caring less and less about running pubs.
5 Sep 2009 20:55
The Crown & Sceptre is getting busier all the time... make the move.
5 Sep 2009 20:49
If you had to come up with a top ten of pubs in London this little gem would definitely be in there. Brilliant. If you are lucky enough to find the five Timothy Taylor pubs on, then it is a beer-lover's paradise. If you are not, it is still fantastic.
5 Sep 2009 20:47
Drank here recently. Used to be a great Putney pub but is the usual bland, soulless Young's effort these days (old pic-style sign outside replaced by faceless new one? Tick. Twirly bushes outside the door? Tick). When Young's revamped their pubs they whacked the prices up and that certainly hasn't stopped. The front room used to be a lovely space to drink or eat in but now it is purely a restaurant, meaning drinkers are squashed into the bar at the back (a restaurant for the usual bog-standard Young's food - what a brilliant idea. Pub food at restaurant prices with none of the advantages). One table at the back which would have been ideal for our group of six+ was reserved for an 'Irish band' so we ended up on those awful tall tables and chairs that are incredibly uncomfortable but all pubs seem to find essential now. The inevitable candle was put on the table - as if I wanted a romantic drink with my five mates... and if I wanted a romantic drink or meal anyway I wouldn't go to a f****** Young's pub. This pub is ok when you can stand outside by the Thames in the sunshine. Otherwise, if you have any soul, avoid.
5 Sep 2009 20:42
You could easily walk past without really noticing it. If you like traditional pubs this would be a big pity. Welcoming place with a great beer range and unusual main bar serving space to the corridor. Only five minutes walk from the castle area. Mixed bunch of customers but a friendly atmosphere. Keep this pub just as it is.
1 Aug 2009 20:09
One of the best pubs for food - enormous and tasty portions of proper non-gastro pub grub. Can be difficult to get a table sometimes because of its popularity. Decent beers and a lovely 1930s-style interior.
Last time I was there a 'light' meal of nachos ordered by the table next to us would have fed a family for a week.
1 Aug 2009 20:05
Quite simply one of the best pubs I have ever been to. I have heard rumours its future is uncertain (apologies if this is not the case) - if you value excellent traditional pubs serving great real ale please support it. Classic York pub with unspoiled interior.
If you go to the Swan and Ackhorne in the same night you will have a great experience.
I live in London now but always go to this pub when back in York. No pub in my area of west London comes anywhere near the Golden Ball for quality. Sit back and enjoy...
1 Aug 2009 20:01
Wonderful pub full of character still despite the refurbs some time back now. Good beers, friendly atmosphere and hidden away enough off the Micklegate Run to deter idiots. Can get very busy some nights (a good sign, I guess). Would definitely recommend it.
1 Aug 2009 19:54
The Crown and Sceptre, Shepherds Bush
Went there on Wednesday for the first time after it was redone. Overall, I'm very impressed. Good feeling about it inside - comfortable and enough chairs and tables. The taller tables opposite the open kitchen seem a bit strange but that's my only gripe. Had some tasty, very reasonably priced Thai grub. Really hope it gets the custom it deserves. The area is crying out for a decent pub among the bars and gastros. Just wish it was closer...
1 Aug 2009 19:46
This used to be a beautiful old pub, of a type rapidly disappearing in this area thanks to brutal 'refurbs' turning them into bland, boring places looking more like coffee chain cafes (Queen's Head in Brook Green being the classic example). The Andover Arms landlord seems determined to destroy its charm and make it into yet another gastropub/bar (despite the size of the space available making this very difficult - what on earth was the point of the sofas in the space where people go through to the toilets? The chairs and tables fitted perfectly there). Nothing wrong with gastros as such - but the more of them there are, the lower the novelty value, the harder it is to make them stand out from the crowd and the duller they all seem. It is reaching saturation level, especially if the Salutation goes down that route. There is still a place for a decent, traditional pub if it is done properly, with a landlord who isn't desperately trying to impress the trustafarians and bankers of Brackenbury Village. Landlords come and go these days but unfortunately some decide to put their stamp on a place and only succeed in ruining it before leaving. Try the Crown & Sceptre for now.
1 Aug 2009 19:31
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The Bricklayers Arms, Putney
Still a very, very good pub, on its day one of the best in London, but I'm a bit worried/disappointed about it based on visits this week. On Monday it only had two hand pumps on and today, Sunday afternoon, only one (a very good pint of Wandle but the only option). For a pub which prides itself on its beer choice that's pretty poor. Understandable after a Fulham game when the beers often run out but in an ordinary week like this it's a worrying sign. Lots of its trade must be based on people visiting because of that usually excellent beer range - they will simply stop bothering if there's little choice. Hope it's only a temporary blip because this is a great pub normally... please, please keep it up to the very high standard we know it can reach. Remember that the beer fans are often the ones who pay the bills if business is slow. They will travel for the right range.
11 Aug 2013 20:35