BITE user comments - mikeypr
Comments by mikeypr
Picked the Wheatsheaf because of it's 8.6 rating on here....., and now need to raise that even higher!
Oakham is a beautiful village in what was Rutland and the Wheatsheaf fits in perfectly to the picture postcard-like view of the village with a wonderful garden and a great ambiance; low ceilings and a really pleasant landlord and landlady (who are I found out really quite new to the pub - but, didn't appear so!! Very well respected by the locals....) make for a pub which really defines what a country pub should be.
When you get here, dive into the food - it's the best roast beef I've had in years - and the beer is wonderful. It's an Everards establishment which means Tiger - the Beer Of The Gods(!) - but a lovely Banks And Taylor Mild made for a perfect Sunday afternoon.
The pub has the 'old' opening hours, which means a 3pm close, but as we were eating it was very relaxed, and I would thoroughly recommend this place to ANYONE visiting Oakham or staying locally in the area - the pub is a stone's throw from Rutland Water - so should be checked out at least once!!
If only all pubs could be like this!!!
21 Jul 2012 12:54
Picked The Round Oak for a trip out of Bilston with the Mrs., with the intention of having a good Sunday lunch and a few very nice beers, and even though it's clearly a very 'locals' pub, I cannot find a fault with how we were received, the food (a lunch to die for!), and the wonderful Banks Mild which went down so smoothly.
The team here are very courteous, the service is excellent, and thanks to them for a great afternoon. The view of the canal is very relaxing and the pub has a big screen for football, but is still big enough to accommodate everyone.... Wombourne has a couple of pubs listed here, but The Round Oak should definitely be on your radar if you're thinking of a pub out there for Sunday.
21 Jul 2012 12:43
Went to The Crown with some friends who were having a birthday drink, and was very surprised. Having read some of the comments here, I expected to be fleeced, drink foul beer and not eat well, but the 'bangers and mash' was lovely, and the beer (most important criteria for a pub!!) was good, both bottled - Goose Island 312 (thoroughly recommended) and The Cutthroat Porter which was lovely!! Comments about the staff here had me looking around for the rude one's who were going to be waiting, but despite the fact that the pub was really busy, the team seemed very courteous and professional; good to see given they have to go up and down stairs with drinks and run many, many tables of food and drinks. Our friends had been in during the rugby earlier and again, no complaints!! It's not the easiest job working behind a bar - sometimes I feel some of the people who complain a bit too much here, should do it for a day, then you'll see why people can't be automatons and have even their best intentions tested from time to time.... Relax - you're supposed to be enjoying yourself remember!! The Crown - solid and reliable boozer - would go back for sure!!
1 Apr 2012 12:09
For a pub that carries this famous name I was astonished by just how poor its main fayre, I.e. Its beer was. An Otter Ale was vinegar, but as I'd already as for the beer before that to be changed, I thought better of going back again! Yes, the manager was great and the pub is a good mix of themed pub and traditional Hobgoblin style, but two out of four beers served well isn't up to scratch. Avoid!
21 Aug 2011 21:42
We'd gone to search this micro brewery / bar / gastro pub out, passing up the City Arms which is our normal haunt in Cardiff until later, and was pleasantly surprised! I think what a lot of reviewers miss on here, is that pubs are essentially about one thing, the beer. It's nice if the staff are courteous and know a thing or two about the product (which they should to work in a pub in the first place really? Imagine going to get your car serviced and the guy knew nothing about cars, durrgh!! ); and the place isn't and doesn't smell like a toilet, but essentially the beer and how it's served is the key. The Black Lager went down very well with my companion, the Pale Ale and the 5% Ti-ger (with hint of lemon grass!!) was a nice touch too, so would thoroughly recommend this.... We didn't try the food, but the price, ambiance and taste of the product were welcoming. Keep up the good work folks!!
15 Jun 2011 15:13
The Bunch of Grapes, Pontypridd
Such a shame we had so little time in this pub. The nature of my job means you can get a call anytime, and you've got to react to it, but the... 'Grapes' looked a lovely bolt-hole for the locals to escape the day. My pint of Timothy Taylor was better than we get back in our part of the world, and I was dying to try the Otley Dark... Maybe, another time? If you can make the effort to track it down, I would definitely recommend it for anyone wanting a homely pub with what seemed like a great pint or two!!
15 Jun 2011 15:01
A slighty 'multi-facetted' pub, let's say, the 'OG' isn't a great experience in a sweaty, Cardiff- infused student evening; on my last visit, it was very clear that its hordes of big screens and loud music means it is often not benefitting from the hordes of young drinkers who descend on it, but in the comfort and peace of a noon day, in the week, it comes into it's own as you can grab a large table and while away hours in relative peace and comfort just watching the world go by with good Brains SA or Felinfoel (sadly not on this time!) to sooth the palette. A nice place to crash if it all gets too much!! Good grub too!!
22 Mar 2011 10:49
I get the impression a Sunday night isn't the busiest of the week for this boozer, but a wonderful landlord and some exceptional beer should make it an essential stop on any crawl in Cardiff town centre. Yes, a Brains establishment, it also caters for all, and I mean all, tastes including a range of ciders that looked impressive. Brains Dark, followed by Elsie Mo and one of the barrels racked up wonderfully on the bar (Green Back, I think it was called?), were all delivered wonderfully, so if I'm in this neck of the woods again, I'll be calling in!! Cheers!!
22 Mar 2011 10:41
Nearly couldn't find this lovely pub tucked away behind Hatton Garden - it's one of the most difficult to find I think I've yet come across in a back alley that is so small you couldn't swing a cat, but on doing so was so glad I did because it's like stepping back in time! A wonderful Holden's Mild signalled the end of Mild Month here - it's a Fuller's Pub "by day" with the usual fare - but the service and the atmosphere was second to none and it's good to know that old pubs like this are still going strong and indeed still being cultivated in the centre of London. Good on you Mitre!! Might not make it back here - don't go that way too often, but a gem found for certain!!
10 Jun 2010 11:09
We were taken to this pub a few weeks ago by a local friend who had drunk (and eaten..) there for many years and what a local gem!! Run by a wonderful couple who were incredibly friendly and with some real characters at the bar, this is a little out of the way for those seeking solace from the town centre of Tamworth, but worth seeking out!! Our Paella was lovely in the restaurant, and washing it down with excellent Marstons later was a delight... I hope the Abba Night that was due the week after we visited went well and I look forward to returning one day if at all possible!! Cheers!!
31 May 2010 15:31
Prince of Wales, Hampton Court
Another pub that further hammers home the feel that Greene King (the company) couldn't put atmosphere into a pub if you paid it. A poor pint of Abbot, a tough steak, Sky Sports and House music in the toilets do not make a 'pub atmosphere' and this "pub" has basically lost its soul trying to cater to the stream of tourists from across the river in Hampton Court and what it thinks is the 'young' crowd it feels it has to attract which dumbs down what could be a nice, airy, bright public house - that's what they used to be called, right? Avoid at all costs!!
31 May 2010 15:22
Went to the Old Fountain on the back of a review in the London Drinker on 20th May only to find that this was the first day of their Beer Festival? Yes!! This pub is set down a side street in Old St., and from the outside doesn't reveal its secrets, but on the inside is a real gem, a true London standard for real ale and the Crouch Vale Fountain Apollo, Red Squirrel London Irish and Dark Star Victorian Ruby Mild I sampled were all super with the barrels racked beautifully and the staff all very friendly. It's a simple pub with few frills - the food menu seemed down to earth and good value, but really, this place is about beer and relaxation, so next time I'm in the area, I'll pop in!! Cheers!!
31 May 2010 15:14
The Old Buttermarket, Canterbury
Although the previous reviews of this pub in Canterbury town centre seem a bit old, I would suggest that they're also somewhat out of date; and 'out dated'..... Going on a day trip with the in-laws, we did have to wait for lunch (the pub was justifiably very busy!), but then, that's often the best time to sample a few of the pub's really good ales, and I vote Hopdaemon Incubus as a real find. Then, the food!! Fish And Chips is a very easy dish to make bland and uninteresting, but I can't praise the staff and the chef here enough. They were incredibly courteous, the fish tasted great, and the service was very good...... Surely not in accordance with the previous review... It's a Nicholson's pub (and I know some reviewers get prickly when large pub groups come into these kind of places?), but if all Nicholson's pubs train their staff to be this good, and this accommodating, then you can't fault it!! The nature of our trip meant that we didn't hit other places in town, but as an idea of what a pub should be like in Canterbury, you can't go far wrong with the Old Buttermarket.
31 Aug 2013 12:36