please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
The Brains is as good as you'll find anywhere here.
Gets a bit over-jolly maybe, when there's an international on.
The steak pies are outstandingly pie-like, and notably steaky though.
Seven-out-of ten is respectfully awarded.
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One of the better city centre pubs. Changeless, atmospheric and reliable.
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Like the previous poster it's been quite a few years since I'd visited. Very little has changed, a traditional pub that was a very welcome resting point after a 4.5 hour train journey. Full range of Brains beers, had the Dark - as good as ever.
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This pub was visited at Christmas - my previous visit would have been in the 1970s! I have to say very little has changed. More handpulls than then admittedly, but still that cosy wood-panelled interior. A pleasant surprise when so many pubs are changing (see the Yard, for example).
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OK pub, not very busy on my visit. Looks quite old and is very comfortable.
Looked like they had the full range of brains beers.
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Excellent beers and good range of Brain's craft beers. Long established city centre pub.
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Well kept Brains, but what a pity that the pub was devoid of any customers on a Sunday and Monday night. That said, I went in for a beer and it was good.
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Our second pub of the day was the Cottage. Another Brains affair. But this was a much more traditional pub than the Yard, just down the road. In fact, I believe it's one of the oldest pubs in Cardiff. The barman was fairly friendly and the Brains selection was slightly more extensive than down the road - SA, SA Gold, Bitter, Rev James & Dark. The interior is mainly standing room. So I imagine the pub gets packed at peak times.
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Nice quiet retreat in the City Centre. Serves a fair choice of Brains beers only, but these were well kept and served by a friendly chap behind the bar. The pub has just one thin room which adds a bit of atmosphere to the place. Give it a try if you are doing a crawl around these parts.
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Excellent pub with a friendly welcome and relaxed atmosphere. Ales in tip-top condition, including Brains craft beers. The 'Shy Porter' was superb! Food is also excellent: I can recommend the Welsh lamb cawl and Cheese, potato and leek pie. A must visit in Cardiff.
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Pleasant, long narrowish old school city pub. The Brian's Captain Cat was a decent pint worth having a couple more of.
anonymous - 28 Dec 2012 21:53 |
Good city centre pub, clean, tidy and bustling on Saturday evening. Well-kept Brains ales and a nice atmosphere. Well worth a visit and not far from Central station.
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Being refurbed at the moment.
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Good little pub in a street which looks as though it has gone downhill since new shopping centres have been built. Enjoyed a couple of different Brain's beers and was served promptly. Nice atmosphere with a very unique frontage.
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Smelt a bit - a few airfresheners stuck down the back of the seats didn't mask it all but the range of Brains and the quality sampled was excellent. I would go again.
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Why is this pub listed under �Cardiff Cottage� when (as you can see from the photo), it�s actually just called The Cottage ? It took me ages to find it on here � I probably would have given up if I didn�t remember having seen it before.
Anyway, I used to say that this place was an oasis of calm from the busy street outside � but that�s no longer true since the street has been pedestrianised !
The whole pub is long and thin stretching back from the street. The front portion has the bar down the left hand side and is obviously designed for standing drinkers (there are a few seats). Further back are some seating areas with tables � normally for people who are eating, but it�s not compulsory.
Pretty much the full range of Brains on tap � I�ve tried both the Dark and SA and they were pretty good. I�ve have eaten here, and the food was definitely acceptable, but I can�t remember much else about it. I do remember, however, on my last visit being impressed by the �cheese and cracker selection� that the people on the next table were having.
I seem to remember there are prints of old Cardiff on the walls.
I�m afraid the toilets could be better. There was no lock on the only cubicle that was working for a start.
6/10 � marked down because of the toilets.
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Interesting pub interior and well kept pints of Brains. But, rather lacking in atmosphere due to too many tables arranged for eating rather than boozing.
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I popped into the Cottage recently on a recommendation. I found an extremely inviting interior, and a good range of Brains' beer on tap. Sadly, despite the pub being reasonably quiet, I gave up waiting to be served after I had been waiting at the bar for over 5 minutes. A good barman ought to be able to keep tabs on who due service rather than simply calling 'Who is next, please?', especially when the pub is not busy. A shame, but I'll return.
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Visited around 5pm on a Sunday, just after Cardiff Rugby club had been playing around the corner, so rammed full of post-match exuberance (and a total ignorance to move ever so slightly to one side so that we could pass to somewhere near the bar). Decent Brains range on tap, although much pricier than could be obtianed from very close by). Mirrors everywhere create the impression of being much beigger than it actually is - more of a long corridor than anything else. Slightly stale smell in the air, but the smokers would say that could have been masked, I suppose.
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The black narrow frontage invites you to step in and you wouldn't be disappointed. This pub possesses lots of character and to accompany its range of Brain's beers there is a reasonably priced extensive menu. You don't have to mingle with the diners - there's a raised area to the rear. My pint was on good form and the steak and ale (Brain's of course!)pie was piping hot in a positive lake of tasty gravy. It's a stone's throw from the Tourist Information and shopping centre. What could be more convenient?
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Well done on the smoking ban. Busy enough on a November Friday evening. As another poster says, pre-empts the ban, so better get used to it.
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I drop into The Cottage for a pint of S.A. and a paper to read occasionally. A nice place (but another victim of Brains new pricing policy).........sadly empty since the smoking ban came into effect. Have to go to The Borough now to see the entertainment!!
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Not what it used to be since the introduction of fresh air (On St Mary Street? Surely not). Smoke free it may be but on a recent visit it was also customer free. Couldn't give a toss service doesn't help. Why are so many city pubs like this?
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Wow, this place has changed in the last few years. It used to be one of the most traditional pubs on St Mary's Street: dark, smoky and full of old regulars. Now it's gone all modern - light, airy and, pre-empting next summer's laws, non-smoking. Still well worth visiting, and does a very decent pint of Brains, but has lost the atmosphere it had a few years back.
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This is an excellent pub. Very traditional, as the other comments say it is a proper pub, full of dribbling old Welshmen - Which is not a bad thing.
TheGP - 22 May 2005 18:02 |
i used to start off here on student drinking nights. whilst we were'nt welcome, none of the old buggers could lift a finger as they were so pissed. saw some real sights here, very funny.
anonymous - 25 Sep 2004 18:59 |
A little gem in the midst of the dross. Okay, so you may think of it as an old geezers joint, but a favorite for a first stop to plan the rest of the evening. A proper pub in the middle of chain bar central.
anonymous - 17 Sep 2004 15:49 |
