please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
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.
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Your gastro/pubco/bareboard etc etc makeover identikit style pub. Music was on upstairs. Downstairs bar had three ales on - though I left half of what I had (can't recall what it was but one of your standard brews). Best used as a waiting room for Goldhawk Road station.
anonymous - 18 Jun 2011 10:20 |
Popped in here after a couple in the disgusting Goldhawk down the road so it didnt have much to live up to!!
Nice enough building,pleasent but useless staff (girl did not know what Jd is )
alarm kept going off in the open kitchen with the manager screaming at the staff in front of the customers,the loos are miles away up a dirty staircase with old furniture everywhere.
VERY EXPENSIVE, but could be a nice pub and did serve a nice pint .
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Would agree with the last post. Staff obviously not particularly arsed, they even called last orders early. Could be nice but feels a bit souless.
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I was a bit disapointed when I revisited this pub latley! It is still expensive and I found the staff very rude, there was a large group of us and as we walked in we just recieved a grunt as a hello, the man behind the bar acted like he was doing us a favour! It's such a shame as this pub used to have a really friendly atmosphere, now I prefer to just walk past and it appears so does everyone else it is very rare there is anyone in there! I certanly will not be back in a hurry!
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Formerly the BushRanger, this modernised Youngs pub is not obviously branded as such (although there are some small signs above the doors if you look carefully). Inside you will find a fairly narrow bar at ground floor level with a function room upstairs. There is also a small roof terrace above the single storey front part of the building. Decor-wise, it is about half-way to being a gastro-pub but offers various types of seating and is certainly not wholly food orientated. Four handpumps, two with 'Ordinary' clips plus Bombardier and a very good pint of London Gold (�3.15). Overall, not too bad, and very handy for Goldhawk Road underground station.
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OK for a quick pint on the way home. somewhat pricey given the area. The beer is ok but not outstandnig. By no means the worst pub down the Goldhawk Rd but there are better
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It's really hard to review the Stinging Nettle as the original Bush Ranger was my favourite pub in the Bush, well infact my favourite pub.
The current Stinging Nettle is a vast improvement on what the Bush Ranger became in the summer of 2004. It has a very good function room upstairs, where many of my friends have held partys, as there's no minimum bar spend and the bar staff are very helpful.
But as they say �If I hadn�t seen such riches I could live with being poor' and
if I hadn�t known the real Bushranger, then I'd be more than happy with the Stinging Nettle. The Bushranger used to be a cracking character pub; it was such a refreshing change to the near-by formulaic chains, traditional with dark atmospheric, low ceilings, period features, wood panelled walls and a handsome fireplace with a cosy roaring open fire. Talk of spit and sawdust, they actually had sawdust scattered on the floor.
Built in 1864 and originally called the Railway Tavern, to supply a watering hole for the Metropolitan railway construction workers
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dropped in for the first time yesterday evening about 6.15 PM. A good cool pint of ordinary at 2.93 was very reasonable .... staff were friendly, and it wasn't too busy in the bar - but a lot more people upstairs. Plenty of Youngs bottled beers seemed to be available, and also (not tried) Youngs Kew Gold on handpump.
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I didn't visit on a bad day... I live in this area.
I forgot to add, the beer is warm.
Granted, the hand drier is now fixed, but if that is the best thing about this place I am happy to drink elsewhere away from the "livewires"
Why is everyone so chatty and loud after they have visited the toilets???!!!!
No thanks
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lament 666 what are you talking about i love this venue, yes it is a little pricey but this keeps the riff raff from the area out. i have witnessed the staff removing the people you describe from the pub and doing their best to make this pub safe and pleasant, the hand dryer in the mens does work i dried my hands underneath it only yesterday.
i feel you may of come on a bad day and would advise you revisit, please to all other readers do not be put off this pub is safe and friendly.
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This place used to be...friendly,welcoming,popular and clean.
It is obvious that the management do not care about the pub or it's customers. They allow the local waifs and strays to wander through the place pestering people for money or cigarettes.
The hand drier in the gents does not work, and has not worked for about 6 months - the toilets are generally a bit of a state.
The beer is awful and ridiculously overpriced.
The only saving grace about this place is that it isn't too far away from places that do sell reasonably priced, good quality beer and food.
Stretch your legs and live a little...avoid this place, you are not missing anything.
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Odd narrow downstairs floor that would be very difficult to navigate if it were busy, but there's a nicely sized upstairs room, and also a cute little balcony with a couple of tables. Decor is what you'd expect from a pub trying for a 20-30something "trendy" crowd.
It is however *really* pricey. You can easily pay over four quid a pint. Given that I can't really see what would make me go there, rather than walk half a mile in any direction and go somewhere equally pleasant and also cheaper.
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A new Young's pub; I looked forward to visiting it last Sunday.
Full range of Young's Ales?
No...
No Special at all, not a single Young's bottled ale.
Ordinary, Bombadier and Waggledance on tap. I tried the ordinary; so bad I had to take it back.
The food was okay, but I don't understand how Young's can promote this as a Young's pub when it is so sorely lacking in what makes their pubs so good.
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What used to be the Bushranger has been acquired by Young's, tarted up per its standard new "gastropub" look, and (oddly) renamed the Stinging Nettle. Like all of these Young's makeovers, it left me a bit cold: very deliberate attempt to make it look trendy and appeal to a hip young crowd, which never quite works. Full range of Young's ale available (good); friendly service (good); bog standard pub food at gastropub prices (bad). More generally the pub was too narrow for the large numbers of customers, at least on pub quiz night.
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This Pub has been refurbished and is now excellent..
It is now called the Stinging Nettle. It does not have T V screens for Football etc anymore but does invite people to hire the Wii machine upstairs.
Quiz night on Wednesday nights at 8:30 very good and generally a lovely atmosphere... forget what it was before and forget the previous comments reference the decor..
A great job done by Youngs but do note that the if your going for posh lager and not the cooking variety you will pay for it...
Deuchers ipa lovely!!
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Went to this pub in March 2007 before QPR V WBA. Poncy interior, or should I say 'minmilist'. Seemed like a place with an identity crisis. Beer overpriced and not too special.
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Completely in agreement with the comments on here - not a patch on what it was pre-refurb but that's not necessarily to say it's a bad pub it just seems to have changed the clientele it's after from your average Joe Drinker and the more genteel element of the football crowd to the Beeb's meeja brigade. Dunno if Frank is still running it but it appears to have become a sister pub to the Old Ship in Hammersmith (same food menu in any case). The beer is OK but slightly on the pricey side, likewise the food. There's a decent vibe weekend nights when it's warm as a DJ pitches up on the roof terrace and I think they serve until 1am so that's all good.
The only slight drawback is the place has lost the "edge" it had before - walking into the BushRanger pre-refurb felt like walking into a proper pub. Now you feel a bit like you're walking into Kelly Hoppen's living room. Depends what you're after I suppose.
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Sorry to say but the new decor is no improvement. Bring back the sawdust. But its still nice to be recognised when i pay a visit. Moved out many yrs ago and recently visited the Bush. On popping in to the Ranger there was a great welcome for me. That in itself will ensure that i visit again
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Cropstar and dogday, it used to be a proper pub, with sawdust on the wooden floor, and dark wood fittings and paintings on the walls. Cracking place for breakfast on a Sunday also.
Handsomely refurbished? Maybe so, but there was nothing wrong with it before, and now it looks like so many other places.
anonymous - 17 Dec 2006 17:12 |
Went down on pub quiz night, reasonable atmosphere, fast service and couldn't fault the drinks. Okay, the music was a bit obscure but that's all I'd have against it. Not sure why so many comments are so negative.
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Not sure what it used to be like but I hired out the top room for a party and it was a great venue. Reasonably priced drinks and helpful staff. Would recommend if as a place to hire.
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you just which one day they'd wake up and realise what they've done. But i suppose it's too late once you've ripped the heart soul out of the place. Bushranger RIP - and they've got a cheek not to change the name to summit like Emergancy ward waiting room
anonymous - 4 Jun 2006 23:17 |
open till 2 on Saturdays, unlike many a bar in the bush. A bit bright though
anonymous - 24 May 2006 14:57 |
I have to admit, I preferred this pub when it was dark and scary.
They have now fitted a dimmer switch!!!! So you won'y need a welders mask when you go in there.
After a quiet period it is getting busier and they have a late late Friday and Saturday !!
Most of the staff speak and understand English which is something of a bonus.
Best of all ( if you like that sort of thing) they have a brilliant pub quiz -
anonymous - 19 Feb 2006 12:52 |
used to be my favorite pub in the bush.had some great nights in there especially when QPR won promotion in 2004. it is now ruined by some tasteless yuppie entreprenaur. it looks like a dentists waiting room. Bowls of sugar lumps on the tables-who do they expect to come in, Steptoes horse?
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Yep,..yep,..feel the same as everyone else here. Used to be ok this place, but now, well, as they say down my way,..."any pint, anywhere is worth two in Shepherds bush",..or something like that
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terrific boozer killed my modernisation - still fine for drinking in but atmosphere is now austere, whence it was convivial - pleasant bar staff and Frank, (the landy), is a decent type.
Scene of wild celebrations for many a QPR fan, pre modernisaition/
evers - 29 Aug 2005 14:35 |
I used to go here about 10 years ago when I was living in a grim damp ridden bedsit in Stowe Road. Nice, dark and gloomy but warm and comforting and you could watch the footie on the telly. Sawdust on the floor. Look at it now. Astonishing. Everything's cyclical they say and I hope the craze for gutting local boozers will soon end.
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I can only agree 100% with other posters. A once great pub completely ruined. This was my local for years 'til I moved out of the Bush. Visited it for the first time in a good while last week and nearly wept?
When will this senseless destruction of the traditional boozer stop?
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Two things going in its favour: it has a licence until 12 and it's quite a civilised place to watch football, if you like that sort of thing.
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Oh dear,what have you done?the owners should be taken to the tower !!! If this is what some people think is a pub they must be mad ! souless,sterile and no atmosphere !Bar staff no speaky the lingo,beer not what it used to be.R.I.P.Bushranger.
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They should have left well alone. Bushranger "RIP".
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surely it must be illegal the damage they have done to this once great characterful pub, looks like an all bar w**k but only worse, the owners should be up in court. Will never go there again, having been a fan and a loyal customer for over ten years.
anonymous - 13 Dec 2004 17:26 |
No saw-dust!!???? All the atmosphere of a dentists waiting room now...
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its nice and modern and clean - just what shepherds bush needs.
anonymous - 3 Nov 2004 14:37 |
If you've not seen it since the make-over, imagine a branch of Boots with no products on display and a bar.
The old place had great atmosphere.
Now its just a sterile, bland, soulless waiting room.
Iain - 20 Oct 2004 17:54 |
The lights are just so bright!! Too bright in fact. Much nicer to drink somewhere dark and dingy so people can't see when your eyes start to cross!
anonymous - 1 Oct 2004 15:17 |
Why? Why? Why? Used to be the best pub in area. Used to have period features, old paintings, fireplace, saw dust, wooden bar.
Now it's so bright you need sun glasses, there's loads of these non-descript bars around why have they destroyed a real pub?
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I'm so offended by what's happened to this place that I don't even know where to start. It used to be one of my all-time favourite pubs and then they closed down over the past summer and it has turned into a crime against, well, everything. Someone report it to the police please.
They've basically refurbished it into a bright white elephant that's trying to imitate a stainless steel soho wine bar. It's just unbelievably horrible.
Why? Why? Why? Why?
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Recent refurb has removed any atmosphere this place once had.
Bunny Ridgeon - 26 Aug 2004 11:35 |
The QPR pub but if you aren't annoying (and they beat you) it is friendly enough and the beer is pretty good. Colours are even allowed but Burberry isn't.
anonymous - 20 Aug 2004 12:43 |
Pretentious, overpriced and unfriendly.
Don't know what anyone sees in this place, you're better off down the road at the British Prince.
Kevin Hogan - 8 Jul 2004 20:46 |
Yes, it's a QPR pub, but it also does good beer and good food and isn't too rammed apart from match days.
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A spit and saw-dust pub... literally. There's actually wood shavings on the floor.
Great in the summer, when you can sit on the roof terrace and watch the mad Shepherds Bush-ites talking to themselves and dribbling below.
Ollie - 20 Feb 2004 17:20 |
top pub,top beer,top supporters
bunny ridgeon - 12 Feb 2004 10:41 |
Full og Rangers supporters on matchdays. Cant get better than that!!!!!
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Full of moody types, and the beer is a bit rank! Look out for flying peanuts...
Dominic - 15 May 2003 00:26 |
A BLOODY GOOD PUB FOOD EXPENSIVE NBUT QUALITY QUALITY ALE
anonymous - 24 Mar 2003 20:42 |
Spit and sawdust type of place but does good food has a great atmosphere and is full of characters.
james - 2 Jan 2003 18:13 |
