Inn on the Park, Woodleyback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Awful place...concreted next to car park. Littered with fag ends and overflowing ash teays. Service slow. Characterless place..dingy and have made no effort whatever to make the place inviting. Will NEVER go again.
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Visited yesterday afternoon. London Pride, Green King IPA, Doombar and a Loddon beer on offer. The latter was served straight from the barrel (£3 a pint) and the quality couldn't be faulted. Can't say that I found this an especially welcoming place. Despite there being a sign on the door asking that dogs be kept on a lead, there were 3 large ones running round inside. I wouldn't rush to return although, if I lived in the area, I'd certainly drop in now and again for a qyick pint.
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My last post was nearly 3 years ago so an update. I'm increased my score by one notch as the beer is a touch better when I previously reviewed, 3 real ales on, London Pride, Butt's Barbus Barbus and Loddon Hoppit, Mon - Thursday the Loddon Hoppit is priced at �2.50. The Hoppit is a personal favourite session beer of mine at 3.5% ABV and it was in great condition.
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I've managed to get into this pub now and further to my previous comments I can confirm much effort is made in terms of the ales on offer. The Loddon Hoppit was in good condition. Not the prettiest of pubs and as I mentioned before, despite being connected to the leisure centre, has a no children policy.
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I was a local resident who used/ drank and worked behind the bar (in the 90's on and off). Several management teams came - if i recall employed by Woodley town council - usually good people-often tightly run ( almost driven by various town councillors) - the staff was from locals, uni studants. A Quiz was run very well back then. The Leisure centre had badmington halls and conference hall - i used to attend the excellent Woodley Camera club. The Real was usually Breakspears and Fuller's London Pride but often varied (guest ale). Children were not allowed ,if i recall in the bar but there is a patio by a paddling pool(summer) and play area. Set in the middle of Woodford Park with cricket and football matches plus a bowling green and tennis courts. Did have a curfew , ie a main locked shortly after time gate down the hill.
Did have a caretaker, groundstaff for the park and town council offices. I moved in 2000 - still had tv and a very good nearby Carnival once a year (June). The memorial Park added / rebuilt the theatre etc so i think the council offices moved to the lower of the two parks (Headley Road). Corination Hall was still active next to it when i visited the excellent Woodley 3K & 10K Run (i think a fud raises for 1st Woodley Scouts). The shopping centre is vibrant and nearby in Crockenwell Road ( The Chequers PH also).
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Strange that a pub that is part of the lesiure centre does not apparently have the correct license to welcome children in so if you're a family wishing to stop by for a drink, this is not the place to go. Shame really because from the short time I was in the premisis, I could see already that there was a greater effort in the real ales than most other pubs in the Woodley area. Alas, no chance to sample them to see if they were in top condition.
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If you are going to drink in a pub that is part of a leisure centre, you don't expect oak beams and leaded windows. Even so, the furniture is rather more appropriate for a cafe than a pub. That said, the cask ale is generally good. It's served on gravity out the back - the handpumps are to tell you what's on.
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Was here for the Man Utd 1 - Liverpool 4 game, just about full, with a fairly mixed crowd, probably rather busier than usual due to the match, only one person serving and she made heroic efforts to keep people in beer. They seem to have one guest beer among the Brakespears & London Pride, locally sourced from Hampshire and in very good nick, probably on the gravity (the bar maid went out the back to get it). I'll return for footy matches if i can't be arsed to go to The Nags Head in Reading.
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A quick update - her "ladyship" really is a total waste of space. We held an AGM there for a local sports club last night in a function room attached to the side of the bar. There were approx. 40 of us, all spending money over the bar freely. At the end of the meeting, we helped the staff to pack away the chairs, tables and returned ALL glasses to the bar, to continue the after-event socialising. From her favoured position in amongst her drinking cronies, Madam decides to berate several of our party for apparently not returning the glasses to the bar, despite some of us carrying 5/6 glasses each. She then threatens to ban us from using her glasses at any future meeting we hold there (we also hold monhly meetings there, so are frequent mass users of the pub). I think it's safe to say we'll be seeking alternative venues from now on - a lot of lost revenue.
To cap the evening off, time was called & we left the bar and stood outside chatting a moment - long enough to see her herd the two barstaff that had actually done the work in the evening out of the door at some pace and slam it shut to continue the session with her pals inside...pitiful, absolutely pitiful.
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Is it giro day Tom?
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Have to say this pub has gone downhill so fast it should win an Olympic Gold...on a visit last week, the guest beer - Archer's Village - was just drinkable and had gone off by the time of the next round. The ever-reliable fallback of London Pride was insipid and flat and the final fallback - Brakspears - was just vinegar, yet they only took off the guest pump. Had to resort to Guinness in the end, which was admittedly, perfectly OK.
Poor atmosphere made worse by the blanket fog of cigarette smoke and an air of couldn't care less from the landlady who seems to treat the place as a personal bar for her and her friends instead of actually trying to run the place properly. In desperate need of a total overhaul...
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Strange little pub, but pleasant anough for a quite beer mid-week.
Deany has big ears!
anonymous - 7 Oct 2005 16:02 |
Nice pub next to the main park in Woodley, by the leisure centre. It whas featured in several CAMRA good beer guides, and always has a nice selection of ale
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