please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Pretty much as previously - they try on the ale front but they fail miserably.
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It's just too hit & miss here - you go one time and wait ages to get served but the beer is good, you go another get served straight away but the beer is poor - their own brews are seldom on. Some of the staff are good others lacklustre, some of the beers are on good form, others you have to take back and change. Maybe they'll get it right one day
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It is bad enough that we have to put up with the gimmickry of "celebrating" St.Patrick's day with Irish flags, shamrocks and leprechauns in an effort for businesses to persuade people to drink/buy more but considering there were no Irish customers and this is Barnet not Kilburn the playing of sectarian IRA music here is bang out of order and harks back to the bad old days that you don't even get in Belfast or Glasgow anymore. Irish music is one thing but sectarian bullshit extolling the virtues of murdering terrorists is another.
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Pretty much same as last visit - staff were better but still had to change a dodgy pint. Their own stuff is usually okay when it's on though.
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Down a notch on latest visit - you do get issues with staff doing 'more important things than serving customers' at times and I took a couple of ales back that were cloudy. Also it seems rare for any of their own brews to be on. Still okay and you can get a some decent brews on.
anonymous - 20 Nov 2015 21:27 |
The brewery tap for the Barnet brewery is situated on a double roundabout just outside the town. Only one of their ales was on - Barnet Glory. But this was soon replaced by Barnet Best Bitter. Other ales were West Berkshire Blindside Flanker, Camerons Thirst Blood, Wychwood Hobgoblin, Springhead Maid Marian, Nottingham Legend, XT 13 & Colchester Red Diesel. The cider was Rosie's Pig. This seems to be popular with diners and families. Both were present yesterday lunchtime. Staff are mostly young. There were plenty of them. But they didn't seem the friendliest bunch.
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After having heard some good things about this place since its refurb, I recently had cause to visit and have to say it is better than it was before by quite a margin.
The decor is a bit less soulless and no longer too bright. Seems more spacious than I remember but that might just be my imagination and the beer garden is still lovely.
Good range of beers now including some from their own in-house (well, out the back if you want to split hairs) brewery, one of which that I had a couple of pints of was called "The Cat and Lantern" presumably named in honour of the long defunct pub of the same name that used to be in East Barnet Village, but which I am pleased to report was much better than its namesake and is worth trying if it's on when you visit. Prices are not terrible and beer quality was uniformly good as far as my friends and I were concerned. Worth a visit if you are out that way, but I'd stop just short of saying its worth a special journey for.
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First time to visit since the refurb and yes a big change from the shit hole I remember a few years ago. Now a smart pub with a much better ale choice. Could do with more from their associated barnet Brewery, but only a small gripe and much better than the previous incarnation..
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Wow - what a transformation! The pub is completely unrecognisable inside and now much larger, although you wouldn't know from the outside. The toilets have been moved and are now bigger and better. There is a micro-brewery onsite providing some of the ales on tap - they ones I tried were very nice. Plenty of other guest ales too, you are spoiled for choice! It seems to be more of a gastro-pub now and they seem to be aiming more for the young and wealthy clientele - I haven't tried the food, but the beer is rather expensive for the area!
There is live music sometimes, but it's more 'background music' than an attraction in it's own right - usually a bit jazzy or 'middle of the road' for my tastes. The bands seem to be bland and largely ignored by the pub's clientele - this isn't the place to go if you are looking for a rockin' night out, but maybe it is if you have money to burn and want to try a few unusual ales...
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This pub had so much potential after its refurbishment. Outside area is great, food is good, and beer is excellent - apart from the price. But what lets it down is the staff and the service. The staff are definitely miserable for some reason and often quite rude. What a shame. The manager needs to get this sorted out after all the money and effort that has been spent on reviving this pub.
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Have been giving the newly refurbished Black Horse a couple of goes. It looks ok and has a good range of beers. However, it's more a gastro pub really. The beers are too expensive at £3.50 a pint and of average quality and £4.75 for a small bottle of Leffe is almost theft. We commented on the price of the Leffe as felt it was either wrung up wrong or the system had the prices incorrectly listed - the answer from the "barman" was that is was correct, we commented that it was way cheaper in other pubs in Barnet notably the Mitre down the road and he said "perhaps we should go to the Mitre then..." Well guess what...? We did and will not be going back to the Black Horse - a real waste and a shame as this place had potential and I was hoping for another decent real ale pub in Barnet.
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Now brewing beers in-house on a reclaimed Northern Federation Brewery plant.
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Indeed quite a transformation. Only popped in because I had half an hour to wait on a bus. Not quite a purists re-incarnation of a pub but reasonable enough and nine ales on including their own brews. Tried the Brentwood brew which was decent enough. Hopefully will stop the rot in decline of barnet pubs.
anonymous - 18 May 2013 14:32 |
I visited on a Saturday night - it was standing room only when I arrived around 7.30 but emptied out as the evening wore on so I think more people were there to eat than drink.
I had a few pints of Old Hooky, which were very good, and a few of the house brew "Barnet Brewery" I think it was called - a golden ale I would describe it as. It was pretty good but I really should have asked for the pints to be topped up as they were well short of a full measure.
I also had a bottle of Punk IPA - a great beer but a bit expensive to drink all night. They had a small but tempting range of bottled beers as well as a host of beers on pump and tap.
Overall a nice enough place but the small numbers of customers as it got later didn't help the atmosphere.
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Large, modern interior.
I hate to be critical of their ambition but the number of handpumps does seem a bit over the top unless they have the turnover to support it. Maybe they have, although it was quiet when I was there. In all tried 3 of the beers, 2 were not at their best (flat), the other was spot on.
Still a very welcome addition to the Barnet pub crawl!
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Wow, and what a transformation they have done here.
Now much bigger with a modern decor and plenty of comfortable seating areas.
But the real selling point is the additional of a sea of Real ale hand pumps on the bar, 11 of them on total. 8 of them were functioning for my inaugural visit with mainly smaller brewery beers and the others seemed to be lined up for future use for the Barnet Brewery which will start brewing from Feb next year.
A couple from the XT Brewery Co in Thame and from the Raw Brewery in Derbyshire , but went for the Higsons Stout which was spot on.
The decor is now more aligned to a modern gastro pub, but the beer choice, if its kept going, means the good bergers of Barnet now have an alternative to the two Ye Oldes Mitre and Monken Holt for a decent beer evening.
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Re-opening at 1.00 p.m. on the 28th. of November, 2012. By all accounts: a comprehensive refurbishment, and~best of all~will have its own in-house brewery, the BARNET BREWERY.
Official opening by Roger Protz.
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Currently boarded up.
anonymous - 3 Sep 2012 19:41 |
Best of the three pubs I tried on or around Wood Street last night (The Lord Nelson and The Alexandra being the other two), but still a fair way short of being anything more than a servicable watering hole.
Green King IPA was pleasant, price was fair, service was very good and the environment approchable enough inside (if a little too bright and "new pub" looking with light wood and those little spotlight things and so on) but if you can cope with the noise of the traffic going by (it's right on a main road) the beer garden is very well maintained and the better bet on a clement evening.
They are quite keen on putting on entertainment here from the look of the notices around the pub, but last night's effort of a geriatric covers band that looked almost as bored to be playing their insipid covers of various standards as I was in listening to them from the beer garden, doesn't bode well for the general standard. Full marks for effort in bothering to put live music on though.
This being the closest of the Wood Street pubs to Barnet town centre itself, I would say it's probably worth checking out at least once if you have exhausted all the drinking options in that locale and fancy a change, but it isn't worth making a special visit for. At least it's only a 5 or so minute walk back to Barnet's best pub (in my humble opinion) The Mitre, should you not care for it particularly.
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This used to be a great pub but very different from the place I used to know a year or two ago. We got glared at we walked in. I had to stop myself from saying "this is a local pub for local people". I wanted to leave as soon as we got there to be honest.
I think the most distburbing thing was the number of racist comments I overheard every now and then. Obviously tolerated in this establishment. I found it very cliquey and mainly full lads out to watch the football get smashed out of their skulls. That's ok if that's what you're after, I suppose.
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GK IPA and Pride on which nobody else was drinking, a kind of disco cum Karaoke night and staring locals - let's go somewhere else.
anonymous - 23 May 2010 11:55 |
Used to come here a lot a few years back but the owner has put me and a few others off going. Once got told we'd have to leave if I didn't buy another drink when we'd literally finished the last drink less then 1 minute ago.
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It gets quite lively when they have a band on, although the ones I've seen there so far have been very average - although the easily pleased regulars may disagree. The beer is nothing to write home about, but at least the place seems to be shaking off it's dodgy past reputation for trouble.
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Fairly standard plain one bar locals pub. Also I appeared to be the only non regular when I popped in for a quick pint whilst making my way home through Barnet. Agree with the comment about the friendly barmaid and the locals. Unfortunately the Pride went off as my pint was being poured which left the GK IPA as the only real ale on which was�.. GK IPA !. Pleasant enough place and I also probably wouldn�t have an issue if this was my local, but also there wasn�t anything special to motivate me for return visits as it�s not.
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I was pretty much the only non-regular in here on Saturday night and I have to report that the barmaid was very polite and most of the locals seemed friendly enough. The Pride was good and Greene King IPA was also available along with some standard lagers.
There is a dartboard that was being fully utilised and a plasma screen for showing the Sky Sports. There is also a stage area perfect for bands to set up on, not that there was anything going on whilst I was there. There is a covered area at the back with some seating that leads onto a healthily sized beer garden, although there is a fairly busy road and roundabout right next to it.
This is an ok pub and I wouldn't grumble if it was my local.
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Fantastic Pub, always a warm welcome from Rick and his team. Excellent entertainment, including live bands, karaoke and themed evenings. Great Sports pub, live football/rugby/boxing always shown live. Nice Pool Table and Wii games. Beautiful Garden and excellent smoking shelter with live TV so you don't miss the footy. Beer always tastes great and the glasses are nice and clean. Don't miss a great night out at this boozer.
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excellent boozer a 5 minute walk away from Barnet High Street.They have some good live bands on some weekends. Landlord Rick is a top bloke and always has time for a chat with everyone. good beer garden to while away those lazy summer evenings too
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whoever anonymous is...they are writing a load of rubbish about the black horse..its a brilliant pub...with great bar staff..and lovely locals..there is no trouble there...great music live on friday and saturday night and karaoke run by crazy kraig on sunday night.....so just ignore whoever is posting under anonymous as they have obviously been barred and have the hump about it.
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