Proper old man's pub opposite the station
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No idea why nobody has reviewed this pub more recently than 2016. It's a cracking place for a drink, great range of real ales, friendly staff and a lot more room following last year's refurbishment. Chelmsford & Mid-Essex CAMRA pub of the year for 2018 against very stiff opposition. Well worth a visit.
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Generally in my view the pubs nearest the railway station are amongst the worst in the town but Chelmsford is an exception. This pub and the Plough close by are very good.
Very friendly and much larger inside than expected. The design is similar to a raileway carriage which makes it long and narrow. To continue the theme there are many paintings of trains on the wall. There is also an outdoor area.
The real ale range was varied on my visit, Hunters Gold, Wherry, Sharps Special, Dark Star Sunburst (which was very nice) and Mighty Oak IPA.
Will definitely visit here again next time I'm in Chelmsford.
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Chelmsford is a town with no character, few decent pubs and nowhere decent to eat - with the exception of this pub which is like a shining beacon of quality in a sea of dross. Warm and friendly place with character and good staff, excellent all day breakfast - the best you will find in Chelmsford. Highly reccomend!
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STSYL416 is a large toss pot.
Prob only goes for a beer once a year when his bf lets him out.
Railway is best pub every great ales and great chat
RAILWAY RAILWAY RAILWAY
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What a great pub. Especially the barmaid who was warm, friendly and attentive. Definitely visiting here again.
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What a great pub. Especially the barmaid who was warm, friendly and attentive. Definitely visiting here again.
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First and last time I will be visiting this public house.
The barmaid was obnoxious and highly discourteous. She got immediately annoyed when we didn't have our beer choices ready as soon as we walked in, she then refused to give us the darts for the dart board for no reason whatsoever and to top it all off she turned off the fruit machine in the middle of a game.
She needs to be sacked and ideally shot.
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The best pub in Chelmsford by some distance. 8 brilliantly kept ales always available, friendly staff, landlord/lady who are proper publicans and truly know how to run a pub and treat their clientele. Can't recommend highly enough. 11/10
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I drink here fairly regularly. It's a great real ale pub with friendly staff and a constantly changing selection of good real ales from around the country in addition to a number of regular ones. Don't be fooled by its location just opposite the station - this pub has a regular clientele as well as those popping in and out for quick pint on their way to somewhere else.
I like Grays pubs generally because they are all different and tend to have character and generally good landlords who know how to run a proper pub selling proper real ale at a reasonable price. The Railway Tavern is a great little example of this - a bit quirky in the décor department perhaps but it is opposite the railway station after all! There's a secluded patio area out the back so you can easily forget the bustling traffic going past the front of the pub.
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Smart, welcoming pub with character and an ultra efficient barmaid.
A perfect pint of Sussex and a cosy and appealing interior.
The perfect stop for a quick pint before the train arrives.
Liked this pub a lot.
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The barmaid who served me here last Saturday evening for a quick pint smiled - though unless she'd dyed her hair blonde she wasn't the one referred to below.
This is a corking little pub, which suggests genuine character from the appealing exterior, and whilst it perhaps delivers a less-than-authentic experience once inside, there is a solidity about the bar area, and there was a certain comfiness to the place.
Ale-wise, a selection of worthy options was presented, and that which was sampled was clean and crisp, and pulled properly by the blonde lady.
There was a steady hubbub which was gradually building as various Brits were about to compete in the day's Olympic events - things were getting more excitable as we left, just as Mo Farah's ultimately-successful 5,000 metre bid began.
I can't say much more on the Railway, owing to the all-too-brief time I spent there. However, what I found I liked and I really wished we had more time to while away there. Definitely a bit of a gem and if you're local to Chelmsford and value I'd recommend you make yourself available to come here - if you don't already.
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Fully deserving of CAMRA's most improved pub award. But does the brunette barmaid EVER smile?!! 8/10
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I drink there regularly and it hasn't killed me yet. A few lost days but still alive (if you can call living in Chelmsford being alive)
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Shalford Mild - Very Nice. Lady behind bar - Very Nice. Please get a proper oche and chalk board for the darts though.
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Superb location opposite station with fine 19th century facade promising an old fashioned boozer. Inside however was all pine and rather bland (a metaphor for Chelmsford itself?). Beer was fine. Very much a locals pub.
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Very nice pub with a pleasant beer garden. Beer has been excellent on all my visits. You could almost forget you were in Chelmsford.
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This must surely have the most pleasant and clean interiors in the town, making for enjoyable supping environment
4 handpumps - Brentwood brewery, and Farmer's Nelson's blood tasted
- in perfect condition. �2.80 a pint very reasonable too.Friendly bar staff.
nb for darts players - excellent board and throw
Since my visit I have shrouded myself with criticism for not patronising this more frequently.
This deserves to be in the GBG and should be your first port of call leaving the railway station. I hope this sees more custom.
Verdict: Excellent
R13
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Always a good guest beer or two in this pub and relaxed atmosphere. The railway theme even extends to the seating at the rear of the pub.
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pub to go to if you cant get in anywhere else and fancy a smoke inside, customers are mostly people you would not want to meet on a dark night, beer not bad tasted alot better.
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Hornchurch John, I don't think the Railway has a bar billiards table. You may be thinking of the White Horse which is round the other side of the station.
Jay28 - 15 Sep 2008 13:33 |
Used to be like smokey joes, but now thankfuly not. Good selection of ales and good for bar billiards (have I got the right pub). Good traditional pub
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Excellent pub, much improved by the smoking ban. We found it very friendly: the beer was good and reasonably priced. Food is brilliant value.
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Well, what can I say...The Railway! Only been there a couple of times and on each occasion I've been half cut. On the first occasion I remember taking the p*ss out of the landlord for looking a bit like Jim Royle, personally I thought it was a compliment but sadly he didn't share my enthusiasm. Anyway, the next time I proceeded along the same lines and again he was none too impressed. BUT, regardless of me being a general pr*ck, the place isn't that bad and is definately a must before any visit to the Cave! Sexy times!
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Never had an off pint in the Railway Tavern but the landlord and landlady can be a a bit rude. Belive they may be going to retire soon so things may be looking up
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Popped in recently and was really put off by the fetid atmosphere in there. Also, my pint was disgustingly off. Not recommended.
Jay28 - 26 Mar 2008 17:24 |
This pub seems to be going from strength to strength. There are always 4 real ales on tap - 2 of which are guest beers that get quite a turnover. Contrary to my previous post I have only ever been served a perfect pint. The pub has recently been redecorated so it looks clean and fresh. It's very much a regulars pub, but they're a friendly bunch. If you like real ale - give it a go!
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Beer quality not as good as on my previous visit. Still like the pub though and have found staff efficient and regulars friendly enough.
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The chalk board on the outside of the pub has always caught my attention with the range of beers offered. However, the smokey inside has always put me off. Thankfully the nanny state has intervened and I'm pleased to say that I've sampled many a nice pint of Black Sheep in a smoke free environment. The beer can sometimes be iffy, but the landlord knows his stuff. It's quite a regulars pub, so can be a bit imtimidating for outsiders. I recommend the pork scratchings. Worth a quick pint if you're waiting for a bus, train or lift!
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The photo above is of the right pub. Its Ok, nothing special, quite cramped, the usual railway station pub where you pop in to wait for the train, get glared at by the handful of locals and then leave. Not worth missng a train for, put it that way.
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This pub is also rightly famous for its Bloody Marys. If you can't manage another pint why not round the evening off with with a BM?
anonymous - 19 Mar 2007 08:27 |
This place has gone unrecognizably up-market since the late-1990s days when Charlie, Steve and the lads used to meet up there... Still found it a good place with a friendly atmosphere and good beer though, so would recommend it! BTW photo above is of the wrong pub?
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Nice little pub with distinctive character and could not really be more convenient for Chelmsford station. I gave it a go after seeing their range of ales listed on a chalkboard outside and wasn't disappointed. Mighty Oak Burntwood Bitter was excellent. Not Good Beer Guide listed at present, but ought to be on the evidence of my visit.
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Good place for a pint and a roll before going home from the station.
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Usually find the ales satisfactory and the welcome is friendly, but the pub is incredibly smoky! Not sure how the smoking ban will hit trade, but it will certainly make drinking far more pleasant!
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I'm astonished by the double attack on this pub and it's landlord, who i know, his name is Rick, his pub was the last which i drank in before leaving Chelmsford, it was a Black Sheep Ale, poured very well, as are all of the pints i've had the pleasure of drinking in this fine establishment. This is one of the few traditional pubs left so please don't knock it anymore, it's designed in the style of a train carriage, and they serve real ale! what more do you want?
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I'm surprised by the (obviously joint approach) criticisms of the ale. The boss looks like a man who likes his ale, and Elgood's Cambridge was fine recently. It's a port in a storm right opposite the station, and, though we didn't eat, the food specials on offer looked interesting and cheap.
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dreadful pint of bitter&twisted served up by a landlord who should know better, it is an insult to a great champion beer and to us his customers. this is not the first time we had been served beer well below standard by the landlord, who if you complain gets very uptight. will not be going there again.
anonymous - 31 May 2006 19:14 |
Went in there today and had the most dreadful pint of Bitter&Twisted.The gov'nor should be shot for serving a pint of one the past champion beers of Britain in such a state.I and my friends will not be visiting this pub again.Go to the Queens Head where the Landlord knows how to keep and serve a perfect pint of real ale.
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Featuring possibly the largest pub landlord in the world!! Great pub for a quick pint (or 2) of something delicious though from an ever-changing range of guest ales.
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agree with the comments above. as a non-smoker, it is quite refreshing to have a quick pint in a proper pub environment rather than a sterile (Ivory Peg) den. Beer is good, ever changing crowd as commuters pass through, and fantasic seats up the back.
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Best pub in Chelmsford bar none. Friendly staff who know all their customers, a good mix of regulars and commuters, and good food at lunchtimes. A wide selection of beers and lagers,and smoking seems to be encouraged rather than frowned upon, which is just fine by me!
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Small but pleasant Pub with good selection of Real Ales available, with St Austell Tribute and Hook Norton Old Hooky. Cask Cider also available. Only snag is that it does get very smoky, so avoid if this bothers you. Opposite the Railway station, so ideal for a quick snifter before heading off
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Great Pub but a bit small and gets packed early eveninig with mix of locals and commuters from London village .
Served by man mountain who is like Giant Haystacks with braces but nice enough
anonymous - 1 Feb 2005 10:44 |
Good beer but small and smokey
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Had a lovely pint of St Austells Tribute in here on Friday. Beer kept superbly as usual. 7/10
Darren in the City - 17 Nov 2004 11:22 |
You get some sights in here I'm telling you!
Beer is great though.
JC - 14 Feb 2004 22:24 |
The landlord is a guy you'll often see helping out at local CAMRA events, so the beer is always first rate in here. Very nice "arty" pictures in the gents ;) And *real* cider, YES!
You get a mixed crowd of old regs, people just out of the station, and suits, but easily one of the best pints in Chelmsford. Worth a quick half while waiting for the train or your first stop on a night out.
John L. - 13 Feb 2004 15:44 |
Quality boozer. A commuter pub near the station which serves Abbott. Get in! Decked out like an old school barbers shop and the landlord is a big fat bearded bloke with braces.
Lots of character - unusual for Chelmsford town centre.
james - 29 Jan 2004 14:02 |
