Red Deer, Sheffieldback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Something of a blessing in an area infested with chains of the acceptable (Brew Dog) and unacceptable (Revolucion de Cuba) variety. No nonsense with four ales on tap and a friendly barman who was happy to chat about which teams are the favourites for Euro 2016.
|
A nice traditional pub with several small rooms, an active university crowd and and several handpumps.
|
Pleasant, comfy place with a good range of ales whenever I've been.
Civil customers and staff: count for much with me.
However, not much mentioned is that it's extremely handy as an RV for aperitifs before a meal in one of any of several excellent restaurants nearby: curries, Lebanese, Greek etc.
|
Sampled a very well kept pint of Organic Bitter by St Peters. Sat next to the coal fire which was verry warm and cosy.
Landlord lit candles which made it awkward as I sat with a mate. We drank up quickly and left.
|
Decent ales on and food not bad either. Busy for a Wednesday night.
|
Pleasant pub with friendly service and a good range of ales. The bar is open plan with a raised area at the rear. I believe it had a pool table. Ales available on our visit were Kelham Island Easy Rider, Black Sheep Golden Sheep, Taylor Landlord, Moorhouses Pride of Pendle, Theakston Old Peculier, Leeds Pale Ale, Acorn Barnsley Bitter and Lancaster Blonde. Cider was Westons Old Rosie. Certainly a pub worthy of a visit.
|
Just one visit on a quiet Saturday lunchtime won't give anything like a complete picture of a pub so my initial assessment is that the Red Deer seems pleasant if rather bland interior-wise. A nice selection of ales, I ordered a well kept award winner Harvest Pale, and the civil service was appreciated, but the pub seems to somehow lack identity. However there didn't seem to be much else in the area so for a decent pint it's worth a look.
|
Pub with pleasant non-descript interior which has a lot of space further back. 9 ales were on & all were interesting plus they were about to hold a beer festival later on the day with an additional 6 or so beers. Beer price range was �2.50-�2.90 pint & I tried the Old Mill Traditional Mild & the Nettle Thrasher - both kept well. Had a lovely bangers & mash for �7. Good central location & yards away from Blackwells on Mappin street.
|
The Red Deer isn't new to me, as I've been frequenting it on and off during uni. I think of it as and old favorite, and recently it's been on the up. The beers are not all local but there is a fair range, including Old Peculiar every now and then! The new landlords seem to know what they're doing as it only ever seems to get busier. As an asside I'm surprised to hear about card issues. I've been using my card there for some time and unlike other city centre bars this place doesn't have a minimum spend or any of that business. Anyway I think it's a great little pub. It's warm and inviting and clearly plays a positive part in the community in the city centre! I wish them all the best. It's good to see sucess during these times of multiple traditional pub closures.
|
Just the one pint in here as it was Quiz night and although we didn't feel uncomfortable, we did feel a bit "left-out of things". Anyway, reasonable selection of beers but nothing out of the ordinary. Nice enough bar, but probably a case of "been there- done it".
Just as an aside - Hippogriff sounded a bit miffed about not being able to use a credit card for his tab (although he did hand over cash) but you really should not go out to a pub and expect it to take cards - I would never dream of going out for a pint without having enough cash on me and would not assume that every pub gives credit!
|
Been going to the Red Deer for about 18 months, taking customers there for a bit of entertainment (Tuesday night quiz, the board games they have) and the real ales they serve.
Always enjoyed my time there, and got good reviews from customers, but I had always thought it had a major inconvenience - the continuing inability to take credit cards and set up a tab. When you're out for the night, you really want to have this convenience factor built-in... but the Red Deer still doesn't allow this. Setting up a tab involved handing over loads of cash... actual notes... and putting them behind the bar. It's manageable but if you forget to load up with cash you have to go to Tesco... a pain when it's really chilly.
Anyway, the other night I was there with a colleague and five customers, so I'd put �100 behind the bar. We were on our third round and my colleague went to the bar to get the next round in and the barman quite seriously told him that he had to drink a pint of water, otherwise he'd be asked to leave.
I'd never heard this before. I'm all for responsible drinking, but this felt much more like the barman was in a bad mood and he was taking it out on one of his customers by being vindictive... my colleague was very obviously not drunk after his third pint.
My colleague took it in good humour and drank the pint of water he had had forced on him. We continued our drinking session. By the time it came to the next round it was my turn, so I went to the bar and got the round in - this would be the order for our fifth round.
The barman said to me "if your friend doesn't finish the pint of water, I'll ask you all to leave" - I said "what?" - he said it again, as I thought he might have been joking - turns out my colleague had left just under an inch of water in the pint glass.
I decided enough was enough... I said I'd like to have a word with the manager who dutifully came to sit with me. I told him I'd never heard of this before and it seemed unnecessary - as our party was very relaxed and just enjoying the evening. We certainly weren't causing any undue noise or any trouble. I simply could not understand why this approach was being taken.
The owner / manager said he had to stand by his barman who "in his professional opinion" thought that my colleague needed to drink a pint of water and had to be treated like a child. He also added, I quote "an inspector could come around at any time and if I have inebriated people on the premises I could lose my licence"... at which point I reminded him, politely, that he owned a pub.
I asked to close my tab. I took back �50-ish from the barman and we left. I won't be going back, I won't be taking customers back and I'll go somewhere that is welcoming and consistent. I left feeling very disappointed and a little confused. Couple that with a bit of embarrassment, as my customers were present, and I really didn't appreciate that treatment.
|
Visited yesterday, the first time since my last visit in January 2009.
It was mid afternoon, and almost empty, however, one thing of note was that the beer range is slowly changing.
Now had several beers from smaller breweries such as one from Yorkshire Rose and Treacle Stout from the Ossett brewery.
Don't know if the management has changed, but it seems they are trying to improve things on this level.
If you in the West Street area, worth a very short detour if you like nice ale.
|
At 4.50 pm on a Tuesday out of term-time I was the only customer � I guess this place must rely heavily on the student halls of residence opposite that tower over the rear of the building. This street-corner pub is spread over two levels with a functional smokers garden (check out the wall mural). Interior-wise, it�s a straightforward 70�s/80�s d�cor, a little worn round the edges and feels in need of a facelift. Music on the stereo was provided by UB40�s Greatest Hits � perhaps that explains the lack of custom�the five ales available were fairly mainstream (Tetley Bitter, Adnams Broadside, Black Sheep, TT Landlord and Deuchars IPA); double-clipping of the pumps makes it seem like there�s more on than there actually is to the casual observer. My Black Sheep was good though, no complaints there. The landlord was a good lad.
If I was a student in the nearby digs, I�d certainly be grateful for this on my doorstep. As a pub-crawling city visitor I wouldn�t put this near the top of the �must-do� list but it makes a pretty decent reserve.
STOP PRESS - Having just read the post below, it seems that my visit was possibly the last by a BITE contributor for a while. Shame.
|
Sadly, arranged to meet there yesterday for lunch, only to find it seems to have become a credit crunch casualty.
Have enjoyed visits here a few times when visiting the university previously. Shame.
|
Traditional street-corner local in the heart of the University area, but pleasantly hidden away in a side street off West Street.
It's still badged as a Tetley's pub and etched windows demonstrate that, before that, it was a Gilmour Windsor Ales pub.
There's more room inside than the smallish frontage would suggest. The internal layout would suggest it was originally multi-roomed.
Both the Deuchars IPA and TT Landlord were on reasonable form on my recent Monday evening visit, but, as a number of posters have already pointed out, there is not one micro brewery beer on offer. All the beers were "mainstream" - Black Sheep, Abbot and Adnams Broadside in addition to the 2 previously mentioned.
The pub proudly displays Cask Marque acccreditation and is 2009 GBG listed.
Worth popping in for one if in the area, despite the shortcomings in the beer range
|
This is a nice enough pub built on two levels. Quite comfortable but not really an outstanding interior, or exterior come to think of it. Has 5 handpumps but not a very inventive selection and they never seem to change either. Black Sheep Bitter, Adnams Broadside, Landlord, Deuchars, nothing to write home about. I had a Broadside which was very good, the other half had a Deuchars that she wasn't impressed with (and she's had quite a bit of experience of drinking Deuchars). It's OK but not one to go out of your way for.
|
I have frequented the Red Deer for many years, and it is a nice little pub just off the busy bars of West Street.
I agree however with the last few comments, that the bar, though very well stocked with a variety of real ales, only ever offers those of well known brands rather than interesting guests, local or otherwise. A small complaint I know, but the choice does not appear to have altered for many many years - a good pub let down by a lack of imagination ?
Also, this pub used to have a very welcoming and large real fire - on a recent visit however, this had been replaced by a 'pretend' real fire which throws heat out from a vent - Not the same as the real thing and a step backwards.
|
A little dark and looking rather untidy and in need of a facelift. There were five casks - the usual suspects, so a bit of a let down in town known for its range of beers from the smaller, more interesting breweries.
An old man's pub. Pee stains and crisp crumbs.
|
Over-rated establishment - usually busy, ale selection is very disappointing - Deuchars, Black Sheep, Banks and Adnams Original I think. Very exciting. Not. Don't bother, walk down to the Dev Cat instead for a selection of guests.
Sharp - 16 Jun 2008 22:14 |
Fantastic pub, my local when I lived in the area. Far better than anywhere on nearby West Street, the Red Deer has a great choice of real ales and is popular with postgrad students and lecturers from the university. Reasonable food, although service stops early. Excellent themed quizzes on Sunday night.
|
perfect pint of Timbo Taylors Landlord and no students on my visit yesterday.
|
Excellent pub.One of the few pubs in the area that serves real ale, with a massive range of beers. Very cosy and doesn't get the West Street mob as it's of the the main road. Cosy in winter, especially Christmas with the open fire.
|
A friendly, cosy pub with an open fire and a large range of hand-pulled beers, reasonable prices given the city centre location. Serves food at lunchtimes.
Laura Walton - 9 May 2004 16:05 |
|
