BITE user comments - Alehound
Comments by Alehound
An all-too-rare example of what a decent boozer should be. Conversation is the main entertainment here followed by old-fashioned board games. Lovely attitude to kids and the beer is, well, heavenly. Top spot.
2 Jun 2014 15:35
Huzzah! As well as well-kept Fullers London Pride, the Oddies is now offering a guest beer - and it's an American craft ale, Shipyard from Portland in Maine. It's served chilled but that's the way the Yanks do things. God Bless America.
25 May 2014 11:31
It's a bit rough and ready but not a bad place to while away the time with a pint or two. Some of the real ales on offer are first class...and very reasonably priced. Always found it a friendly and efficient boozer.
20 Oct 2013 20:10
So finally the Queen's Head has got a new landlord. It's early days yet but this is a golden opportunity to make this a truly inclusive pub rather than the sanctuary for the Daily Mail readers club it once was.
Early signs aren't great - a Saturday afternoon visit was marred by some oaf at the bar continually uttering the c-word while his dim bulb wife smiled indulgently on. Surely, the time is right to divide the bar and lounge, so Mr Sweary can eff and blind to his heart's content while quoting the latest bon mot from Richard Littlejohn.
12 Sep 2013 21:58
Have many happy memories of this place while living on the Queens Park Estate. OK, so it's not the smartest joint in town but the landlady was always very friendly and it's canal-side location made it a nice place to knock back a pint or two in the summer. With gastropubs such as the Paradise and the William IV up the road, surely there's room for an old-fashioned boozer like this. Loved the way we always knew when it was Christmas when the neon reindeer sign (a year-round fixture) was illuminated on the side of the pub.
23 Aug 2013 13:25
Surely it's about time this pub had an update. It certainly doesn't reflect the community that Pinner has become and is peopled by dull old men who no doubt have engraved tankards behind the bar. Still some way behind the Oddfellows, a far cheerier boozer.
23 Aug 2013 13:19
RIP. While never the greatest pub in Pinner, at least this offered an alternative and a half decent beer garden. The choice is now left between the dreary misanthropy of the Queen's Head and the markedly warmer welcome at the superior Oddfellows.
23 Aug 2013 13:13
The only pub left in the village that could claim to be a tradtional boozer (the rest serve overpriced food with a token effort to keep beer drinkers happy). However, it could be an awful lot better. Tatty decor and unremarkable ale don't help.
3 Mar 2013 18:28
Although obviously geared up to take advantage of the tourist trade, this is a pretty decent boozer with attentive staff and well-kept ale. Cheery atmosphere but I imagine it can get a bit hectic in high season. Worth a look, though.
28 Nov 2012 22:10
As a seasoned drinker in the Worcester pubs of yesteryear, this had the reputation of a cold, miserable dump far overshadowed by the Farriers just down the road. However, how things change. With the idiotic decision to knock the Farriers into one and alienate its loyal clientele, the Plough has upped its game completely. Old-fashioned atmosphere meaning conversation, good, nay splendid, ales and a focus on the customer. It's not just one of the best pubs in Worcester but in the West Midlands.
4 Nov 2012 19:55
The Land of Liberty, Peace and Plenty, Heronsgate
Pleasant real ale pub benefitting from regular turn-around of beers. The landlord could do with cheering up, though.
7 Oct 2012 17:02
The Shipwrights Hotel, North Hylton
Claims it's the oldest pub in Sunderland. It's also the most miserable. Landlord is a sour misery guts with a Herod complex and the social skills of POW camp guard. Shame because it's a good location but there's plenty better nearby.
21 Jul 2012 19:16
Old-fashioned, wedge-shakped boozer that look s like it's dying on its arse. One of a dying breed and it's not hard to see why. Hopefully the success of the excellent Central Bar opposite might kickstart it into life. It would be a shame to see it go, though.
7 May 2012 19:56
Was unaware this little gem existed until I spotted in in the CAMRA guide. Everything a corner local (although it isn't actually on a corner) should be. A warm welcome - from a lovely coal fire and the friendly locals...and a sizzling offering of sausage baps (ooh er) from the cheery landlady. Well kept Timothy Taylor and Youngs bitter means that I'll be back...and impressing my friends with my local knowledge. Cracking.
14 Dec 2011 19:54
A barn-like boozer that seems to be making an effort but is handicapped by being smack bang in the middle of Great Lumley - one of the most Godforesaken places on earth.
22 Aug 2011 13:51
Arranged to meet friends here for a quiet Sunday lunch and was very disappointed. The pub was relatively quiet yet the staff still managed to totally screw up a simple order for food. Beer was OK and you can't complain about the prices but there's plenty of keener competition to be had in the area.
24 Jul 2011 18:30
Splendid, no-frills, no-nonsense cider house. One of a dying breed.
21 Jul 2011 19:17
This has now ben renamed The Fishes, given a gastropub spruce up with the emphasis now on food rather than a leisurely pint. Everything in the dining room is fine and dandy with decent food available at fair prices.
Where it falls down is the garden service thanks to a rather precious system where food is despatched to diners in dinky wicker baskets. The trouble is it isn't despatched quickly enough - on a reasonably busy Sunday afternoon we had to wait more than an hour for food that didn't even need to be cooked. Service was unfailingly polite...but the system just doesn't work. Probably best sampled on a quiet weekday.
4 Jul 2011 16:17
The Shakespeare Tavern, Durham
Friendly but it could be so much better. Disappointed to see the old wooden screen has been removed from the bar. Just looks weird now. Could do with a sympathetic but major overhaul.
3 Jan 2011 21:13
I'd rather given up on a decent pub in the Great Lumley area until I spotted the sign for The Smiths. Not anything like as miserable as its indie Manc moniker would suggest, this is a good old-fashioned British boozer. A pint of Black Sheep was just the job and the food looks worth further perusal. Good attitude to kids as well. Will be back.
7 Jun 2010 19:51
After a costly refit the main part of the old pub is trading as Prezzo while a side building houses the uninspired Vintage Wine Bar
1 Jul 2009 18:55
Good atmosphere and seemed to be used by real working lake folk. Beer was good as well.
31 May 2009 10:10
Combermere Arms, Wolverhampton
If only all little boozers could be like this. Top beers constantly changing and a really warm welcome make this one of the best kept secrets in the Black Country. Can't really fault it.
31 May 2009 10:08
Combermere Arms, Wolverhampton
If only all little boozers could be like this. Top beers constantly changing and a really warm welcome make this one of the best kept secrets in the Black Country. Can't really fault it.
31 May 2009 10:08
Terrific country pub. Food was cut above your usual fare and the location is pretty much unbeatable. Will recommend and return.
19 Apr 2009 11:36
Nice refurb of old coaching inn. Food was good and the service was friendly.
19 Apr 2009 11:34
The George and Dragon, Much Wenlock
Excellent traditional pub in an unspoilt village.
19 Apr 2009 11:29
I'm not from Shields but I always make a point of popping in here for a livener. It's at its best n the middle of the afternoon when you can nurse a pint of Old Warbler and gaze across the Tyne at radges steeling wheels from cars over in North Shields.
20 Dec 2008 16:49
I remember a splendid old landlady who rejoiced in the name of Alice Tether who used to run this place. Another memory - not such a good one - is that of an old codger from the retirement home opposite keeling over and dying in the lounge. Still, it's a nice way to go.
20 Dec 2008 16:46
Thought I'd give this place a chance...but no, it's still as crap as ever. Seems to be trapped in a Seventies time warp and its Victorian attitudes seem totally out of place. It's like having a drink in a morgue with members of the Freedom Association. A far better bet is the Oddfellows, a real pub that actually manages to be cheerful.
20 Dec 2008 16:43
Can't fault the look of the place...though it's attitude to kids is neanderthal.
14 Jul 2007 20:41
Surely there's somebody who can make a go of this place. What about a tribute to Pinner's favourite son - Elton John. It could be called The Old Queen.
9 Jul 2007 19:20
Used to be THE pub to head to before a gig at the Winter Gardens. Now very much a shadow of its former self.
8 Jul 2007 13:00
One of the few pubs with a fair policy on kids, a rarity in Pinner where Herod would have been awarded the freedom of the city. It's your typical estate pub but a far better bet than half the local half-timbered, half-witted drinking dens peopled by The Pinner Association.
8 Jul 2007 12:18
Despite it's age old charms, there's always something been missing about this pub. The previous landlord and his bunch of charmless acolytes drinking from pewter tankards and boring for Britain didn't help. Perhaps the new landlady might make a better fist of it.
8 Jul 2007 12:15
Decent, old-fashioned boozer which actually benefits from maintaining limited opening hours. The ideal local - could do with a greater range of real ales though...
8 Jul 2007 12:13
The Imperial Tavern, Worcester
For decades this place has suffered from a chronic identity crisis with each version seemingly worse than the last. At last it's been returned to the splendour of a traditional Victorian pub, courtesy of the Black Country Ales concern. Cracking beer, clean surroundings and a warm welcome make this an essential stop on the Worcester pub crawl.
17 Feb 2016 20:55