BITE user comments - SJC
Comments by SJC
The White Horse, Parsons Green
Has a super selection of beer, British and foreign. It's a very pleasant place to have a drink, the food is good.
But the staff are very variable in quality, on a busy afternoon two were busier snogging behind the bar than serving.
Watching other people's pints as well as my own it is also clear that short measures are a menace here.
If you get there at the right time, and get served properly, it's a superb pub. If you get served by one of the poorer staff, you'll wonder what the hell the fuss is about. Even at its best, it does not justify the ridiculous hype.
22 Oct 2006 15:41
Horrible soulless barn of a place (converted from a Comet electricals shop). Avoid the ale at all costs, you will be lucky if it is drinkable. The food is OK but the overall impression this pub gives these days is poor. The old standards of the Hogshead chain have gone out of the window in this place and since there are plenty of better options around Southsea I suggest you take one of them.
30 Jul 2006 22:30
The beer is generally not kept terribly well. The food is about average for a Spoons.
This pub also attracts most of the weirdos and dysfunctional types from a wide area around it. Some of them work behind the bar.
The truth is, Fratton isn't a particularly great place for a beer however you look at it apart from the Connaught or the Florist. The Froddington over the road isn't renowned for its ale these days but it is at least a proper pub and not a converted furniture shop.
30 Jul 2006 22:23
The Foresters Arms, Brockenhurst
I didn't think it was unduly expensive by the standards of London and the SE.
Nice country pub with Ringwood beers, just a stonethrow from the railway station, clearly popular with the locals who.
30 Jul 2006 22:04
Ye Olde George Inn, Christchurch
There are signs up advertising some award it has won for its food, and while it is pricey it is as good as anything I have eaten in a pub anywhere. The mixed grill was superb.
Beer was good too. One thing I noticed was that on a Saturday most of the tables in the bar were reserved for diners and there were plenty of people who turned up "on spec" to eat who had to go somewhere else. Book up, or get there early, if you want to eat on a Saturday in summer.
Staff very friendly and efficient and definitely somewhere I will detour to sample next time I'm near Christchurch.
30 Jul 2006 22:01
The Thomas Tripp, Christchurch
It's better to do one real ale well (Fortyniner) than to do three badly. Nice spacious pub with a garden to drink in, nice and busy with a fairly young but reasonable bunch in it.
30 Jul 2006 21:57
Milk St brews are a pleasant change from the run of the mill and very fine they are too.
Has the variety of "characters" you would expect of an unpretentious boozer on a High St and is none the worse for it. Well worth its place in the Good Beer Guide this year.
30 Jul 2006 21:53
Nice pub marred by bland offering of Fuller's beers and the inane racket from a local radio station played through loudspeakers on a Saturday lunchtime. Fullers are becoming slaughterers of choice.
30 Jul 2006 21:50
Well-maintained pub in the older part of Poole. Ringwood beers well kept. The food was good too and reasonably priced. Surprising that this place isn't in the Good Beer Guide - it is worthy of a mention.
30 Jul 2006 21:46
Best range of ales in the area, all well kept. Lovely old-fashioned pub. It's just a pity it is such an oasis in this part of E London - at least it's handy for the Tube to move on afterwards.
23 Mar 2006 23:17
This is the place to head for for a first/last beer after/before Waterloo. Head and shoulders above anything else in the area, and if it wasn't so handy for the train it would still be worth seeking out in its own right. Unspoilt, good ale (best pint of Pride I've had in years).
23 Mar 2006 23:15
All teh bad things you read about it are true, sadly.
This place has all the charm of a rotting dead pigeon mouldering quietly on top of a vandalised bus shelter.
16 Feb 2006 23:30
No real ale but apart from that there are worse places to have a drink, most of them seem to be within about half a mile of here!
7 Feb 2006 21:51
Now reopened as the "New Clarendon". Well refurbished and popular, quite a contrast from how it was previously.
It could just do with a bit more variety in the beer - it's been all done up like a trendy bar but it just has the bog-standard pub selection of naff keg beers.
7 Feb 2006 21:44
Usually has a free jukebox on. Excellent beer, gorgeous view back up the river.
7 Feb 2006 21:21
Fantastic pub, but when it gets very busy it's a hell of a squeeze. Always something going on (I saw a flyer for a knitting circle on my last visit!) and worth checking out.
7 Feb 2006 21:18
Very modern, lots of different beer, full of young people (mainly students) enjoying themselves. One of the very best places in Newcastle if a bit out of the way for some.
7 Feb 2006 21:16
Good beer, very good value Sunday lunches as well when the pub is generally not at all crowded. Spacious and lovely interior, well worth going out of your way to.
7 Feb 2006 21:13
I prefer this place now to the Bodega next door. Beer is excellent in both places, but Ijust prefer the ambience in here. More comfy/slouchy chairs to sit in, that kind of thing. That and the fact that it opens later than the Bodega now.
7 Feb 2006 21:08
Gets busy but I've had no trouble getting served and certainly not seen anything else untoward. Interesting continental beers (Liefmans Kriek! Yay!) and trad ales in a youngish bar - thoroughly excellent.
7 Feb 2006 21:04
My favourite pub in the whole world; it's just a shame its 300 miles away. The interior is stunning, the beer excellent and varied. A gem even by the high standards of Newcastle's better pubs.
7 Feb 2006 21:00
The Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Portsmouth
Always has a super range of beer on, although sometimes I think it's too big for their own good - some of the less popular ones seem to turn quite badly in there. Having said that, the staff have always been happy to swap a dodgy pint so it is no problem really.
The food in there has always been good.
Worst thing about it is the huge trek upstairs to the loos if you're at the back of the pub - newcomers with weak bladders beware!
15 Dec 2005 20:11
Not the best Walkabout I've been in. Great place to watch southern hemisphere rugby, etc, otherwise there are friendlier (the door staff again!) places around the Guildhall.
15 Dec 2005 20:06
Cavernous former Sailor's Rest and student hall. The redevelopment took an age, and it was well worth it. It now completes a run of four pubs next door to each other!
Range of ale is just OK, though I've never had a bad pint. The place was set up more with the nightclubbing crowd in mind, two big clubs will be opening just around the corner in the next few months. Always worth a look early on weekend evenings for something "easy on the eye"! Has a variety of areas to sit, from nooks and crannies to big tables.
It is, as it would have to be with its size, all things to all people, and so it lacks something.
15 Dec 2005 19:58
The refurb has added some things and lost some others. I can't make my mind up about it.
But it remains a superb place for a drink, with an excellent range and quality of beer provided that you avoid busy evenings, and in summer you run the risk of being overwhelmed by touristy types. Best sampled in a quiet period midweek, without doubt.
15 Dec 2005 19:52
The Sir John Oldcastle, Farringdon
The food is appalling, even by Spoons standards.
Beer range and quality generally OK just lately, although there are so many better options nearby it is very hard to recommend it except as a "quick one after work".
13 Dec 2005 15:05
The Bleeding Heart, Clerkenwell
Rather pretentious little place that doesn't quite stand up on its merits as a restaurant. The chaotic French staff lend it a certain charm since they are politeness itself even though they are rarely in control on any half-busy night. That said the wine selection is excellent.
You wouldn't really call in there just for a beer, although they do serve Adnams at outrageously expensive prices.
This place falls rather between two stools.
13 Dec 2005 14:59
The Jerusalem Tavern, Clerkenwell
This is one of the greatest pubs in London. Well worth seeking out.
Food service isn't as quick as some would like, but then if you want quick (and fairly naff), you eat in Wetherspoons or McDonalds. It's worth waiting for and the aroma of cooking permeates the whole pub.
Beer is outstanding even ignoring the fact that St Peters beers are very rare as guests anywhere else.
Best appreciated outside the dreaded early evening period when the inhabitants of nearby offices fill it up.
13 Dec 2005 14:53
Deserves a re-rating after the refurbishment, which has got rid of the dingyness of the place. Now has live music at weekends, and seems to have got a lot busier as word has got round.
8 Dec 2005 22:42
Decent selection of beers, and an superb interior. Perfect environment for a quietish pint.
13 Sep 2005 21:22
The change of hands seems to be a Fuller's takeover, and on the evidence of a couple of visits in the last week it is no bad thing.
Things had reached a point for me where I rarely bothered with the WV any more, because the beer policy had become boring and prices were becoming poor value for money. At one time there was regular rotation of ales, and new guests were a regular feature, but when one particular guy who was managing the place went, the rot set in. This pub for years was one of a very small number in the city which took real ale seriously, and it still attracts a high rating even if it had lost its edge.
Maybe in time the Fullers lineup will get a bit boring too, but the beers aren't at all common in Pompey (London Pride excepted) so for now they are a refreshing change and an improvement. They are also carrying Belle Vue Framboise and Kriek in bottles.
Punters who are upset by the change will almost certainly find the old beer portfolio reproduced by the WV's ex-owner in the "Duck" bar which has been seperated out of the One Eyed Dog, and which is a sort of mini-WV. I quite like it, and although it may be a sort of opening offer, there are various reduced prices for daytimes and Monday nights.
Food (esp. in the "Vines" annexe) has always been a very strong point and it will be interesting to see if anything changes. God help them if they tinker with the excellent Sunday roasts.....
First time visitors shouldn't be put off by the vast expanses of bare wood in this cavernous pub - while it looks Spartan, it is still very welcoming.
26 Jul 2005 00:17
The Still and West, Portsmouth
The best setting possible for a pub IMHO. It is let down just a bit though by the ale. It is kept just OK, but not exceptionally - and this must be one of Gales' flagship pubs. NB - it's still light-years ahead of the Spice Island.
I wouldn't dive down a sidestreet to sample beer at that standard, at the mouth of Pompey Harbour with the sun on your face it is more acceptable!
19 Jul 2005 00:18
Excellent pub, handy for the station.
Well worth a trip to for the ales.
18 Jul 2005 23:58
Two minutes' walk from the railway station, feels like a proper old fashioned village pub. Excellent selection of half a dozen real ales. Has a "no mobiles" policy on pain of a donation to the charity box.
Food was excellent - I had a ham salad baguette with the slices of ham about half an inch thick.
18 Jul 2005 23:54
Typical Wetherspoon pub, like many now has screens for the footy/videos downstairs. The beer and food were fine when I visited it last, and they usually have been previously, but like other users I find it a soulless place.
1 Mar 2005 23:12
Stunning interior to the rear bar. The front bar was out of bounds for a private function when I visited the other Saturday. Well-kept beer, cheap for London, and open on a Saturday in an area where so many decent pubs close at weekends. Worth seeking out, next to Chancery Lane tube so doing so is no great effort.
1 Mar 2005 23:06
Southsea doesn't have enough pubs which serve decent food. This place does, it has a decent selection of beer, good mix of people and ages. Looks a bit forbidding from the outside with the small, frosted windows but that's a false impression. If you want a "proper" pub around here, it the Osbourne, the Apsley, or the Auckland, and that's it for about half a mile around now.
11 Feb 2005 23:18
Only really busy at weekends. Comfy interior, plenty of tables, serves a good pint of Summer Lightning plus a guest. Looks quite small from the outside, but it is a decent size. I prefer it now to the Forester opposite, although it does get a bit "middle-aged" weekend evenings.
11 Feb 2005 23:14
The customers haven't changed - the usual Southsea mix of students and alcoholic locals. Good jukebox, is indeed handy for the Wedge. It just lacks something - maybe I'm an old git who used to drink in there before it had a silly makeover about 10 years ago. Part of the problem is that it looks as if the money to finish the job ran out and it feels a bit bare. I prefer the Leopold over the road now, which feels more welcoming.
11 Feb 2005 23:04
The Fifth Hants Volunteer Arms, Southsea
As good a pub as there is in the city. Spartan, bare-floored public bar, couple of tellys high up for the sport, Gales beer plus a guest, the best jukebox, excellent staff. There is also a quieter lounge bar out the back (where the loos are). Busy at weekends, popular with crawlers along Albert Rd, and the kind of small friendly pub that makes conversation with strangers inevitable. A classic.
11 Feb 2005 22:58
Has for some time had a special offer on for a double and a mixer for �2. That is about the best that can be said for it - packed out at weekends, the long bar is usually understaffed. It's one of those places that people go to because it's busy, the herd mentality thing. That and cheapish booze! I only end up in there on sufferance when out with a party of mates. There are better options available along Albert Rd.
11 Feb 2005 22:49
What a superb pub - decent range of real ale in prime condition, continental bottles, unspoilt and ungimmicky, and the bacon sandwiches were very nice on Saturday lunctime. Well worth seeking out.
11 Feb 2005 21:59
More of a foody bar than yer traditional streetcorner boozer. Very pleasant, small bar area at the front with a sort of dining room to the rear. Foody barrishness notwithstanding, the beer was very well kept (Otter Bitter on my last visit - nice to find something as alien as a Devon beer in a little place in Chelsea) and is recommended.
30 Jan 2005 22:38
Use it regularly, good mix of grizzled locals and studenty types. The landlord is a character (meant as a compliment) who gets very stroppy if anybody tries to use a mobile phone on the premises. One of the better jukeboxes - good mix of stuff from the 60s onwards rather than just the latest compilations of chart stuff from the last couple of years which seems to be the norm everywhere else now. Usually a couple of real ales on which can vary in quality, but are fine more often than not.
30 Jan 2005 22:05
The Hole in The Wall, Southsea
Can only agree with the other comments. If you only visit one pub in Portsmouth, make it this one. Best pub in the city in terms of beer quality - although The Winchester, which also serves Oakleaf runs it close. It is a small pub and gets busy weekend evenings, often with the local Camra mob but increasingly with more svelte types who drift along from the India.
Usually has a small selection of Belgian bottles available, a rarity in Pompey.
30 Jan 2005 21:35
This pub has now been knocked down and the flats being built upon it are nearly finished!
It will be missed as a venue for local bands rather than as a place to get top beer, but a pity nevertheless.
30 Jan 2005 21:26
The Forth Hotel, Newcastle
Selection of beer is OK, including the ale. But it wasn't kept all that well. Served by a particularly dozy bloke - I asked for two Workie Tickers, the guy said "sure, two Tickets", and then poured two of Deuchars! He was happy to correct his mistake (thirty seconds later he had to ask a girl at the bar what she wanted again having wandered across to the optics and forgotten her order en route).
Cool ambiance though, and they had Astral Weeks playing when I wandered in, and a worth a look as long as you aren't a total real ale anorak.
28 Nov 2006 20:02