BITE user comments - dodgy
Comments by dodgy
I agree Muntjac - it's gone seriously downhill
Try the Donkey for honest grub and the recently re-opened Chequers for a bit of town life
20 Aug 2010 00:20
Still struggling a bit. It's changed hands about 4 times in the past 18 months and it only seems to be kept going by a few diehard locals. The new landlady has her heart in the right place but I think it will keep struggling whilst Enterprise are screwing so much rent out of the tenants. Being so close to two very good and established real ale pubs doesn't help
6 Mar 2010 19:17
Not eaten here but might try it. The beer is very well kept and the bar is attractive, nice log fire on the go. It's very locally but you get that in a tiny village in the middle of nowhere. I'm just glad for those locals that it has reopened after a few months closed.
2 Dec 2009 17:23
Has changed hands three times in the past year, just re-opened after the second refit in that time. It has struggled since Roger & Karen left, the usual combination of a greedy brewery charging too much rent and new-to-the-trade naive publicans trying to follow a hard act.
The same thing happened to the Cock in the village not long ago, hopefully the Swan will now get back on its feet in the way that place has
23 Aug 2009 20:57
Very friendly place, great well kept beer (and a decent range too) and well cooked, unpretentious food. They specialise in Greek food too, didn't try this but it looked pretty good
Much better than I expected in a seaside town like this
27 Jul 2009 10:35
A lovely old building full of odd corners and snugs - really nice place to have a pint or two, particularly in winter when it's very cosy
Beer pretty good too. A better bet than the Black Lion in the same village I think
27 Jul 2009 10:27
The Black Lion Hotel, Little Walsingham
I'd echo what most have said; nice unpretentious place, very old-fashioned, they keep an OK pint, and the locals have a high weirdo quotient
We moved on to the Bull when some god-bothering teens came out of the church next door and started playing hymns on a guitar and singing badly. It was a bit bizarre to see 19 year olds doing what 19 year olds do - drink, smoke, flirt, show off, get embarrassed a lot - whilst still praising the lord in every other breath, but hey, that's Walsingham
27 Jul 2009 10:25
Stopped for lunch here recently whilst up in Norfolk on holiday - and were glad we did.
A lovely snug old building, very good and well kept beer and very nice food - friendly staff too. They have just built brand new accommodation out the back which looks great and based on my impressions of the pub, I'd happily recommend.
Well worth a visit
27 Jul 2009 10:19
What? Of course y ou can take dogs into places that serve food, hundreds of pubs permit it every day.
I can understand you taking exception to a poor review from someone who never even tried it, but not with rubbish about a law that doesn't exist.
By the way, the Mitre isn't that traditional in my book, it's been refurbished (with a heavily different theme) at least 3 times in the past 15 or so years that I can remember so there's a touch of the ersatz about it. It's no Free Press, Champion or Maypole, that's for sure
Doesn't mean I don't like it, in fact it's a pretty decent city centre pub - I even gave it a 7 - but they're not an unchanging traditional joint gallantly upholding environemntal law
16 Jan 2009 20:41
Glad to see Simon & Victoria deservedly won the best Food and best Overall Pub awards from Adnams for 2008 - keep it up, it's much appreciated. Thanks a lot, from a happy local :-)
5 Jan 2009 21:31
Much, much better again under its new management. Good beer, very well kept, and lovely food. Food service is pretty hopeless though, so don't expect to eat quickly, but that's no bad thing as it gives you more time to have another pint
Gives some impressions of being run on a shoestring, the pub has changed hands twice in two years, suspect Adnams' rent is a struggle. The new proprietors are nice people trying to do a good job, and mostly succeeding. They deserve a bit of support
26 Apr 2008 21:39
The stuff about Pink Floyd is a bag o'shite....
Waters and Barrett attended Cambridge High School for Boys (later Hills Rd 6th Form), as did I, and met there, also knowing Gilmour from the next school down the same road
The other two members of Pink Floyd are not from Cambridge at at all
When I was at Hills Rd I used to drink in the Eagle. Does this mean that when I'm rich and famous, that pub will erect a plaque saying it was instrumental in my fame? ;-)
22 Feb 2008 20:39
Lovely pub, I just moved down the road and am quite happy having this as one of the locals!
Great range of beer and very well kept. Decor is beaut, spot on example of a Victorian Yorkshire drinking palace. Friendly staff, it's spotless, and the clientele are pleasant. Dunno about the food but the rest of it is pretty good
5 Nov 2007 13:48
Nipped up the coast (I live in mid Suffolk) at the weekend and was able to enjoy a couple of pints in the Nelson - perfectly kept bitter, as ever, and a luscious pint of the rather elusive Adnams "May Day" as well.
The pub is as it ever is, which is close to a perfect example of the breed. Good beer, OK food, friendly service, just the right balance of business, bustling without being rammed. What a great pub this is.
I also noted the food still ends at 2pm....and it was still very clearly advertised that this was the case ;-)
3 May 2007 21:02
Has improved greatly under new, young, enthusiastic ownership and is now a credit to the owners and village
Decent beer (although they don't serve Nethergate any more, boo) and decent food. Very friendly service and a bit more life. It's beginning to return to the village hub it always should have been
16 Apr 2007 19:48
There are normal boozers in the vicinity. From the AB1, cross in front of the tube station and turn right along Heron Quay. A 5 minute walk will have you at the (VERY cheap, and friendly, sadly shortly to close) Heron, turn left and another 100 yds will have you at the City Pride, another 22 yds past the City Pride and turn right down the steps and you're at the North Pole, which is definitely a normal boozer
Any of these three is a better bet than AB1, or all the other suit bars on the Wharf itself, they're all the same
3 Sep 2006 18:53
Every time I've been in there the food service times have been clearly advertised. If someone's late for them then you can hardly blame the pub
Perhaps the families concerned should have turned up with more than a minute to spare and they wouldn't have an issue
Bad service is not getting something you have been promised/led to believe you should expect for your money, or treated rudely. Bad service isn't an establishment declining to extend a service if you turned up late
3 Aug 2006 11:33
The Drummonds Bar, Canary Wharf
I'm well chuffed with this place. Went for a pint this evening as I wanted to say a couple of things to certain members of my team that I didn't want others from the office hearing. What a revelation! Light and airy, decent range of beer, friendly enough folks, live cricket on screen and a couple of pool tables
Perhaps best of all - you could actually get served and it was pleasant. Thursday evening at any of the scrumdowns near Canada Square in this weather is unbelievable
I think I will be drinking more in here - decent joint
12 May 2006 00:16
Another brilliant pub, people on this part of the coast really are spoilt for choice. The Bell's aiming at the posh accommodation and food market hasn't spoilt its ambience as a pub. I can never have enough weekends away staying at places like this and wandering the haunting Suffolk coast before repairing for excellent beer
1 May 2006 20:52
Best pub in Southwold, hands down. And as other contributors have said, there are plenty of competitors here, but none can match the Nelson's cosy ambience, friendly welcome and great beer.
As a native East Anglian, I can be forever proud of two things: The man this pub is named after, probably the greatest military leader this country has produced; and the beer that is served in it. Adnams is a gilt-wrapped gift from East Anglia to the rest of the world, finally Londoners are cottoning on it seems
1 May 2006 20:48
Used to be a great place but changed hands just before Christmas last year and has had an atmosphere bypass. I don't know why, because it's the same building in the same place serving the same beer, but something is just......wrong. We drink in Dullingham these days instead
Perhaps it will pick up in time
1 May 2006 20:44
Good beer, friendly people, but it's a bit, err, grubby. A good place to come for a couple of beers with male friends. Not somewhere you'd go on a date, if you see what I mean
1 May 2006 20:42
The Butt and Oyster, Chelmondiston
The location and historic building are matchless, and the beer's not bad, so it's a pity it's spoilt by two things:
1. The staff are rubbish. Some disorganised 18 year olds (it's not their fault) lorder over by a 30-odd year old jerk with a tie who barks so many orders at them they don't know whether they're coming or going. The consequent chaos means when he does have to serve someone, he's snappy with them because the job is obviously stressing him out too much. Some management skills might be useful
2. They really should make more of the outside area. It could be lovely and really attractive if the tables were smartened up, maybe a few pot plants or flowers in containers. At the moment it's like drinking in a car park, could do loads better
1 May 2006 11:58
No, the front bar is where the toilets USED to be. Wouldn't be worthy of comment normally, but they were very minging toilets.....and sorta famous, cos they'd been on telly
30 Apr 2006 00:24
This place used to be rubbish, dirty and smelly but had a minor refit and got a very good landlord in the aforesaid Irishman, and became an excellent local. Sadly he has now moved on, but the standards haven't slipped far
A 6/10. Not bad for Bourne End which really needs a decent pub
21 Apr 2006 13:06
Very friendly people, decent enough honest food and good beer. Light and airy feel as well. Doesn't look all that from the outside but the welcome is very warm. They did us proud with a big family event recently
21 Apr 2006 13:04
I like this place, nice and cosy. My outlaws live just up the street and always "allow" my father in law to badger me into going for a pint every time we visit. Shame our respective spouses won't allow it to be about 6, but there ya go
Cosy, friendly place in a quiet spot with good beer and decent food. Always seems to be about the right level of busy-ness as well, always has life but without being rammed
21 Apr 2006 13:01
It's not that bad. OK for sport watching, beer fair and the punters aren't that scary. Better than the Wishing Well up the road. Atmos in the pool room can get a bit hairy, though there's nothing to get too scared about. Some people have led sheltered lives!
18 Apr 2006 11:03
Good bar, shame there aren't more of these in Watford - it's nice to have somewhere to go that's not full of drunken 18 year olds. Beer only average but it's more of a bar vibe anyway so can't really complain
18 Apr 2006 11:01
Really great local pub, excellent beer, friendly locals and staff, good community spirit - close to perfect as a local pub. The best in Watford by far
Ignore the tedious moaning about smoke, it's no worse than any other pub and won't be an issue for much longer anyway - this is a great pub
18 Apr 2006 11:00
An excellent pub for the area. Great beer and a friendly welcome.
18 Apr 2006 10:57
Horrible place, expensive and noisy, crap beer. An SU bar you have to pay �3.50 a pint for the privilege of experiencing. Sadly at 35 I grew out of this sort of thing 20 years ago. OK if you're 19 I guess
18 Apr 2006 08:45
An OK pub in an area struggling for them. OK beer, OK clietele, OK staff. So it's OK then
18 Apr 2006 08:43
A big drinking hole with the typical transient clientele you would expect close to main line terminals in a dodgy area. Beer a bit rubbish but it sells on convenience and is always busy so I guess they don't see any need to change. Not a place for a decent conversation
18 Apr 2006 08:36
The Lincoln Lounge, Kings Cross
Good place in an area struggling for them. Proof that Kings Cross regeneration is just around the corner. Nice relaxed vibe and clubby atmosphere without being cliquey. Not really a beer drinkers' pub but that's not really the point. Particularly enjoyed being told to take my tie off after 5:30pm. Can't understand the current low rating for this pub
18 Apr 2006 08:31
Friendly locals pub. Good beer and a lovely garden (the only one in real use in Clare) with a serving hatch for summer. Decent honest pub grub, good portions, reasonably priced and well cooked but not Gordon Ramsay stuff. Can't help thinking the bar had a rather unsympathetic refit and the building (beautiful 17th century thing) deserves better
18 Apr 2006 06:06
An OK pub, but definitely a hotel atmosphere in the lounge. Friendly enough crowd around the bar and the beer is decent. Food was excellent, took a real dive last summer but has improved again since
18 Apr 2006 06:04
Really good honest local pub. Thank god it's a bit out of the way and requiring a 5 minute walk from offices which seems to be beyond the athletic ability of most of the suits
17 Apr 2006 22:33
A bit better than most local offerings purely by dint of having more outside space, with a riverside location making it a pleasant place in the summer. Still too busy though, and still too noisy with too many loudmouth suits. Hard to avoid in these parts, yet the City has some decent pubs - why not E14?
17 Apr 2006 22:31
A bit smokier and grubbier than most CW pubs, but that's not so bad because it feels more like a real pub. Not much more, mind, but then around here anything that doesn't feel like a sardine can full of pissed bellends is a good thing
OK for a couple of beers I suppose, and better than the other dreadful offerings on the estate. You need to go round the corner to the City Pride or (better) North Ple for anything approaching a sensible pub experience
17 Apr 2006 22:29
Dreadful place. Just like every other All Bar one but with the added ingredient of being packed after 4pm with 20-something suits, all shouting loudly. Most of the pubs in CW are crap and this is the worst, partly because its proximity to the tube station means it's a;ways the busiest. Almost nothing to recommend it
17 Apr 2006 22:24
Used to be a great friendly local. Got an expensive Fuller's corporate refit in the mid 90s that made it much less than it was, if you see what I mean. The beer is still kept well but it's lacking some of that essential character
Good but not great
17 Apr 2006 22:16
A totally traditional village pub, can be a bit cliquey. Recommended in every pub guide in the world so consequently busy weekend lunchtimes, seen at its best at other times. Brilliant beer, so long as you don't mind a completely flat pint poured straight from the barrel (there are no pumps, but then this is how Adnams should be served)
The owners are Cambridge pub aristocracy these days, and hold the licence for the excellent Cambridge Beer Festival, a service which deserves the repayment of a bit of custom and profit for the rest of the year
17 Apr 2006 21:51
Lovely building, peerless location, but there's always something missing. Way too busy on the fine days you want to be here, and always packed with tourists. Drop in for a quick one and if it's full nip up the road to the Mill or the Granta
17 Apr 2006 21:47
The King Street Run, Cambridge
Wnet through a string of refits in the 80s but stopped about 15 years ago, since when the decor has matured/worn into a quirky place with its own character. Staff of variable quality and beer only OK but a fun place if you're in that frame of mind. Good natured folks drinking in here, but you wouldn't bring your mother in law in for a port & lemon....
17 Apr 2006 21:45
Good food and beer and friendly people. Seems destined always to suffer for its location though, could do with a bit more life
17 Apr 2006 21:43
Strange little place with some very odd rules, some sensible (like the queuing bars), and some not (cliquey names for certain drinks etc)
Folk here are friendly though, it appears more cliquey than it is. Its not that old (I recall it opening for the first time in the late 80s) but it feels like an old pub, it's that kind of place
Recommended
17 Apr 2006 21:42
A really excellent little back street local, very friendly staff and clientele. Hidden gem to be honest, still seems to be hidden too judging by the comments here. Good beer and a nice atmosphere
17 Apr 2006 21:39
Horrible place, a huge drinking hole full of fights and pissed up youngsters. Great if you like that sort of thing. At least the Regal holds so many of them so they're not elsewhere
17 Apr 2006 21:38
Typical Rat & Parrot. All the pubs within 200 yrds are the same though, the Regent St "strip" seems to be where the pub companies have decided the binge drinking is going to be concentrated, which is OK by me - at least yo know where it is, to partake or avoid depending on viewpoint
17 Apr 2006 21:37
A bit chavvy round the edges, but friendly enough. Nice place for the summer but it's not really a winter pub. Not when the much better Green Dragon is just down the river
17 Apr 2006 21:35
It's an OK place, with OK beer, you know the kind of thing. Better than most of the Regent St offerings but not a patch on the Maypole which is just round the corner
The "dark wood" thing was a refit, for what it's worth, so the "new" look is just another in the line of changes
17 Apr 2006 21:34
As has been said, nicely located but nothing special, neither in terms of the building, the service or the beer. The Granta is a much better bet, but at least the Mill sells you beer in plastic glasses for the green. Which is kind of the point
17 Apr 2006 21:32
Brilliant place. As has been said, it's not that prepossessing - interior from circa 1978, outside looks like a toilet block - but the staff more than make up for that
Beer is good, food generous, but the thing here is the service and the cocktails. A city centre gem which is completely unpretentious and allthe better for it
17 Apr 2006 21:31
Really good beer and even better food. Bizarre internet points which are slightly incongruous, this is a pub for being sociable in, and many are
Not that big and gets a bit crowded. But it's easy to see why
17 Apr 2006 21:29
Scary place, a rough boozer. Possibly one of the few places in town that still sells only keg bitter, which says it all
The Empress is 50 yards away in space but in another century pub-wise. You'd have to really struggle to bother with the Jubilee
17 Apr 2006 21:27
Excellent and attractive riverside pub. Lovely old building and pretty garden along the river, on a very quiet (dead end) back street so no traffic. Food is decent and generously portioned, staff friendly, beer well kept and clientele mixed; always seemes to be lively but never packed
Roaring log fire in winter and riverside garden under the willows in summer - what more do you want? The number of awards Grant (landlord) has won are testament to the pub he has built up
Claims to be the oldest pub in the city - possibly true, it's definitely one of the best
17 Apr 2006 21:26
The building is great and the location is hard to beat - so it's frustrating that the FsG always lets you down. Beer has been mediocre the last two times I've visited, the yard is unattractive, and the clientele a bit ropey
This pub could be so good, a perfect riverside watering hole, but misses the mark - see the Green Dragon for how it should be done
17 Apr 2006 21:21
A top notch back street local, serving good beer and attracting a really wide mix of people from all walks of life. Garden, pool table, three different bars with different flavours, lots of varied good beer, what more do you want?
17 Apr 2006 21:20
I grew up in this pub practically, started drinking in it when I was 15 (sorry, I'm sure no one is going to get done for it 20 years down the track). It is a very different place now than it was then, and most aren't aware (especially looking at the comments) that it was subject to a very big refit (if you ever see old episodes of Porterhouse Blue where Zipser sits in the courtyard waiting to dash into the toilets - where the front bar now is - to get condoms you'll see what I mean). And as far as we were aware back then Corpus Christi were all for getting rid of the pub but the planners wouldn't give permission for change of use; but I digress, this isn't supposed to be a nostalgia trip
What is the Eagle now is a decent bustling city centre pub which serves its market very well indeed. The food is OK but a bit corporate, and the kitchen does struggle to cope; I too would stick to the beer, which is kept reasonably well. The big sell here is of course the history, which is undeniable. The pub these days is much more corporate and less scruffy than it used to be, but that's OK for what it is. I wish they made more of the courtyard though - a lovely place to sit in summer, you used to have to go through it to get from bar to bar, which made it more of a hub with a buzzy atmosphere
Oh, and don't go in the front bar - who wants to drink in the toilets? ;-)
17 Apr 2006 21:18
The Champion of the Thames, Cambridge
It's definitely the only trad pub in the centre of town that has stayed exactly as it always was - I've been drinking in this city for 20 years and the Champion is an unchanging beacon of real pubness. Excellent beer, friendly staff and clientele, nice change of pace in the two small bars
Agree there are a lot of decent trad pubs in Cambridge as a whole but not many left in the centre
17 Apr 2006 21:08
Really nice beer, a pleasant atmosphere and attractive building. You can have a decent little crawl around Castle Hill these days, but don't tell everyone - the character of the pubs depends on them being mixed haunts of locals, council workers and students. Nice place
17 Apr 2006 21:06
I went in here just recently for the first time in ages (used to hang out here all the time when 16-17, nearly 20 years ago - it used to be that kind of place)
After about 3 failed refits it has now reverted to the Cambridge Arms and is trying to get back to being a traditional pub. It's almost there but has lost the atmosphere of old, mainly because said refits destroyed the character of the building that used to exist (like the old Scales brewery in the back bar and the separate front bar), which has made it less attractive to a mixed clientele. These days they seem to be aiming for 20-25 students, which is OK I suppose but it's not what it was. A bit anonymous which is a shame
17 Apr 2006 21:04
Standard All Bar One, what do you expect? This one suffers from being situated right in the binge drinking strip, but that's OK - all the more decent pubs for the rest of us
17 Apr 2006 21:00
The Champion of the Thames, Cambridge
It's a small pub without much cellar space and a GK tied house (and always has been). So it's no surprise that it cells mostly GK beer and that one of them is IPA, it is after all GK's best selling brew
I know it's trendy to knock GK but IPA is also as it always has been - a relatively unassuming session bitter. That it should be the main beer on offer in this most traditional pub is as it should be, IMO
22 Mar 2011 10:52