Unexpectedly Closed In St Helens

A train and a bus took me to the northern side of St Helens where I was to start in the Windle:

Bugger!!  It's not open.  Google says it is, as does their own website.

I headed on for a long walk to target number two, the Abbey:

Er, inside this doesn't look anything like what I remember.  Is my memory faulty or has it been totally remodelled?  Anyway, what we find now is a mostly knocked through interior but it still has some separation between the areas.  The decor, pastel walls or wallpaper in some rooms, is very busy with mirrors, pictures, photographs and the like.  I want to say there are too many of these giving the walls a cluttered feeling, but in fairness it actually works very well; I like it.

Only one cask on, but one is enough and my Holt Bitter was excellent.

Not very busy at all, just two outside and I could see only two inside, hardly enough to occupy the four staff.

I scanned the menu:  I've noticed before that somehow Holt's pubs manage to offer standard chain dining pub fare and yet give some better/uncommon choices.  Wexford chicken looks very tempting, and the fish cakes with poached eggs also seems to be an unusual option. I resisted the temptation to try the food.

Next, visible out of the window is the Gerard Arms:

Another very quiet food-led pub, this time belonging to Greene King.

The only cask was Old Speckled Hen, which was very good.  There were also two ciders on handpump.  Unusual to have more ciders than ales, perhaps, but I wonder if it is intentional because of the expected heatwave?

There were more people in the pleasant looking beer garden than in the partly knocked through interior.  The decor here is more quirky than the Abbey, and also well done.  I wonder if the Ionic column is actually holding up the ceiling or is it just for decoration.  Wait, it's actually Corinthian, I think, and I can also see a couple of Doric ones.  (Confession:  I had to consult Google to find out which is which. And if we're nitpicking, none of them are fluted, so not really Greek at all.)

Thanks to the loss of the Windle my plan is in a mess as the next target doesn't open until three according to Google, and it's only quarter to two.  So, a hasty replan and a mile walk to the Black Bull:

This place has apparently got the magic touch!  The beer garden is full of families with kids running around, inside are groups of all ages, how do they do it?  It was so full I couldn't get a table to sit at, and had to put up with a high chair and a shelf.  And a Fosters.

Inside the splendid 1920s building (Or maybe even earlier; see the enormous chimneys?) the decor is a little plain but none the worse for that.  Not a lot of original features survive, but I think the basic room layout does.

Compared with the previous two ticks, the atmosphere here is absolute bedlam, I think I would prefer a little peace but it is so good to see a pub doing well, especially an out-of-the-way one like this.

I'm not sure what the food offer is here; the table next to me had brought bags of popcorn and their own sandwiches.

Next, it's not very far to the Bird I' Th Hand, is that how you write it?  I can see my capitalisation is different to Google's, we'll let the sign adjudicate:

The sign is all capitals, of course, so it doesn't help with upper/lower case but, much more annoying than that, the place is closed.  Bugger, again.  The appearance suggests to me that it is out of action, not just late opening the doors, but I could be wrong.

On to the Eccleston Arms:

Open, thank goodness, and my concern that this one might have crossed the pub/restaurant boundary since I was last here was unwarranted.

The barmaid served me instantly and I had ordered a Carling before I spotted the Doom Bar pump, so I may have missed out on cask here.  However, my recollection of my 2020 visit is that the cask was horrible, so perhaps this was the best outcome.

Another very busy one, with a party of some sort in one room and a buffet in another (Ooh, tempting), and no empty tables in the other rooms, so I headed out to the pleasant beer yard for a table in the shade of the wall, to drink my lager.

Another one doing a roaring trade, drinks and food were coming out into the sunshine all the time.

What next?  There's a bus stop across the road from where I can get a bus home, so I think that's it for today.  A disappointing/irritating survey, I hope the Windle and the Bird are just late opening today, but I fear not.

Pub of the day: Black Bull
Beer of the day: Old Speckled Hen
Miles walked: 3.0
Maybe coming soon: Undecided

Waterloo

On a beautiful sunny day I made my way to Waterloo.  I think I've exhausted the supply of "witty" remarks about Abba, Napoleon, Ray Davies and so on in previous blogs so we'll just get on to the pubs:  Multiple trips here over the last five years mean that many of the places are "not required" and the ones I want are those more likely to be closed on a Thursday, let's see how I do.

I started at Parnells but contrary to Google's times it wasn't open.

On to Flanagans, another one that's not open when it should be.

For my third attempt, the Lion & Unicorn is open:

This pleasant knocked through boozer has just three customers at half one on a Thursday, no wonder the others don't bother to open.

As I downed my lager more drinkers came in.

The penny only dropped when I was preparing for this survey:  I recently ticked another Waterloo Lion and Unicorn, but that is a Wetherspoon and it's at Waterloo station in London.  I wonder is it a coincidence or is there some connection with Waterloo?  Lion and unicorn appear on the Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom.  ChatGPT tells me the emblem was widely used during the Napoleonic wars, which seems a bit of a vague connection.  Wetherspoon named theirs after a pavilion at the Festival of Britain.  (Strictly, the spoons is called The Lion And The Unicorn)

All that fascinating (?) research extended my stay in this comfortable pub.

Next, a look at Bunratty's which I was expecting to find closed as it doesn't open on Thursdays, and it was:

Turning back from Bunratty's it occurred to me that I had walked past the Raven without noticing it, on the way back I discovered that that was because it is no longer there.

Back to Parnells which is now open:

This rather good sports themed bar has air conditioning which was very welcome today.  Just a handful of customers at half two.  The music was too loud for my taste but I bet it is even louder later when the multiple disco lights and the glitter ball are fired up.

My Carling was a remarkable £2.50.

Umpteen TVs are showing horse racing but I don't think anyone was watching.  At least they were silent.

Throughout my time in Waterloo so far the main street has had a steady flow of youngsters heading towards the beach.  Shouldn't they be at school?  Perhaps they get Corpus Christie day off?  Each arrival of a train from Liverpool produced another surge.

Well I never!  The mostly irritating music moved on to Jethro Tull's Witches Promise, I didn't expect that!  I saw him (Ian Anderson) play live in a field on Staten Island back in 2001.  He came on stage on crutches explaining that he'd fallen off the stage at the Cambridge folk festival;  then he threw the crutches away and gave us a great show.

Next, on to what was the Waterpudlian last time I saw it, but is now Shipwreck:

The name may have changed but this pub is basically the same, a pleasant corridor bar with a stage for live music on one side, offering some quality cask ales.  I had Salopian's Day in a Life which was very good.

Just four other drinkers at three o'clock, I know I've said it before but come on people, I can't save the pub industry on my own, where are you?

I scanned the display of pump clips.  Cains 2008, now that was a truly great beer, sadly missed.

Now I need to kill some time.  The next target should be closed at the moment but their Facebook and Google say they open at four.  Will they?  I drank my tasty ale slowly before heading for the Trap & Hatch.  At ten past four it wasn't open, although the shutters have moved so someone's in.

The great thing about this survey is that the distances are very small, so let's have another go at Flanagans:

Oh yes, the door is open and the friendly barmaid poured me a Guinness.  There was no one in except me at quarter past four, no wonder they don't open earlier.  She said people turn up at five and later.

The inside of this bar is really nicely done in a restrained Irish style, and they've still got a scull (Boat, not a head.) hanging from the ceiling.  It was remarkably cool in here, very pleasant.  The barmaid said it was also cold in the winter!

I'm tiring of walking up and down the main street but let's have one more go at Trap & Hatch:

Aha, it's now open.

Dog friendly, according to my book.  In fact the dog was a bit unfriendly until it found out I was just another customer.  After which I was its best pal until someone else came in.

Not my favourite micro pub but the gorgeous ale, I forget what it was, warmed me to it.

All the other customers knew each other and the barman and chatted.  I sat on my own (apart from the dog) and enjoyed my hazy IPA.

I scanned the beer board.  Oddly for a micro, two of the four keg beers on offer are Guinness and Caffrey's.  With one cider that only leaves Veltins Pilsner.  But I had a gorgeous cask ale so I don't care.

Now, a difficult (not really) decision:  I've spotted Green Room just across the road, it seems to be a pool room cum bar, new to my guide, so can I have number six and tick that as well?  The answer, of course, is yes.

This shop conversion has a beautifully decorated bar area at the front, with an equally nice pool room behind.  The counter runs through both.

Just four lads playing pool when I arrived, I hope they spent some money on drinks.

As I downed my Madri (I only spotted the Carling tap after I'd ordered) I looked around.  Someone has put a lot of effort into creating a really good stylish interior and I really hope they get the trade they deserve.

The music was a bit loud in here but I think it was being chosen by the pool lads so that's fair enough. Their taste doesn't align with mine, but why should it.

I checked the trains home.  Oh dear, everything has stopped, this could be problematical.  But wait, things are on the move again so I should be ok.  And I was.

Six required ticks, one of them brand new to the guide, is a great result for a Thursday.

Pub of the day: Shipwreck
Beer of the day: Day In A Life
Miles walked: 1.4
Maybe coming soon: Greasby

Prescot to Thatto Heath

I started today's researches in Prescot.  There are a number of cafe bars along the main street which maybe ought to be added to my guide, but for today I'm visiting one that is already there, the Tempest:

This is a pleasant shop conversion, the decor of bare brickwork and matchboarding looks good.  I selected the house lager from the six keg fonts but they've "got a problem with the pipes" and there's no draft beer at the moment.  So I had a bottle of San Miguel for my first drink.

At one on a Saturday there were only two other customers and they were waiting for breakfasts and drinking orange juice, so not suffering from the lack of gas.

Next, a walk away from the centre to the Wellington:

This attractive "baronial" building is clearly an inter-war roadhouse, but my buddy ChatGPT doesn't have a precise date for it.  I was startled to see that the source for ChatGPT's info is this very blog!  My smugness at finding my description of the building as "baronial" was correct evaporated when I realised it had come from my own previous comments.  Something of an incestuous relationship, I think, talk about an echo chamber!

Inside some original features are preserved despite significant knocking through of the formerly multi-roomed interior, although it would require someone better versed in architecture than I to decide how much is original and how much is modern repro or acquired from a reclamation yard.

There were two handpumps on the counter so I selected a fine pint of Landlord.

Here there were more customers than the Tempest, some eating.  Plenty of space for more, though.

Next, a march along the perennially busy A58 St Helens Road to the next inter-war roadhouse, the Grapes:

Another impressive building from the 20s or 30s, ChatGPT can't give an exact year.  Again the interior is heavily modified but still has some original features.

I eyed up the handpumps with a degree of suspicion and plumped for Greene King IPA which was excellent.

There were plenty of diners in here, in fact I had trouble finding a table without a reserved sign.  The carvery smelled tempting and had a steady stream of customers.  This one is quite busy compared with the previous two ticks, at half two.  Is it just because time is moving on? 

Next, a longer walk, there are two targets in Thatto Heath overdue for a visit, one of them not ticked for fifteen years.  Google Maps came up trumps and routed me along a pleasant footpath instead of by road.

The first target I came to was the Brown Edge:

What an odd name for a pub, wonder what it means.

Inside is a well done comfortable plain boozer.  The decor in the multi-area interior is somehow rather attractive.

The clips were turned so I just had a Carling.

Quite a few people were in here and the cheerful chatter was louder than the music.  As, I think, it should be.  This is one of those pubs where everyone knows everyone else, so they join in with each other's conversations.

The landlord (I think) sorted out the fruit machine, which involved a lot of ching ching clonk noises and also feeding in lots of notes and coins.  Part of me wanted to say that doing that right by the open door was a little risky but I guess he knows what he's doing.  Thinking about it, if I leapt up, grabbed the bag of money and ran out of the pub, how far would I get before he tackled me?  Not very far, I bet.

Finally, a pub not ticked since 2010 because it wasn't open when it should have been in 2019.  The internet tells me it is now a "community pub" and has been refurbished, so let's have a look in the York:

Refurbished, yes, but happily not ruined.  The multi-roomed interior has been well decorated in plain style, and some excellent ceramics have survived.

I hid in one of the side rooms for peace and quiet, avoiding the cheerful banter by the counter.

My Carling was a malty one, even the ultimate "factory lager" has variations in flavour if you drink as much of it as I do.

Pub of the day: I think the Welly edges it because of the excellent Timothy Taylor's
Beer of the day: Landlord
Miles walked: 2.8
Maybe coming soon: Undecided

Bromborough

It was cold and damp today as I headed under the river to Bromborough where I was hoping to tick some bars I'd only learned of a few days ago.  (Thanks Carl!)

At this point I would like to raise a town planning complaint:  When they built a new "bypass" for the main shopping street, what idiot decided to give the new and old roads the same name?  So as you approach along The Rake there are two right turns 220 yards apart, both called Allport Lane.  How confusing is that?

I started at what I thought was the Vault but it's called Voltage, and not open.  Not a good start.  Maybe I'll try again later.

Tucked away in a little pedestrian shopping street is the Tipsy Cow:

A plain shop conversion this, warm and comfortable inside.  My hopes were briefly raised by a Wainwright handpump but "We don't sell it any more, I don't know why that's still there".  Stella was also off, I had 1664 for a change. 

Only a handful of customers at half one, two playing pool, the rest chatting.  They all know each other, I'm the odd one out.  The predictive text made that "old one out", perhaps I'm that as well? 

There's a DJ desk in the corner, I expect it'll be noisy later.  Maybe karaoke? 

Next, let's try Gin & Milk:

Compared with the plain and perhaps slightly tatty Cow, this place is rather posh and up market and most of the customers at two were drinking coffee.  But there is one font at the end of the counter, so that confirms it as eligible to be included in my guide, and I had a pint of Asahi ordered at the counter and delivered to my table. 

Again many of the customers knew each other, Bromborough might be a bit insular!

I wondered about the odd name.  I looked at the drinks menu and they do offer a cocktail called gin and milk, with ingredients including cherry gin, egg white and milk.  Sounds disgusting but I'd probably like it if I had one.  Maybe.  I've never experienced egg white as a drink ingredient, it seems weird; but don't knock it till you've tried it, I say.

Some food came out, it looked very good. 

As I drank my "Japanese" lager (Where is it brewed?  My guess was Burton but Google says Greenwich, Cornwall, and Chiswick!) I wondered what makes this place so pleasant.  Not sure what it is exactly, but I felt very comfortable here.

I mustn't forget to pay before I leave!  (I remembered.)

Next, something more in the line of a "normal pub", the Bromborough:

This classic boozer belongs to Greene King (Don't they all?).  Inside the brewers' Tudor building a few features have been preserved including some old leaded glass, and what looks like a hundred year old fireplace opposite where I sat.  Of course, that could be modern repro.

Should I risk the solitary Old Golden Hen handpump?  I did and it was very good.  It came in an Abbot glass, I would have preferred a pint of Abbot!

Quite a few customers were here at half two, but there wasn't the same level of interaction as in the previous two bars.

I had a look at the menu, standard chain pub fare with fish and chips costing £10.29.

On the telly in my eye-line was racing, lots of blokes were wearing top hats so I'm guessing it is a famous race meeting?

Next, another "normal" pub, this time with Hungry Horse branding, the Royal Oak:

Once again the lone handpump offering was Old Golden Hen, should I gamble again?  I did and I won another good pint.

This place is a lot busier than the previous ones, families eating seemed to be the main type of customer.  They need to employ another member of staff to clear tables after people have gone, as many tables were piled up with eaten or half eaten food.  (I resisted the spare chips and chocolate cake on offer where I sat.)  Soon after I'd written that a friendly waitress cleared all the debris.

After kicking Facebook very hard (I'm not sure why Google wouldn't send me to the right page) I found what might be up to date info for Voltage which says it opens at four.  Should I try again?  It would be rude not to!

Yes, it's open, my third new tick today.  A rather fine contemporary bar, the interior decor is very good. 

I eschewed most of the wide range of keg beers and finished my survey with a Carling. 

I was on my own in here, just me and the barmaid to enjoy the eighties music selection, Wired For Sound followed by Nik Kershaw's Riddle.  Sometimes the music in an empty pub is too loud but here it wasn't.  On the other hand the flashing disco lights were probably unnecessary!  And drowned out by the sunshine from outside.

Not really my sort of bar, but it's so well done and well cared for that I can't fault it.  I hope they get lots of customers later on, they certainly deserve to.  I wondered if anyone else would come in but I can't wait all night, and no one did.

Until, that is, just as I was finishing my pint two customers arrived so I didn't have to leave the place empty.

Oh wow, five required ticks, three brand new, that's a really good crop, time for home.  Grand total now 1,549.

Pub of the day: The Bromborough
Beer of the day: Old Golden Hen
Miles walked: 1.6
Maybe coming soon: Thatto Heath

Walton and Clubmoor

On a warm and humid Saturday I took a train to Kirkdale and then a walk towards Walton.  To be honest I was expecting a poor crop of ticks, but you never know.

Firstly, the Walton Social Club:

Only open in the evenings, as expected.  Next, the Anfield Hotel:

My records show this is closed, and they turned out to be correct.  

There was a very shouty drunk standing in the street outside asking no one "what are you looking at"?  I looked the other way and passed by quickly.  Luckily he didn't see me take the picture!

Another long walk for me, to Frames Lounge:

The shutters were down.  Since my notes say it shouldn't be open yet that's hardly surprising.

A couple of years ago I was indulging in one of my other hobbies and travelling on a train along the freight only railway here and I was surprised to look out of the window and see a bar I didn't know about:  So, a few doors down from Frames is No 9 Bar and Kitchen:

At long last somewhere is open.  A few people were sitting outside while I cooled off with a Madri in the air conditioned interior.  "Is it too cold" asked the barmaid, I assured her it was good. 

Perhaps I'm biased because I was hot and it was nice and cool in here, but I quite like this gaudily decorated little bar.  They've got an indoor bouncy castle for the kids, not something I've seen in a pub before.  Oh, wait, what were those kids' play areas called back in the 90s.  Charlie Chalk or something?  Google to the rescue, it was Charlie Chalk's and the other chain was Whacky Warehouse.  You don't see those any more. 

More indoor customers appeared as I made my notes, a number of them having food.  I checked the menu, it looks good value. 

The framed shirts on the wall indicate that they sponsor the local football team.  No, not that one, it is Walton FC I think.

It's after opening time, let's try Frames again...

The shutter is now up, so I wandered down the corridor and suddenly found myself in a plain comfortable bar with one other customer.  I'm guessing there are other function areas inside this complex, not in use at this time. 

I sat down to enjoy my Carling and listen to some very unusual bar music, it was a New Orleans Jazz band.  Rather wonderful, I must say. 

I chatted to the other customer about the music, and about pubs in Liverpool.  He is going to buy a copy of my book.  Me, a salesman?  Apparently! 

So far, so good.  A long walk, but two new ticks.  What's next?  The New Broadway:

For some reason I haven't been here since 2003, and back than I had even less appreciation of pub architecture than I do now, so I was pleased today to find quite a number of original looking features inside this pub dating, I think, from the 1930s. The dark wooden panelling and an arched entrance between the lobby and the lounge suggest original features although there has clearly been some knocking through in the intervening years.  I do like pubs from this era.

The Norris Green area was developed in the 1920s and 30s, with a deliberate decision not to include any pubs.  I'm not sure how this one sneaked in, perhaps being the other side of the (now closed) railway it was not governed by the temperance rules.

A number of customers, I could see fourteen from where I was sitting, were creating a gentle chatter to mix with the muzac.  Two different horse racing channels were on the TVs, pleasingly silent.  One customer was watching both carefully, no one else took any notice. 

Having been somewhat doubtful regarding the construction date of the building (And ChatGPT didn't know either) I noticed on departure that 1938 is prominently displayed on the downspouts.  I think that settles it. 

Next, back to Queens Drive and the Stag and Rainbow.  But Google has a better route, so I enjoyed a peaceful stroll surrounded by greenery along the loop line.  And soon enough I was at the Beefeater Stag and Rainbow:

I have noticed recently that Toby Carvery locations no longer mention drinks or bars on their websites, so I have resolved that they are no longer pubs and will be removed from the guide.  Beefeater, on the other hand, seem to still welcome drinkers so I'm keeping them, at least for now. 

Some entertainment at the counter, the previous customer had ordered cocktails and the young barman did all the shaking nonsense and then couldn't separate the glass and the tin.  He struggled for ages and eventually called on his colleague who gently clonked it on the counter and it came apart.  "How long has he been struggling?" he asked, I replied "hours".  Then he'd run out of the coconut cream for a pina collada so one of the cocktails was a fail and had to be replaced by a different flavour.

I was going to order a Carling out of habit but during the above pantomime I suddenly realised there was a Doom Bar handpump right in front of me.  I risked it and it was excellent. 

A typical chain food operation, this place is doing pretty well at five on a Saturday, with a steady stream of drinks ordered at the counter and, I presume although I couldn't see, food coming out.  At £15.29 for fish and chips it's not cheap.

As the time ticked on to five o'clock I looked up to see a massive queue at the counter, boosting the drink sales by quite a lot.  I assume if you are seated by staff (Of course, I just walked past the "please wait" sign when I came in) you order drinks from the waiters.  By the time I was ready to leave the place was quite busy, the muzac completely drowned out by cheerful chatter.

What I should do now is complete my survey with the excellent Cask not far down the road, but to be honest I'm knackered, is it the muggy weather or the ales I had yesterday or the four mile walk or just old age?  Anyway, there's a bus stop across the road from where I can get home, so that's it for today.  Two brand new ticks, taking my total to 1,546.

Pub of the day: New Broadway
Beer of the day: Doom Bar
Miles walked: 4.3
Maybe coming soon: Thatto Heath

On The 38 Bus

Two trains and the 38 bus delivered me to the attractive location of Eastham Ferry.  I learned from the chat on the bus that the reason it doesn't run here on Sundays is not lack of demand but because the place is so busy that the bus can't get in.  It has to do a three point turn as there is only one road in and out.  Not too busy on a Thursday, though, and I started in the Tap:

A sign on the handpumps advised that cask ale is unavailable at the moment, so I had my usual Carling.  

The large beer garden was quite busy with many people enjoying another day of sunshine, inside was very quiet with just a handful of customers.  The decor inside this pub is perhaps a little cluttered, but it's certainly pleasant. 

Next door is the rather austere building that is the Eastham Ferry Hotel:

This one is more up market than the Tap, I think, and again lots of customers were outside while I enjoyed the peaceful interior. 

Just one handpump had a clip offering Big Hand Brewery's Super Tidy, and I'm sorry to stay I didn't enjoy it very much.  I don't think it was defective in any way, just that the taste was not to my liking.

This pub is very nicely done inside, I'm not sure how to describe the decor, it's an odd mix of historic features and contemporary styling but in any case I like it.

Now I've got a longish walk of about 1 mile ahead, unless I can finish in time for the next 38 bus, they're hourly.  Here's a strange aspect of my character:  If I don't like the beer I drink it quicker, to get it over with.  How daft is that?  So I was in plenty of time for the bus. With a few minutes to spare, to watch the passing shipping

... and to note that it's a bit of a shame that the beer gardens of the two pubs must be separated by an ugly wooden fence.  Could they not agree to share the land?

The 38 took me up to Eastham Village where I skipped the Hooton Arms because I ticked it in 2021 and strolled round the corner to the Montgomery, last visited in 2015:

When I was in Eastham in 2021 I was caught out because this one wasn't open on a Tuesday, so I was particularly keen to get this tick today.  I headed in to find piles of cardboard boxes covering the counter, and three fellas working on laptops.  Not open, I asked?  No, we're just doing the handover, we'll be open on Monday; if you want a drink the Hooton Arms is just up the road. Curses!  Foiled again.  I suspect I won't be round here for another five years. 

Before my next journey I need a toilet break, so I followed the advice I'd been given and went in to the Hooton Arms:

This tiny pub is something of a gem, I think, although the real ale offer is down to just one this time.  My pint of Lees' Bitter was very good, so no complaints. 

A handful of regulars were chatting, topics included what is happening to the Monty, apparently the people who run this place are taking it over.  No wonder I was advised to come here! 

My next walk is a mile, perhaps another bus?  But hang on; on the first bus ride I spotted a possible bar I didn't know about.  So if I get the next 38 back the way I came I can check it out...

Victory from the jaws of defeat!  A bar I didn't know existed, Hop:

This is a standard shop conversion micro-pub, deserted at four on a Thursday, I was the only customer when I arrived.  Three cask ales were on offer, I selected Common Ground from Round Corner which turned out to be a rather fine pale ale.

One more customer joined me in the peaceful room.  I eyed up the big TV screen to see where my beer came from.  Oooer, there's my name up in lights, that's what you get for checking in on Untappd!  The beer comes from Melton Mowbray, I learned.  Shame they didn't send some pies with it! 

What next?  On my original plan there are two more targets nearly a mile away, but I'm tempted to take the lazy option and head home after only three required ticks (and four pints); there is a station very near here.  Actually there is another "2021" tick between me and the station, maybe I should have a pint there to finish off my trip.  Or in here they've got a 14% Imperial Double Pastry Stout from Edinburgh, perhaps I should try it?  Probably unwise, let's stick to the pub nearby...

Why not?  The Merebrook:

I entered this two-sided large pub in the "sizzling" chain expecting to finish on a Carling, and the bar side where I came in seemed to confirm this, but something told me to try through the door in the lounge.  A couple of handpumps were available and I had a fine pint of Wainwright Amber.

Unlike all the other ticks today this one has plenty of people in, although there was space for lots more.  Some were eating but not many, it's not yet five so maybe a bit early for dinner. 

I checked the menu, fish and chips is under nine quid so pretty cheap.  Talking of menus I was in my local Wetherspoon yesterday and noticed the new menu with no steaks nor mixed grill.  There has been some whinging about this in the press, it will be interesting to see how it actually works out.  Usually Tim's decisions prove to be right so I'm guessing this one will too.  I made sure I had a "last chance" mixed grill a couple of weeks ago, and it was very good!

Only three "required" ticks today and the Montgomery loses out, but it was a very pleasant crawl on a sunny afternoon, with the bonus of a brand new previously unknown pub.  And I didn't actually have to walk at all.

Pub of the day: Hop
Beer of the day: Common Ground
Miles walked: Hardly any, thanks to the 38 bus.
Maybe coming soon: Undecided

Meols and Hoylake

On a very sunny Friday I headed under the river towards Hoylake, first stopping off at the one-pub town of Meols to revisit the Railway:

This imposing 1930s (I'm guessing) roadhouse contains a pleasant popular Hungry Horse chain dining pub.  Nothing historic remains inside.  ChatGPT tells me it was built in 1938 replacing a pub of the same name which dated from 1866.

At one on a sunny Friday they were doing a good trade, mainly in food, with umpteen groups tucking in to standard pub fare.  With fish and chips under a tenner I'm not surprised it is popular. 

You never know what the ale quality is going to be like in a pub like this but my Landlord (In a Greene King glass) was excellent. 

Who programmes the music in these places?  I never expected to hear the wonderful Fade In To You by Mazzy Star but there it was.

I am getting lazy in my dotage so instead of walking nearly a mile to Hoylake I hopped on a bus. Having reached Hoylake I had to suffer the down side of researching for the guide:  Instead of a pint of cask in the Ship, the Wetherspoon, the Black Toad or the wonderful Plasterers, my first target was the Lake, last ticked in 2017:

This is a rather fine back street boozer, the knocked through front room's interior is comfortable and pleasant.  There's another room and counter behind, which I didn't view. The cheerful barmaid soon poured me a Carling.

Not much custom at two on a Friday, one or two in the sunshine outside and just two of us indoors.  My notes from last time I was here described it as busy, I hope they still get enough custom to survive.

Next, also in the back streets but very different in style is the Green Lodge:

Two handpumps on the counter, I had Wainwright Gold.  Is this one of those "fake cask" beers, it tastes OK but I've had better.  The pump clip did not have "Fresh ale" on it, so maybe I'm worrying unnecessarily.

There were quite a few people outside in the sunshine, I sat inside where I could only see two others.  The interior is very well done, perhaps a bit twee for my taste. 

I can't comment on the menu because there wasn't one on my table, the far end of the space has a "please wait to be seated" sign, presumably I'd get a menu then.  There was also a rack of them available and my two fellow customers ordered something.  Fish finger sandwiches, I think.

My notes from 2017 described it as "surprisingly quiet", so no change eight years later.  They must get more custom at other times, the place was full of waiters and waitresses who need to be paid. 

Next, how about a brand new (to me) one, Arthur's:

Something of a posh wine bar this one, but with eight keg taps it certainly counts as a bar.  I had something I've never tried before, Stella Artois Unfiltered.  What a con, it comes in a special frosted goblet so you can't actually see if it is hazy or not.  Anyway, a pleasant refreshing lager. 

Another place that doesn't seem to have the custom they need, about five minutes after I sat down the two other customers departed leaving just me and the two staff.  Ten minutes later three more customers sat down outside but I doubt that's enough to pay the wages?

I looked around; this is a rather well done space, they deserve to do well, I feel.  There's more seating upstairs according to the sign, not needed at the moment. 

The three women outside, on glasses of wine, tried for some free nibbles but were refused! 

Gradually more customers arrived, all sitting outside and, unusually, all older than I!  More arrived, some younger.

Finally, another never visited bar, it used to be called Quadrant and before that the Portrait House; but now it is Twenty First Amendment:

Presumably they are related to the bar of the same name in Wavertree.  The 21st Amendment to the US constitution was the one that abolished prohibition. 

A fine interior here with dark green and bare brick decor, I regret not trying the previous incarnations but one can't tick them all.  There were plenty of TVs, perhaps for sports events, but today they were all off.

Again worryingly quiet at four on a Friday, five of us inside and a handful outside are hardly going to pay the wages.  Having said that, there was a steady trickle of customers, mostly sitting outside in the pleasant sunshine.

Here I had a tasty pint of Staropramen which, naturally, came in the proper branded glass.

Time for home.  Tomorrow I'm on a work reunion pub crawl in Prescot, but I doubt I'll be capable of writing a blog entry!

Pub of the day: Green Lodge
Beer of the day: Landlord
Miles walked: 1.6
Maybe coming soon: Undecided.