Allerton Road

Non-pub-related activities last weekend and next are keeping me away from my researches (Although not from pubs!)  so, unusually, I set off for a survey on a Tuesday.  Train and bus carried me to Allerton Road where there are umpteen targets awaiting my attention.

I started in the John Brodie:

Years ago this was a Yates's, and in some ways it hasn't changed since then; the decor is very pleasant, with chain pub styling.  Obviously it's not the same wallpaper and carpet after twenty-odd years and everything looks well cared for and tidy.  The Christmas decorations here are understated and tastefully done.

Sadly, the three handpumps all had clips turned round, so I had a Guinness.  Perhaps I would have got cask ale later in the week?

Plenty of customers at two on a Tuesday, but room for many more.  Diners and drinkers in about equal proportions.  The menu of pub standards looks good value, with fish and chips under a tenner.

I noticed a Deliveroo guy come in to collect an order.  I must admit I'd never thought of ordering pub food to be delivered, seems like a good idea.  I usually use delivery services for food from takeaways where I can't be bothered to go out and get it.

Next door is the Allerton Oak:

I haven't visited this place since February 2000 when it was an American-themed bar called New York.  What do we get twenty-four years later?   Bugger!  It's not open.  Is this the down side of a Tuesday survey, or is it no longer in action?

Just a few doors down is a place I didn't know existed until I got here, Mooneys:

Research shows this was formerly Mezz, a long closed one I never visited.

What a pleasant Irish bar this is.  Rather odd decor, I particularly liked the part where they have made a giant hole in the wall plaster to reveal the underlying bricks.  The hole is irregularly shaped and the contrast between the carefully painted plaster and the naked bricks creates an interesting feature.

Not many customers in, about five I think, but enough to create a background of lively chatter which also included the staff, mixed with Sky Sports News and a racing channel.

A mic stand, mixer and speakers at the front imply live music but I guess Tuesday afternoon is not the time for this.

Bonus points here because there are no Christmas decorations.  It's still November, after all.

By the way, in the cold weather today I'm happy to report both pubs so far have been pleasantly warm inside.

Across the busy road and into the next call, Three Piggies:

Another warm one despite the wide windows onto the street, in fact one of the waitresses added some wood to the stove shortly after I arrived.

Three handpumps offered ales from Mobberley, I chose Bunji which turned out to be a rather fine sweet pale ale, almost a toffee flavour instead of the citrus one might expect.

More of a restaurant in style, here, but at three on a Tuesday I couldn't see anyone eating.  The decor, a mix of distressed wood, bar brick and some white ceramics, is rather fine.

The background music was mostly drowned out by happy conversations.

I had a quick look at the cocktail menu.  Why does no one do a bloody Mary, my favourite, any more?

Where next?  If the Allerton Oak had been open I would have been in number four now and could have headed home, but now I'll have to walk a bit further for one or two more ticks.  Not far away is a tempting target I've never been in, so let's try the Crafty Swine:

Gosh!  Two brand new ticks in one day.  I've got no idea how to describe the decor in this place except to say that I like it.  Quite a large space, with only two or three customers I'm afraid.

Just one handpump with a clip (and one without) but the Wild Swan was very good.  They mainly concentrate on craft ales.  If I'm allowed to criticise, I think with fourteen keg taps they could put on a few "odd" options.  For example, last Friday in Track Brewery Tap in Manchester I had some 12% imperial stout which was absolutely gorgeous.   Not for everyone, of course, but with fourteen options you could spare one or two for "stupid" beers like that.

I looked up the Wild Swan on t'internet.  It's Thornbridge, of course, I should have recognised the pump clip.  Then I would have known it was tasty, I've never had a Thornbridge brew I didn't like.  Jaipur, of course, is a favourite, but there's also a wonderful chocolate one I think?

Christmas decorations in here were once again restrained and therefore excellent.  

I wonder what this place was before it was a pub?  I'll check streetview when I get home...  In 2008 it was a bar called Mustard, which I never ticked.  Before that it was Holyoake Hall, a Co-op building which was a dance hall in the 1960s, hosting the Beatles a number of times. 

Time to go home?  Perhaps one more brand new tick before I go, Leaf:

I did the branch in town some time ago but I've never been in this one, so let's see what we get.  D'oh!  It closes at four and what time is it?  Four.  

Oh well, I'll head for home then.

Pub of the day: Three Piggies
Beer of the day: Thornbridge Wild Swan
Miles walked: 1.3
Maybe coming soon: Undecided.

Northern Bootle

On a grey Saturday I made my way to Bootle for some overdue revisits.  I started by walking north, passing two targets that I'll come back to later and on to the Queens:

The For Sale sign was concerning but the door was open and inside I found a plain traditional two-sided boozer, with no customers visible at one on a Saturday afternoon.  Perhaps there were some in the other side.

The barmaid had to nip down to the cellar before pouring me a Carling, which cost £3.45  Two other customers joined me while I was waiting.  "Do they sell Guinness" one enquired.  I was about to tell him I hadn't been in here for over five years but I spotted a Guinness tap on the other counter so I was able to point that out.

I settled under the telly showing racing and took in my surroundings.  Like all these "basic" boozers these days, it is nicely done out, clean and tidy.  In the very grey weather it was quite dark until the barmaid turned the lights on.  No Christmas decorations; good.

Was this the one with the disgusting gents with mould-covered walls last time I was here?  I recall a regular saying "crackin', isn't it" when I came out of the gents last time.  Let's see what it is like now...

Well the gents here is very good, in fact in a triumph of good taste they've even got the same tiles on the wall as in my bathroom at home!  So am I remembering the wrong pub?  On examining my records I find that my memory is correct, so they've done a very good upgrade.

Next I retraced my steps towards Bootle, and stopped at the Salisbury:

The large interior is plain, pleasant enough, and almost completely deserted with just two other customers.

My Carling (£3.20) came in a branded glass, but it wasn't the odd shaped one I'm used to (which I had in the Queens).  I hope this is an older style and not a new one, as I really like the ones, I don't really know how to describe them, that have a "waist" half way up which has a ribbed surface for extra grip.  I wonder if I can find a picture:

Maybe I should start collecting branded glassware, or at least pictures thereof.  Come to think of it, my collection of beer festival glasses means I have no room for more, so perhaps just pictures.

Heating in here was provided by a couple of portable Calor Gas heaters, lucky the weather is warmer today than yesterday.  I suspect it'll be very cold in here come some real winter weather.

A few more regulars turned up while I drank, but the place was hardly busy.

Next, a classic sixties building, the Alexandra:

Another perfectly fine interior, in fact I think this one is better than the previous two.  At least a dozen regulars were creating a background of cheerful chatter.

My Carling (£3.20 again) came in my preferred glass this time.

OK, I am probably biased due to being three Carlings to the good, but this is a really great pub, a true classic.  Perfectly clean, very tidy, cheerful regulars, warm and comfortable, what else could one ask for?

Regular readers are probably expecting a rant about Premier League point deductions at some time today but I don't really understand what Everton are accused of so I'll keep my own counsel for now.  Except to say ... No No, must resist.

The jukebox moved on to someone's rendition of that wonderful song From A Distance.  Bette Midler's version wasn't as good as Nancy Griffith's original, but it's still a great song.

Now here's something I've not spotted before:  In amongst the greengrocers' apostrophes on the signs on the bar back is a notice stating that all spirits are sold in 50ml measures; so effectively everything is a double.

Next, through the centre of Bootle passing the post-Wetherspoon's Wild Rose which seemed from the outside to be doing very well, and the overdue for a visit Addison Arms and on to the even more overdue Beaky:

This is, or was, a social club of some sort, and still has the format of a small bar and a larger function room.  No hint of any membership requirements as I headed into the bar for another Carling. (£2.30, non-preferred branded glass)

The bigger room was laid out for a do of some sort, but maybe it always is.

About a dozen regulars were in the bar chatting and one or two were watching the racing on just one telly.

Lovely and warm in here, so much so that I felt myself in danger of nodding off, which is not good at half three in the afternoon!  I think it might be time to head for home.

I got back to Lime Street to find that the next three trains home have been cancelled.  I suppose that's what you get for letting the government run the railways.  Surprisingly, the train I eventually caught wasn't as jam-packed as I expected, clearly the majority of customers have already learned that there is no point relying on the train.

Pub of the day: Alexandra
Beer of the day: Carling
Miles walked: 2.2
Maybe coming soon: Kirkdale, Fazakerley, Wavertree

Mancunian Miscellany

After completing some non-pub-related business in Glossop* I headed for the enormous Holt's house on the corner at the centre of this attractive town.  I've never been in the Norfolk Arms before:

I chose a pint of Two Hoots from the small range of cask ales, and it was excellent as expected.  And it came in a Two Hoots glass.

The beautiful interior of the pub is partly knocked through but still has some separation.  Most of the customers were dining groups.  I had look at the menu of the usual pub standards plus some less common options, I don't often see Wexford chicken.  Fish and chips was fourteen quid, so not at the cheap end of the spectrum.

The Christmas decorations were tasteful and not over the top, although I still want to say "Bah! Humbug!  It's only November".  This year's fashion seems to be greenery with gold and silver balls, the versions I've seen so far have all been nicely restrained.

Posters show they have live music in here this evening.  I wonder what kind of songs a "male vocal entertainer" does?  I'm going to guess Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra, but the poster doesn't give any clues.  It could be Morrissey and Liam Gallagher for all I know.

Next, the only Good Beer Guide pub in Glossop I haven't ticked, Bar 2:

A standard shop conversion micro pub this, but somehow better than most.  I selected Ossett Silver King from the range of cask ales, tasty as always but not as good as favourite White Rat, which was on the coming soon list.  (By the way, further to my comments in last Thursday's blog, this week the Big House had White Rat back on.  Yippee!)

All the other customers in here were locals and regulars, and chatted with each other and the barmaid while the solitary pub blogger sat on a comfortable bench seat and wrote his notes.

It wasn't very warm in here; everyone kept their coats on.    I realise times are hard in the hospitality business and fuel prices are high, but people will stop coming if it's not comfortable.  There's something very special about a warm pub on a cold day.

Next door is Bar 1, a wine and cocktail bar, not open when I arrived.  There's an interior doorway connecting the two.

Now, off to Stalyvegas.  This part of the day didn't go exactly to plan.  Stepping out of the pub I spotted the bus just approaching the stop.  Drat, missed it, or have I?  The traffic lights were in my favour and I made it to the stop before the queue had all got on.  A good start to the journey.  Last time I did this move I seem to recall a pleasant bus ride of thirty odd minutes.  That must have been a quiet time because today it took more than thirty minutes in heavy traffic just to get out of Glossop.  My upstairs at the front seat offered a fine view of the cars queuing into the distance!  Eventually the traffic eased and we reached Stalyvegas at last, over an hour later.

I initially resisted the obvious choice here and instead tried a place not ticked before, the Old Thirteenth Cheshire Astley Volunteer Rifleman Corps Inn:

I think they chose the ridiculously long name specially because they are next door to Q which has the shortest pub name in the country.

Anyway, a pleasant enough one roomed boozer, maybe a bit down market but, having said that, actually rather nicely done.  And it was warm!

Two handpumps and I selected Tiger Rut from Millstone, which wasn't too bad but perhaps slightly past its best?  Actually, a tired ale always gets worse as you drink it, this one got better in the second half.  I think that means my initial assessment was just plain wrong, and the ale was good.

Next, I can't come to Staly without visiting one of my favourite pubs in the world, so in to the Buffet Bar:

Wonderful as always, this place, and doing a good trade, although I think when I started coming here many years ago it would have been necessary to push just to get in the door at five on a Friday.  No need for pushing today, and I even got a table to sit at.

Continuing today's theme I can report that the place was comfortably warm, with a real fire in the main room.

I had somebody's Cherry Vanilla Porter, pretty good but could do with a bit more cherry I think.  I've said it before and I'll say it again; if you're going to put a strange flavour in a beer, it should smack the drinker in the face.  "A hint of ..." is no good at all; I want lots of flavour!  Titanic Plum Porter is a fine exemplar.  Today's ale was close, but need a little more cherry to be truly great.

The soundscape here was some background music completely drowned out by cheerful conversations.

What a wonderful pub.  I would have stayed here longer and perhaps enjoyed some of their famous black peas, but Northern's cancellations would have left me stranded, so I enjoyed my pint and then headed off by train.  I'll be back in a couple of weeks for an annual reunion to which I've been going since 1980.  Gosh, forty-three years!

Next, a short train ride for a new tick, the Victoria Tap.  (Sorry, no photo.)  Run, I believe, by the same people as the Piccadilly Tap, this one is actually in the station building, occupying a space which has been offices for a long time, I think.  A great addition to Victoria station, offering six handpumps and about twenty keg taps. On a Friday night they could do with three times as much space!  I had J W Lee's Plum Pudding, a long standing Christmas brew always tasty.

One tiny room plus quite a lot of space outside in the cold, I managed to stand in the corner, it's certainly too chilly outside.  There was a waft of cold air every time the door was opened, but for the rest of the time it was comfortably warm in here.

This is one of those rare pubs which doesn't have any toilets, you have to go out and use the station's facilities.  After which I headed for home.

* Yes yes, thank you pedants, I know Glossop isn't in Manchester.

Pub of the day: Stalybridge Buffet Bar
Beer of the day: J W Lee's Plum Pudding
Miles walked: 1.3, and most of that wasn't for the pubs.
Maybe coming soon: Bootle, Kirkdale, Fazakerley

Kirkdale and Walton

On a sunny autumn afternoon I set off towards County Road without making much of a detailed plan.  There are so many "required" pubs around here (About twenty) that finding some not open will not be a problem.  From Kirkdale station I skipped the Peacock because it has already been ticked this year and carried on to the Hawthorne:

A large well appointed boozer this, two sides plus another area which today was set out for some kind of function.  (Baby shower I later learned by listening in to the chat at the bar.)  Everywhere is nicely decorated, wood panelling and stained glass, and is that counter front genuine 1930s/50s or is it a 1980s re-creation?  Either way, the whole place is attractive and pleasant.

Only a handful of customers, watching the early match on the telly or chatting to the bar staff.

I avoided messing up the party area and sat in a corner with the footie fan, to enjoy a fine pint of Guinness, which only cost £3.35.

Next, towards County Road, with the Stuart on the way.  Sadly estate agents' signs warned me that I was probably too late for a revisit and sure enough the doors were all closed.  A sad loss, this one, I remember an interior retaining the classic layout with lounges served from a hatch in the bar back across a drinking corridor.

I carried on to County Road and the Black Horse:

A Greene King outlet with no real ale so it was another Guinness for me.  (Over four quid this time)  This large pub has a very well maintained interior in traditional style and I sat in the impressive "concert hall" area which has a high arched roof with a square stained glass lantern.  The modernisation has not been kind to this feature, with a servery extension and the kitchen occupying part of the space, but at least they didn't demolish it.

I looked at my marked up map with orange highlighter indicating all the required ticks.  Today really would have been a good time to revert to a half in each pub, but frankly I can't be bothered, and anyway it takes me a whole pint to write this drivel.  So you can expect further visits to this area in the near future.  Thinking about it, I need to come on an Everton home match day, as some have limited opening hours.  Why didn't I do that last Saturday?  Who knows!

A family group with a number of very young kids arrived and occupied part of the room.  It's good to see people still come to the pub for a family outing. The little ones were well behaved, I'm pleased to report.  These are the people who will be keeping the pubs going twenty years from now!

Next, on to the Top House.  Another estate agent's sign caused a moment of concern, but it was on the next door building, and the pub was open:

A beautifully cared for traditional boozer ticking over with a number of regulars chatting with the friendly barmaid who soon poured me another Guinness.  (£3.70 I think)  I sat in a quiet side room, the two bar layout of this pub has obviously been modified over the years, so historic features are thin on the ground, but it is very pleasant.  My guide entry from 2018 called this a "backstreet gem", you can't say fairer than that.

The early match continued, but hardly anyone was paying attention, sometimes I wonder whether the pub gets any value from their (presumably expensive) subscription.  Do they get the occasional more "interesting" match - Top of the league and/or a local team - in their package?  Wolves, who I'm guessing were the underdogs, equalised near the end and then scored a winner in injury time, to the general approval of the clientele here.

After the Top House one can only really go on to the Bottom House, more correctly known as the Anfield Hotel:

Curses!  It's shut.  Handwritten signs in the window say Open 12 November, so it should be back in action tomorrow.

Back to County Road and in to what used to be the Glebe, now Bernie May's.  My picture was very blurry so here's one from 2018, it hasn't changed much:

This knocked through pub with very good contemporary decor was remarkably busy, probably because they've got the Everton match on.  So my comments last week were well wide of the mark!  Just a moment!  Five minutes in to the match and it's already one each?

The majority of the customers in here were watching the football, but by no means all of them.  Racing fans were watching the horses on other screens, and others were just chatting with each other.

There's something special about a boozer on a Saturday afternoon, with blokes (they're all blokes) enjoying lots of beer, and the sports on the tellies.

Is it time for home?

Pub of the day: Bernie May's, for the atmosphere
Beer of the day: Guinness
Miles walked: 1.9
Maybe coming soon: More Kirkdale, Wavertree

New Brighton

I commenced a tour of pubs near but not in New Brighton at Stanley's Cask:

What a beautiful pub this is.  Mostly knocked through and nicely done throughout.  And, even better, White Rat on one of the four hand pulls, and it was delicious.  (I was disappointed to find the Big House had run out of White Rat yesterday evening.)

I tried to remember what this place looked like last time I was here, in 2017, it doesn't look familiar.  Has it been further improved since then?  Very good, anyway.

Very gentle background music mixed with conversation as I enjoyed my pint.

A thought wandered into my brain:  I haven't seen any Christmas decorations yet.  Excellent!  How many more pubs before I see some holly?

Next, a short stroll to ... what's this?  I've never heard of the Phoenix, is it new?

Subsequent research on the internet seems to show that I've missed this one; it has opened and closed since I was last here.  Oh well, on to the Sandridge:

A very pleasant two sided interior in this boozer, no cask on offer so I had a Carling.  Just a handful of customers, the one sitting near me was watching the racing closely.

Did I comment in a recent blog about the increased appearance nowadays of beer specific glasses?  I've noticed that a pint of Carling now usually comes in a Carling glass, as it did here.  Twenty years ago it would have been an unbranded sleeve or nonic.  I saw in Wetherspoon's trading update yesterday that some of the spending on existing pubs is for "glass racks above bars (To cater for increased usage of brewers branded glasses)".

Now, another short walk to the Telegraph.  The internet says it opens at two; does it?

Yes.  "Only" two cask ales on offer, but one was my second White Rat of the day.  Yippee!  In a branded glass again.

Only two other customers, I think, in this large two sided pub.  It's done out in a sort of food place style, I think, but there was no sign of any menus.  The beer garden looks very pleasant but today is not the weather for that!

There are two more "near New Brighton" pubs on my target list, so a slightly longer walk down to the waterfront took me to the famous Magazine:

This wonderful pub is well known as a provider of real ale, and it is also famous for always having Bass on, so that was my choice, a pint of this brew which is fairly rare in Merseyside.   And it was gorgeous.

I retreated to a quiet back room, but I could still hear chatter in various other areas of the pub.  This one is busier than the previous three, chit chat and the occasional bark mixing with quiet muzac.

Just next door is the Pilot Boat but despite the sign saying it opened at twelve and the lights being on, the doors were shut, so it was time to head towards home.

Rather than returning the way I had come I decided on a pleasant stroll along the shoreline and then up through New Brighton's town centre.  Here I found a slightly unexpected bonus:  Tallulahs Emporium:

According to my database, this never visited pub was formerly the Corner House, then Tallulah's, then closed, and finally re-opened.  I'm not sure how accurate that history is, but it is always good to get a new tick!

What I found was a pleasant high ceilinged room, or rather rooms, and a good looking counter with about eight keg beers on, I selected the tasty Pilsner Urquell.  I noticed the sign on the wall, which the friendly barman had pointed me to when I couldn't read the pump clips, spelled it Urqell but the branded glass (See what I was saying before) confirmed the correct spelling with a U.

A good handful of customers were keeping the place ticking over, conversation mixing with pleasant music.  I noticed some signs promoting live music here, obviously not on a Thursday afternoon.  I've often thought that if one of my local pubs did live music I would be in there every week, but sadly Huyton isn't that sort of place.  Yet.

Time for home.  Some superb ale, and a brand new tick (Number 1,456), what a great day.

Pub of the day: Stanley's Cask
Beer of the day: Ossett White Rat
Miles walked: 2.2
Maybe coming soon: Kirkdale/Walton

Near Old Swan

On a day of rubbish autumn weather I headed for some overdue ticks in the vicinity of Old Swan.  I was expecting just "routine" pub visits, but I was in for a surprise.

I've done all the pubs in the middle of Old Swan recently so I headed along Prescot Road aiming for the Derby Lodge.  First, I wanted to confirm that the former Corner Tavern is closed, and it is:

Having photographed the Corner and the Derby I carried on to the next pedestrian crossing to get over the busy road.  While I'm here I might as well go a few yards further to see what the state of the Old Stanley Arms is.  My last visit was back in 2002 and it closed not long after.  Much to my surprise I found it open, now called Mr Smiths:

Well I never!  What a great bonus tick this one is;  I never thought I'd see it open again.    Mind you, the area has got form in this regard; I remember walking up Green Lane a few years ago to photograph the closed Melbourne only to find it open.

Plain well decorated and maintained rooms in this classic ordinary boozer.  I tried to recall what it looked like 21 years ago,  but failed.

Just four regulars were chatting with the friendly barmaid who soon provided me with a pint of Carling.

Across the road was the Stanley, this has been derelict for many years and is now covered in scaffolding.

Back up the road to the Derby Lodge:

A plain comfortable boozer this, ticking over at two with a handful of blokes aged between ten and seventy watching the early match.

Again, the place is clean and well cared for although the carpet is getting a touch tired in places.  Unchanged since my last visit, in 2018, two rooms with counters, plus a back room.

Above the counter was an Everton flag.  Are LFC fans welcome as well, I wonder?  Luckily today my teeshirt is blue!

My next move was up Green Lane where there were two pubs about fifty yards apart.  Surely they can't both have survived COVID?  Yes they have; I started in the Melbourne:

Another classic boozer this, with plain but well maintained decor in two rooms.  And it's had an external repaint since the last time I was here.

Man United had managed to win the early match in injury time, again footie was on the tellies here.

The dominant soundtrack was animated chatter, plus the weirdo in the corner talking to himself.  I was sitting in the quieter side room with just two others, there were a lot more in the other side.

One bloke departed, leaving me with just the wierdo.  Should I join his chatter?  I didn't.

The tellies switched to rugger, of course the three o'clock soccer matches are not legally available.  Years ago pubs could buy dodgy decoders or cards and show all matches but maybe that doesn't happen any more.  I remember being in a pub in Tuebrook and fifteen minutes into the match the illegal feed went off.  There were a lot of disgruntled fans!  I'm guessing it was a deliberate tactic to change the encoding so that pirate decoders would stop working right in the middle of the match.

Just a short walk now, to the Wellington:

Having purchased yet another Carling I had to retreat to the back room because there were no seats available in the front bar, where everyone seemed to be watching the racing on the telly.

Another classic boozer this, with more traditional styling I think.  The back room was fairly empty, just three other drinkers and I shared plenty of space.

I seem to remember coming in here on a very chilly day and enjoying a fan heater in the front room, no need for that today as the whole pub was at a comfortable temperature, if not exactly warm.

Definitely a horses pub this,  Everton went 1-0 up  then 1-1, then back to 1-0 thanks to VAR and no one noticed, while they all watched the horses at Wetherby.  I apologise for the excess of footie coverage, especially as I know absolutely nothing about the subject, but a friend who lives in West Wales and is an Everton fan is here for a visit and we enjoyed a few pints together last night.  He'll be at today's match so I have a special interest in how the blues are getting on.

What a pleasant pub this is, regulars chatting to the barmaid/landlady, lots of customers watching the racing, what more could one ask for on a Saturday afternoon?

Having found more pubs open than expected, I didn't need my fallback options, Cask and the Stag and Rainbow, so I might as well head home now.

Pub of the day: Mr Smiths
Beer of the day: Carling
Miles walked: 1
Maybe coming soon: New Brighton