PubBlog

Lichfield:

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Further proof that often you can find better pubs just outside the very centre of a town. There’s cask ale, and when we visited a pretty decent band playing too. The place was full of locals, who knew each other, but was still friendly.

Willenhall:

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This is a big, prominent pub on a main road in Willenhall. It calls itself a “carvery and pub”, and thankfully, there’s a few seats in the lounge/restaurant that aren’t set up for food, so the food hasn’t taken over the place.

Not a huge choice of beer, but the Guiness was OK and the staff friendly.

Wolverhampton:

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The Bass take on Wetherspoons. The Goose chain is just like a ‘spoons inside, with similar atmosphere, clientele, beer, and food. That’s not a disaster: the food is OK (and cheap), the beer pretty good (and cheap), and it’s not an unpleasant place for lunch and a couple of pints. There’s not the atmosphere of a proper pub (like the Posada, just up the street, which was sadly shut at 11:50 when we arrived), but you could do worse.

Thornhill, Dumfries & Galloway:

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This was an actual hotel, but the distinction gets a bit blurred north of the border, and the other Thornhill entry was a hotel/pub too, so it gets a mention.

Interior was a bit dated, but the beer OK and the barmaid very friendly. Prices reasonable, 80s soundtrack.

Dumfries:

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Wetherspoons in Dumfries: what could go wrong?

Actually, both Dumfries and this pub were better than expected. Great beer choice, nice staff, low prices, and, unusually for a spoons, it was clean. The round was £2.03, beating even this. Lots of activity from the local CAMRA branch too.

Dumfries:

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Old town centre pub accessed via an alley off the main shopping street, reputedly getting it’s name from the fact that women were not allowed in, and were served through a hole in the wall.

In many ways a typical town pub- Karaoke nights, no ale, but much friendlier than it looked and pleasant enough.

Dumfries:

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Allegedly the best pub in Dumfries, and certainly very nice. Almost feels like a bistro at the front, and it is popular for food, but the back feels like a pub. Excellent beer, including Abbot and 3 guests.

Thornhill, Dumfries & Galloway:

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Decent, if slightly pricey food, and enough locals to keep the posh fishing set under control. Good beer, friendly staff and locals.

Valletta, Malta:

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Well, it isn’t often you can say “I’m going to The Pub”, and for that to be precise, but it is here.

This is the pub where Ollie Reed famously drank his last, with an impressive bar tab.

It’s a tiny, one-room place, stuffed with Ollie memorabilia, and is a proper pub (as opposed to a bar) in the middle of Valletta. It’s popular with British sailors, so there’s a lot of RN stuff about too. No food, but there’s Bombardier and Guinness as well as the local stuff, which isn’t at all bad.

Rochford, Essex:

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A`positively lovely old market town pub. Loads of real ale, nice atmosphere.