Category Archives: Walsall Wood

Revisit: The Brickmakers Arms

Walsall Wood.

Original Post here

Whatpub Link

Like I commented last time, this is a fairly large, open-plan local pub with a conservatory and beer garden out the back. No real ale, but I was drinking bottles anyway :-/ .

This is getting a revisit entry on elapsed time alone: it’s not changed greatly.

Cobs on the bar, decent staff. Music a bit over-loud for early evening, and shocking sound quality from freeview TV.

It’s not a pub we visit that often, but as previously commented, it’s not a bad place at all and certainly fits my needs better than some.

Revisit: The Boatman’s Rest

A revisit of a revisit.

Previous post here
Whatpub Entry

The Boatman’s Rest has changed hands again, and the latest incarnation is pretty much a Desi pub: the lounge is basically an Indian restaurant.

Pretty good too. rumour has is that it is owned by the people that run The Red Lion, and the menu looks similar. Odd bit of synchronicity there; the first time I visited this pub (in the 70s) it was The Red Lion. Great food, friendly staff, no cask but decent lager.

Post-Covid Revisit: The Drunken Duck

Previous Post

It had been a very, very long time since my standard routine of waiting in the pub while some nice chaps cook my curry had been possible, so this was my second post-covid pub. The Duck is a bit more rough-and-ready than The Royal Exchange, so I was a bit wary.

To be fair, very well done. The same screens at the bar and one-way, but contact tracing, hand sanitizer, and sensible locals. It did feel a bit odd and lacking in atmosphere, but the Stella was drinkable. A subsequent visit was much the same, then…

….it shut.

Then re-opened, with a refurb- new flooring, a general tidy up, and some new flooring. It’s all a bit tidier, and not bad at all. No cask ale, but that’s been gone for years now.

Post-Covid Revisit: The Royal Exchange

Previous Post

My first post-covid pub visit, and the first time back in a pub since March 20. First new pub since March 14, and less than a week after pubs were allowed to open.

It was nice, if a little odd. Sensible setup, good cleaning regime, reduced food menu, forcibly reduced beer choice as the delivery hadn’t pitched up. Most people were obeying distancing guidelines when we arrived, and hell, it was good to be in a pub again. Food was decent, and even if it had to be Guinness, we were in the pub.

A few members of the traveler community turned up (well, actually lots of them), which was fine, but they didn’t seem to be adhering to guidelines, which is something I’d feared from anyone after a few drinks (and a subsequent visit proved this with a few locals). Still they were in another room and the landlady kept a lid on it, to her credit.

2 more visits and the cask ale isn’t back on still, but I suspect that reduced footfall is the reason; cask here is usually excellent.

Revisit: The Boatman’s Rest

Previous Revisit Here

Original Post Here

The landlord from the first revisit is still there, but there’s a subtle change: the pub seems to be going Desi.

The kitchen is refurbed, the lager is Cobra, and there’s a fairly typical indian barbecue menu on, which, to be fair, is excellent. The terrible stereo is still present in the bar, and there’s no ale, but the Cobra was fine and the food great, though it remains to be seen if Walsall Wood High St can sustain 3 establishments serving Indian food, even with me living nearby.

Revisit (and re-opening): The Drunken Duck

Previous Post
Original Post

I’d detailed this pubs recent downfall on my main blog here, and I’m now pleased to note it’s back open since just before Christmas, with a new landlord (Tony from The Wheatsheaf). He’s doing a great job so far; the beer is great (and a good choice: Golden Glow, Doom Bar, Proper Job and HPA), the jukebox has metal, and there’s a live band on some nights, if that’s your thing.

Revisit: The Boatmans Rest

Original post here

I’d been meaning to reblog this for a long time. As The Drunken Duck is currently closed, it’s the only choice in Walsall Wood High St. I really want to like it, I really do- especially given the landlord’s a decent chap, and has put a lot of effort in, and it seems popular enough but it’s just not doing it for me. The beer is Greene King, the lounge is usually shut, and the bar is usually very noisy with a somewhat oversized and painfully set up sound system playing dreadful music, and it’s impossible to get to the bar because people are stood/sat there. The result of this is that the Royal Exchange has become the go-to pub in Walsall Wood, with decent beer, and the ability to hold a conversation, but it’s in the wrong direction for the shops and ATM…

Revisits: The Royal Exchange

Original post here.

A while ago, the pub had a half-hearted makeover that made it worse: it felt even more like a clubhouse. I’m glad to say that’s been fixed: the pub looks smart and feels modern and welcoming, and there’s new outside furniture too. It’s also gained real ale, which is very welcome, and food.

…which is where I was disappointed.

At time of writing, the website says food is served 12:00-20:00, and I’m told if you view on an iPad, it says light bites available up to 14:30. The sign outside says “food every day”.

Either way, having settled down with an (to be fair, excellent) pint, it was dissapointing to be told the kitchen had closed when I tried to order food at 14:01, so we drank up and went back down to the bustling centre of Walsall Wood and the Boatman’s Rest. Shame really, we’d have been set up for the afternoon…

[edit Dec 2016]

To be fair, now things have settled, it’s a great pub with decent food and excellent beer, and you can usually hear over the music or TV.

Revisits: The Drunken Duck

Original Post Here

The Duck has changed hands, now being run by Rob, who’s also still in control up at the Shire Oak.

It’s still not plush, but it’s an awful lot cleaner than in recent times… As to be expected, the beer is top-notch: Rob looks after the beer properly, and it shows. There’s usually the jukebox on, but it’s not generally too loud. There’s sometimes entertainment as well, but the size and layout means you can usually find an area quiet enough to drink & talk.

It’s early days there, but very promising, and judging by the amount of customers, should go well.

Closed: The Horse and Jockey

Walsall Wood:


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[edit: currently closed and derelict, to become a Lidl]

This is near enough to be a local, but I’ve not been in for 3 years or so. It’s on the face of it, a by-the-numbers carvery pub, so not really my thing, but an old friend suggested it for a meet, and we needed food, so we went down a bit early. The food itself was predictable, but not bad at all, prices reasonable, and the drink reasonable too- staff very pleasant. There was even real ale, but nothing I fancied. The niff from the landfill over the road doesn’t help the ambience outside though.

An unusual twist is the gaffer from years ago has returned, so live music is featuring again.