Pretty much unchanged since 2016, great beer, pleasant staff, nice canalside location, decent food.
Tag Archives: canal
Peveril of the Peak
Manchester:
Another wonderful Manchester pub with a heritage interior, great beer, and great staff, and again, very convenient for us. Interior is proper traditional multi-room city pub, exterior tiled.
The Canal Turn
Carnforth:
The Canal Turn sits alongside the A6, with the Lancaster Canal to the other side. It’s a traditional pub, with some modern bits to the building, like large windows looking out over the canal. We’d just missed lunch, sadly, but the beer and wine were both good, and the staff pleasant. I’d imagine a nice sunny day looking over the basin and drinking could be very pleasant.
The Queens Arms
Birmingham:
Near to, but not quite, the Jewelery Quarter. I’ve been going here for years, on and off, but seem to have missed logging it. It’s a traditional pub, and had been refurbed a bit over the years, and is just the right side of hipster now. Decent beer, food looked good too, but very, very busy- nice staff though.
The United Kingdom
Lane Head:
Just over the way from The Bridge, this was a different matter. Traditional, real ale, friendly (to the point of offering free samosas) and a nice place, even with a few kids about for the Bonfire Night celebrations.
Brewers Fayre (Walsall)
Walsall:
This is a purpose-built Brewers Fayre at the bottom of a Premier Inn, on the edge of the town centre by Town Wharf, and hence right next to The Wharf.
It’s exactly what you’d expect in many ways: bland, lacking in soul, currently-fashionable pubco decor, but for what it is, it is OK. The food was perfectly OK (but, as a note to the world in general, burgers should come on baps, not Ciabatta), there was decent real ale and wine, and the outside seating by the wharfside is pleasant on a sunny day. Staff were pleasant, and the whole place was clean. If you were considering a stop in Walsall, the hotel seems good enough, and the location’s good for the station, shopping, town centre pubs/restaurants, and art gallery.
For some reason, its own website lists it as being near Selly Manor, which is both a bit random, and untrue, as Selly Manor is someway south of Birmingham, so if you were visiting there, there’s many, many hotels closer. Presumably someone at Whitbread HQ searched for historic buildings nearby and randomly picked it.
The Swan Inn
Fradley Junction, Fradley, near Lichfield:
I’d not been to The Swan for years, mostly because it’s not easy to get to for me- it’s way off public transport, and not the easiest to find without a map. However, I was being chauffeured, as I was unable to walk far or drive, and a family member took pity and got me out of the house for a change.
The Swan Inn is lovely. Very traditional, and by the canalside it has a great location to sit outside and watch the boats pass. The beer was great, and the staff helpful and friendly. About the only disadvantage is that it gets very, very busy at popular times, especially in the summertime.
The Brasshouse
Birmingham, Broad St
Another I’ve managed to miss from PubBlog. It’s a standard modern pubco pub inside: typical pubco menu, but pretty OK: the location ensures it’s busy. Staff generally pleasant, beer and food usually fine, and again, right by the ICC/Symphony Hall. Prices OK considering.
The Soloman Cutler
Birmingham, Broad St:
Right over the road from the ICC and Symphony Hall, and near the Hyatt, this is in the middle of the Broad St “entertainment” piss up area. It’s a Lloyds No.1 (i.e: a ‘spoons), and I don’t know how I’ve missed including it before: if you’re working at or visiting the ICC it’s an expenses-friendly place for lunch, and a handy place for pre-show drinks or food for Symphony Hall at a good price. On this visit I was feeling below par, owing to side-effects of some (prescribed) drugs,so eschewed alcohol, but prior experience had shown the beer to be good, and the food was pretty decent, in that “know what you’re getting” way, and the wine seemed to gain approval. You could do worse on Broad St.
The Bottle and Glass
Black Country Living Museum, Dudley:
Originally from Brierly Hill Rd, Brockmore, backing on to the canal, this pub was taken and rebuilt at the museum where it continues to not serve lager “it’s not been invented yet” :-). It’s a nice place, a genuine timewarp (though you can get timewarp without paying for admission), and the beer, cider, and cobs were all fine, and the staff pleasant. No real glasses outside, sadly, but otherwise no complaints. Staff pleasant, prices OK for captive audience, decent outside space on a gorgeous hot day.