Hednesford, Staffs:
CAMRA/Whatpub link
I’ve known The Cross Keys for a long time, and driven past it a lot, but somehow, I’ve never been in it until now. We were having a meal in the restaurant which occupies part of the building but is a separate business, and we were early for our table.
There’s decent outside space, but we headed inside. Friendly staff, very traditional and relaxing inside, 2 cask ales on offer and a couple of alcohol free options, friendly staff behind the bar- overall a nice place for a drink.
It’s a very old building, a former coaching inn, and the centre of Hednesford was here, but is now some way north.
Hednesford, Staffs:
Grand former house and hotel, and now a ‘spoons. It’s a big one too, and there’s lots of outside space (sadly full when we visited). The building’s very impressive, everything else is standard ‘spoons.
Hednesford, Staffs:
Hednesford’s first micropub, in what was previously a sports bar called The Bank, so I’d guess it probably was a bank at some point. It’s got links to Backyard, my favourite local brewery, and unsurprisingly, there’s their beer, along with a few guests on keg and cask.
Inside is pretty typically micropub and also shows the sports bar origins: laminate floor- for example, but everything is clean and fresh, and not clinical. The barman was friendly, helpful, and knew what he was selling. Good range of snacks (sadly no cobs at this time, so we had to go visit the nearby ‘spoons). Music pretty OK, at a volume you could hear over, and the beer and wine were excellent. Given that it’s very close to the station (with a short train ride from Walsall), I’ll be back.
In Ur Pubz, Drinkin Ur Beerz