please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
a right local yokels type with most of the punters having escaped from fairmile by the looks of it. mentalists the lot of 'em!
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When the barman/landlord takes up a whole table for his laptop thus leaving just 3 tables for the punters in the front bar (all taken when I was there), it's apparent how important the customer is in this pub! The quality of the ale is great but you do pay thru' the nose for it & as we were left with only the choice of the forgotten void that constitutes the back bar, or the single bench outside facing the road, one round was more than enough. Will not be rushing back.
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Jeb_Crane - what nonsense! Always a decent choice here with 7 hand pumps, always in perfect nick too. Add to that a wide choice of ciders and bottled beers.
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A rather characterless venue. The main problem is a very poor and expensive selection of ales. Not one for the real ale brigade I'm afraid.
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A decent local with a great frontage and situated in a smart conservation area that could be in Oxford or Bath - the beer selection is enjoyably catholic. Unfortunately, the ramshackle nature of the pub is both a blessing and a curse - the back room seemed forlorn on our visit and discarded newspapers were strewn across the tables. Gets a 7 on the quality of the beer
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Leave The Retreat for the BOB - day that happens Satan will ski to work!
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Stop smelling goat's cheese at this hillbilly local and get your bad self on down to THE BACK OF BEYOND. Reading's best kept secret can be located at; 104-108 Kings Road, Reading, Berkshire RG1 3BY. Oh yeah!
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Fantastic pub with bags of atmosphere and great beer.
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Maybe Lord Jason's like one of the jokers who posts on the Reading Post website - they all seem to live in the BoB.
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Perehaps Lord Jason (yes it's him again) would like to explain exactly what he thinks the "charm" of The Back of Beyond is. The place is a huge drinking cavern with all the charm and subtlety of an aircraft hanger.
I am now wondering if this is a set-up - surely one person could not have had such bad experiences in so many local pubs? (most of which are favoured haunts of a wide cross-secton of drinkers who like other things than the standard JDW offer)
If it's cheap beer your'e after then the BOB is for you but if you want a bit of character; some banter and enjoy being in a proper boozer then Reading does actually have some good pubs worth visiting - despite what the good Lord says!
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what an excellent little backstreet local, friendly landlord and landlady, very good beer, and an old juke box with some stunning old music on it, a range of belgian bottles as well, just wish it was closer to me
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I'm not sure why this drinking hole (in the true sense of the latter) gets such glowing reviews. Ignore the fact you have a pub smaller than a shoebox and a rude landlord with a regulars only attitude and there still isn't much to write home about. It seems to have attracted this 'quaint' image with it's bizarre banjo playing lessons (Deliverance anyone?) and pickled onion competitions. However to pull off quaint you need the decor and charm to match of which The Retreat has neither. As for their prices, if you like paying London Club prices you'll feel right at home and a trip to the bank manager could be required for a good session. There are far better altervatives nearby, the BACK OF BEYOND being the clear winner. Now that does have charm which for a chain pub is rather a novelty. I will however give the pub a 1 for the landlord's beard which did take some clear effort as directly opposed to his customer skills...
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A terrific old pub with a good range of ales and if you don't like the choice of beers on tap It also has an interesting selection of Belgian beers (and ciders). I'm sure if I ran a pub it would end up like this (apparently I'm very untidy and hoard things too?). On this occasion there was a "jazz jam" going on, a bit reminiscent of The Fast Show - greeaaat!!
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Reading's quirkiest pub. An absolute gem and must-visit. Combine it with the Eldon Arms around the corner.
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Great pub , superb range of great ale's , very friendly locals made to feel welcome ( being a southampton fc fan even !) noooo leave the toilets its part of the history iam sure .
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Sadly the toilets have had a facelift. The beer and pub remains great.
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Sadly the toilets have had a facelift. The beer and pub remains great.
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great place, have live music on most days, great beer..as for the toilets...I have never laughed so much while trying to wee!!!!! some great jokes and anecdotes!!!!
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Relaxing, lovely little pub. Some say shabby, I say "lived in" which adds to its homeliness. Pub games. Beautiful little frontage with the flowers. Admittedly the toilets could do with some TLC.
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A black beer that tastes like a smoked sausage! How do they do that? What a great pub, although I agree the toilets were minging.
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This could be such a nice pub if only it were cleaner. The loos clearly haven't been cleaned in decades, and even the main rooms look grubby.
I actually turned down a second pint because I dreaded having to use the toilet again. And that wasn't easy as the selection of beer is second to none!
Please, guys, give the place a good scrub and I'll come back.
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MMmmmm, beer and whiskey. cracking pub that made me feel right at home.
beer is well kept and a good selecton.
worth the walk out of town. this pub and the hobgoblin are worth minute spent in.
Jay73 - 14 Apr 2010 14:03 |
Best pub in reading to my mind, well kept beer, intresting , some might say scruffy surroundings , but so relaxing. well worth searching out.
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Excellent little house with a range of real ciders. The Old Rosie and Troggi were both well-kept.
Go up the hill and turn right for tasty samosas at a corner shop
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Fantastic little gem of a pub. Several beers from local breweries. On the last vsit there were 5 ladies singing American songs from the 1940s - wonderful. Stayed for an extra beer just to listen. In an ideal world there would be a pub like this in every street.
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Cosy little den which smells of good beer. Pool table out back and all. A world away from the busy King's Road that it's located off.
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Was in here recently for the Jazz afternoon and tried all the real ales which were all in excellent condition. The music was brilliant too. A proper pub in my view and the best Real Ale pub in Reading.
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Scruffy but characterful back street pub. Two rooms. Lounge has a band on Thursday evening. 7 handpumps including ringwood, harveys and sharpes beers. Worth a visit!
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Yep its all aready been said. Great pub,friendly staff,excellent ale(though odd pricing policy),lived in,GO THERE.
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One of the 2 or 3 best pubs in Reading. Front bar is like the landlord's living room - a bit scruffy with all sorts of stuff lying around. back room is bigger, also untidy. Toilets basic. The main thing is, good ale! My kind of pub.
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Utterly wonderful - real character, terrific beer. Wish I lived nearer so I could pop in more often!
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Smallish two bar pub in the middle of a terrace in a residential back street slightly to the east of the town centre.
The front bar is quiet and is where the regulars seem to congregate. The back bar is slightly larger and, somewhat unusually, has the slight feel and look of a Social Club. It's dominated by a large snooker table and some rather dubious nude artwork that is offered for sale.
There were 4-5 beers on during my recent visit - the Ringwood Best at £ 2.50p was on good form. The pub is a GBG regular.
It describes itself as "Reading's Favourite Back Street Pub" .
It's a rather basic pub that might not appeal to everybody, but I think it's worth seeking out.
Finally, watch out for opening hours - it doesn't open till 4.30pm on Mondays to Thursdays
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Small 2 bar back street pub, smallish pleasant front bar serving well kept local micro brewery beers, mostly from Andwell and Loddon, plus Ringwood. Good range of German and Belgian bottles, plus draught and bottled ciders. The back lounge is a bit scruffy and somewhat odd, there is a decent juke box, pool table and lots of board games etc. piled up on top of the piano. The customers are a mixed bunch and there is a sort of sub hippy atmosphere in the back bar.
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There are enough 'tidy' pubs out there, so it's nice to go to one that's different. It's got about six well kept ales including Loddon Dragonfly, and that's really all I care about, even some of the graffiti in the loo made me laugh.. Will be back for more (ale).
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Saturaday lunch, and I think we where the first customers at nearly 12:30 : not unexpected as it is a bit of the beaten track. A pity, as though to some eyes it will appear shabby, to others it will be inviting. 3 beers tried, Wye Valley - Hereford Pale Ale, White Horse - Village Idiot and Ringwood - Best Bitter. All where excellent and an intended 1 beer visit expanded to the 3. Best pub in Reading for beer, only downside is no food, but as there where few customers lunchtime that's only to be expected.
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Popped in last Friday evening because the festivals bogs were blocked (or something like that). A bit off the beaten trach but well worth the effort. Small, yes, cluttered yes, superb beers - oh indeed. The only downside is that they don't do any food so after one excellent pint of Banks original had to move on.
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If the phrase hidden gem had been penned for a pub it would have been penned for this one. You have the feeling of having entered some eccentric Aunt’s parlour as you step through the door. The whole place has a delightfully disorganised feel to it. Eggs were on sale at one end of the bar and a pot for recycling batteries sat at the other. It’s clearly a ‘green’ bar and a campaigning one judging by the posters decrying beer duty and lambasting Alistair Darling.
Among the clutter of the back bar there’s an old piano, that we didn’t try out, and a £1 a game pool table, which we did. There’s a good jukebox with a lot of old jazz numbers as if to accentuate the step back in time. To round all of this off the beer selection is very good with 6 hand pumps. I had a couple of good Lodden Ferrymaster’s whilst my mates raved over the Old Hooky. They also have an impressive range of bottled beers including Chimay, Rochefort and an interesting smoked German beer that I was tempted to try. Unfortunately, unlike time in The Retreat, we had to move on.
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Difficult to disagree with much that has been previously posted. The beer tends to be very good, but the place is overly cluttered with all manner of junk. This is not "character" - it is simply laziness and untidiness. And why must the landlord be such a stranger to shoes and socks?
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absolute gem of a pub, always some interesting guest beers, real cider and a range of belgian bottled beers as well, just oozes atmosphere of being a proper pub
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Bit of a shambles of a pub, I guess you call it character. That said, it's very likeable and relaxed, and the real ales are always interesting and kept in very good nick.
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Quite simply:
PERFECT
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To combine two of the comments below, the front bar has been recently re-painted and I think the back bar is to follow soon. With regards to the "junk" comment,I know what you mean as one end of the front bar is strewn with "stuff" which, if cleared, could provide a larger serving area or, at the very least, a good glass collection point. Minor details, though, which should not detract from the fine experience that is The Retreat.
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A cracking little pub that would be greatly improved if the licencees would not use it as a store for their junk.
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Went there last Sunday and LOVED EVERY MINUTE! Tried all the selections and they were all top notch, but the best was Chalk Stream by the Ramsbury Brewery.
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Cracking pub with a unique atmosphere all of its own, beer always top drawer
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Has recovered well from its downturn in form and is back to how I was told it was when I first got to Reading – a brilliant community local, with a great selection of ales, ciders and bottled continental beer in top condition.
Bernie and Jane(?) always good for a bit of banter, regulars are a crazy bunch but always good far a chat. Pickled eggs a winner too, as are the board games, community notice board and reading material. It feels like someone’s front room. Which I guess it is really. Music nights are usually good value, and it gets pretty busy.
Inside is pretty grubby, even more obviously so now the smokers fog has disappeared. Some may say it adds to the charm but I think a lick of paint one weekend wouldn’t go amiss. And a new dartboard too while you’re at it, please.
A jewel in the Reading ale circuit.
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fantastic
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last of three pubs I visited in Reading. Lost valuable drinking time finding the place, but rewarded in the end with good beer and company!
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In response to Quinno - I think they had cellar problems about that time. All sorted now, beer top notch. Do try again.
This is a real hidden gem, well worth the effort to find. The landlord and landlady are great characters, they should be on TV!
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Joint winner of "Best Pub in Town" with the Hobgoblin (aka London Tavern) in my view. One of the great back street boozers of Britain. Pity it's not nearer the station, and that's about its only fault.
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Fantastic little two bar pub. Good beer, good company, and very well run. A must on any visit to Reading
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Not easy to spot in the dark, but worth the effort. Long & narrow with the bar along the right and divided into a small front & slightly larger rear room, the latter surprisingly houses a pool table which seemed something of a waste of space on Sat nt, but maybe comes into play when quieter. Very busy, chatty, bustling bar with a great range of beers - Harveys, Ringwood Best, Loddon Ferryman’s Gold, White Horse Wayland Smithy, Grand Union One Hop & Brass Monkeys, Ascot Ales Anastasia’s Exile Stout; and since this was the day’s penultimate pub I think it quite an achievement to decipher my notes to bring you that list. Very good pub.
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Bloody good servic with the staff knowing the beer better than I. A good local with tons of atmosphere.
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Real ale dive bar, old-school boozer in the sense it hasn't seen a new carpet for forty years.
My beer quality was variable I have to admit I was expecting more, but there was certainly plenty of choice including a dark, cider and a number of belgian beers.
I'd definitely come back, but I left feeling just a little disappointed. Perhaps I caught them on one of those 'bad days'?
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The Retreat is fab. Good beer at a decent price, with a mixed, friendly crowd. Can get very hot and smokey, but it's a pub, not a freezer!
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Great beer; they even have Harvey's at times. It can get very smokey though I guess in a few months that won't be an issue.
It's definitely the beer (or cider) you should go for though as it's not the most attractive interior. But if you're just looking for a place that looks pretty why are you going to a pub?
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Brilliant old-school back community local complete with impeccably kept ales, quirky regulars and friendly owners. Alanovich might like to know that Roger Winslet's wife has been a regular winner of the annual pickled onion contest here! Regular music and events. A gem.
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I used to visit Reading quite often and whenever I could, I'd make a point of visiting The Retreat. The beers have never been short of excellent and if you bother to chat to the landlord and landlady, you find that they are very lovely people who are also incredibly knowledgeable when talking about their stock.
It's a very old fashioned pub in many ways, but that really adds to its charm. I really wish there were many more pubs like this - the sort that cater for drinkers who appreciate a decent pint and a peaceful, civilised atmosphere.
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An excellent back street boozer with top quality real ale and a very friendly atmosphere. Last time I was in there, me and a mate struck up a conversation with an oldish guy who introduced himself as "Roger Winslet". I thought: "Odd that he should be giving me his surname". He then went rambling on about his actress daughter, the penny didn't drop until the day after that Kate Winslet is the only famous thing from Reading apart from Ricky Gervais and the prison.....oh, and football fans who say they support Reading but always stick on "And Man Utd/Liverpool/Ch*lsea" as well.
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Tucked away, so much so that it will rarely get too busy here. A bit of a specialist place for drinkers. Certainly you'll get a good range here. And also be able to sample the news and ale magazine
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If you like Ale then this is a good'un!.6+ different Real Ales in good condition, Good range of cider too. A cosy traditional backstreet dive with plenty of character(s), where you can enjoy a beer and fag with frank conversation and no fuss. There's the occasional cobweb but the landlady cleans the windows with premium Indian Whiskey! These are what pubs used to be like, and there should be more of them. Live jazz features regularly.
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Utterly wonderful old-style backstreet pub - great beer, wide range, welcoming atmosphere, friendly landlady. Wish I lived nearer so I could visit more often. (And I'm sure the landlord's dour demeanour is only an act!).
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This is a fantasic pub. No doub the bad reviews have come from people who prefer cavernous and soulless chain boozers, like most of the awful examples on Friar St. I used to live in Reading but never went to the Retreat in those days as I didn't know it was there! Now I pop in whenever I'm visiting as it's the way all pubs should be - great beer, pool, darts, and bags of atmosphere! The only reason i haven't given it full marks is because of the gents - but what can you expect in a traditional backstreet pub!
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Nothing wrong with this one at all as far as I can see. Small yes, but the beer is as good as it comes.
anonymous - 22 Jun 2006 19:47 |
Reading all the poor reviews below makes me wonder if these reviewers all caught this pub on "bad" days...we are regulars in the sense of dropping in once every two or three weeks and have never yet had anything approaching a bad pint. Last Saturday was typical - our pints of Sharp's Atlantic IPA were absolutely top-notch.
The interior is somewhat shabby, but how do you criticise a pub for being "too small"? What do people expect when they see a pub in the middle of a terrace with an exterior no more than 12 feet wide? Tardis-like rooms inside? It's not a Yates Wine-warehouse, it is a back-street public house in the very truest sense and tradition of what thousands of pubs used to be like.
And "intimidating"? In what sense? There are plenty of chain pubs in Reading that are truely intimidating, but the clientele of The Retreat rarely look up from their newspapers long enough to give anyone a menacing glare.
If you want a quiet pint or two in the middle of an afternoon or in the evening, come to that, without having hordes of lads all skinful of 2-for-1s and wanting to stab broken beer bootles into your face, then this is a good place to come.
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Great 'backwater/mid terrace' pub, Everchanging range of well kept real ale and large selection of Belgium bottled beers.
Landlord and Lady friendly and welcoming. A very intimate and homely venue with top pickled eggs and porky scratchings. Live music on Thursdays.
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Grim little beard-hole that invariably stinks of cheap cigars. Poor beer, no room to sit, stand or lean. Terrible service. "Reading's best kept secret"? For a reason, i'd say.
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too small, too cliquey, too smokey, even when empty(and i'm a smoker). As for the beer? don't bother, have a bottled beer instead. Or just go to another pub, probaby easier all round.
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Sorry my review has a crucual flaw. It should read:
Grim bar, dark, intimidating and very very "locals" only. I really wouldn't recommend a drink here, even in the spirit of adventure. Never more.
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Terrible beer, god alone knows how this pub got a top rating from CAMRA. Only time I've ever seen my Father-in-Law leave a pint was in here.
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nice pub for a quiet afternoons drink,varied live music played too,overall a nice old style boozer.
p.s landlord and landlady not bad either.
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Quiet, smoky backstreet boozer with opinionated landlady
Bob - 1 Feb 2005 10:32 |
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