BITE user comments - Tancred
Comments by Tancred
Up for sale now - the refurb, management and staff/bouncers have ruined another pub. I'm sure Punch Taverns are proud of themselves!!!
24 Apr 2015 12:10
The Vine (Bull & Bladder), Brierley Hill
I first went to this pub back in 1978 with my brother-in-law who had moved to Brierley hill with his job.
I next visited in 2012.
I could not discern any change - apart from the fact i had less hair and a better taste in clothes.
This place is marvellous.
And the beer aint three bad either..
14 Jan 2014 18:10
New team and what a change !
The food is exceptional and VERY well priced and the beer/cider and service great.
Immense change for the better
15 Aug 2013 12:41
New management and higher prices. Can't compete with the Nailers or the Dodford now. Locals have deserted it for cheaper booze and better service. Some of the bar staff very inexperienced. Great shame.
12 May 2013 12:03
I do like this pub. Stayed twice in early/mid 2012 and enjoyed it. Close to Cheddar etc. Cider is great as were the beers. Locals very friendly and one even asked me to keep an eye on his shotgun whilst he went for a pee. No, honestly.
Great pub and welcomes dogs too.
2 Jan 2013 12:46
We used to drink here back in the early 80's
Went back spring 2012 and it still feels the same. Great choice of really good beer and the food we had was excellent. Staff very friendly and they made Rosie, our dog, especially welcome.
2 Jan 2013 12:41
Just changed hands and the new management seem to be putting up a good show.
14 Mar 2012 15:46
Went in about 2 weeks ago and what a transformation. Gone from wine bar (i.e. creche) chic back to a trad pub with great real ale and allows dogs in.
Best pub on the High Street.
26 Feb 2012 11:13
Been in since the makeover - you wouldn't know.
This is a good pub with nice food and beer but we left due to the clientele - noisy chavs out for a "posh nosh" who couldn't even use a knife and fork properly. It put me right off my pint having to sit next to them.
I know some would say who cares but when did the British become so common?
And when did parents/school meals assistants stop teaching kids how to eat politely?
6 Feb 2012 09:29
This used to be a Saturday regular for me and my mates but since the change in ownership it has really gone down hill.
The beer choice is poor, the food is rubbish and the staff!!!! They are so unwelcoming its hard to stay in the place.
I guess we will all have to wait for a change of ownership again...
6 Feb 2012 09:18
Visited this and had a great pint, nice inexpensive food and they allow dogs in the bar.
28 Nov 2011 15:24
Tried this on the strength of the reviews. Its pretty but, despite being a country pub and having a tiled bar area - no dogs. That lost them �40 worth of business and no return visits.
We went to the Chequers for lunch and then The Bridge down the road after a canal walk.
28 Nov 2011 15:21
Never too happy with this pub. Short opening times, very cliquey and the staff a little "cold". No dogs allowed - its a country pub?
28 Nov 2011 15:17
Had lunch here last week.
Staff very pleasant, the beer good. We had a shared platter - not recommended as it was all, very, deep fried. Just too greasy by far and tasteless.
They redeemed themselves with my steak - 14oz rib-eye and cooked perfectly - rare! So big I couldn't eat it all so the dog had the rest. My wife had a half chicken - again too much so again the dog had it.
Would go back but never have starters - main course is plenty.
13 Nov 2011 08:46
The Plough and Harrow, Catshill
Just spotted baggydaves reference to Walkabout. You dirty old man!!! Actually you can get a DVD of it on Amazon. I did.
13 Nov 2011 08:25
Went in a couple of weeks ago for a quick lunchtime pint and despite a very loud and frankly common group who, thankfully, left I was impressed by the return to the traditional decor and the real ale on tap.
Will be going again today for a Sunday lunchtime drink.
13 Nov 2011 08:14
The Barnt Green Inn, Barnt Green
To put the record straight - I have begun to return to this pub.
Had a great meal in June and enjoy the atmosphere and subtle music. Fair play.
Just one thing. The staff on the whole good - one even remembers my drink - but the management understaff in the daytime and consequently you can end up standing at the bar with no-one in sight for minutes as the staff run about behind the scenes.
I have seen people walk out. At the prices charged service should be at a high level.
29 Jul 2011 07:11
Changed hands, again !
Now upmarket prices and hardly anywhere to sit/stand if you just want a drink. Most locals have now moved back to the BGI or joined the Social Club next door.
Latest wheeze is that they are inviting people to bring their kids who "eat for free".
That means that my meal price is set to cover the food of other peoples sprogs who will then run around screaming whilst we try to enjoy a meal.
Thanks - but no thanks.
Give this a miss . The prices are about the same as the Barnt Green Inn with none of the atmosphere.
29 Jul 2011 07:05
I have visited this place twice now in the last 2 months and am disappointed by the atmosphere.
its obviously a food pub - the tables are pre laid with cutlery, napkins and wine glasses - which screams out - NO DRINKERS WANTED. Unfortunately that also puts me off going in for a meal in the future.
Staff not very friendly either.
17 Jan 2011 11:07
The Gate Hangs Well, Stoke Prior
Recently closed due to no trade but taken over by the guy who has just closed down the Queens at Stoke - because he had no trade.
Hmmmm....
17 Jan 2011 11:01
Tried it for a drink - it had been a regular place when we lived in Redditch many moons ago. Then it was a rabbitt warren of rooms, much head ducking to get through the doors etc.
Altogether a very special place - and one of the first to serve real ales that I came across.
Now?
It has been GUTTED and has lost all its charm.
CRIMINAL.
17 Jan 2011 10:56
Went here in 2010 and departed quickly.
The place was being gutted by builders, with attendant banging/drill/jackhammer noise. Really crap choice of beer.
Will not be going back.
17 Jan 2011 10:53
Visited with my wife and ALL the real ales wee off - only lager.
Place was full of mums with prams.
17 Jan 2011 10:43
Reported in this weeks Standard as having closed down.
We enjoyed a few buffet lunches but the beer was expensive and I had to return a high proportion due to it being off or end of barrel.
The Landlord, in the Standard article, appears to be blaming people not coming for the closure but consider - high beer prices, gastro pub atmosphere deters drinkers, rural location (drink/drive) - and you can see why it failed.
He has the Greyhound - which according to the staff is struggling and has taken over the Gate Hangs Well down the road which recently closed due to poor customer levels!!!!
Watch this space.
Pubs are dying. They mostly resemble restaurants now and so they have no regular drinkers and at �3.50- �4+ per pint its hardly surprising.
PubCos are greedy and publicans have sacrificed regular beer trade by turning into gastropubs. Quite how many gastropubs can an area stand??? Plus every pub that closes seems to become a curry house and even they tell me they are struggling now due to market saturation.
Who the hell can afford �30-�60 every night they go out to have a pint and be expected to buy a gastro meal?
9 Jan 2011 09:46
Great old pub on the green but unfortunately the client�le swim in the shallow end of the gene pool.
I felt grubby after I had been there 10 mins. - and this is from a guy who has drunk in some VERY dodgy East End pubs. Unfortunately we Brummies do down at heel very well.
If it wasn't for welfare benefits and the drug trade I guess most Birmingham city pubs would close down for lack of income.
29 Dec 2010 12:21
The Navigation Inn, Kings Norton
Must agree with FloridaM.
I visited after after Farmers Market in April and sticky/chavvy describes it very well.
When did the British people get so gross? The place was full of rude drunks and the tables, menus and chairs looked like they were covered with grease and food debris.
I loved this pub when I was a kid - the interior was fantastic. Now its just a drinking hole.
29 Dec 2010 12:14
The Black Horse Hotel, Northfield
Tried it just after it opened.
An ignorant barmaid nearly ruined the session as she knew nothing about CAMRA vouchers, how to pour a pint and threw a moody when I told her the beer was off but the manager sorted me out, agreed the beer was off, gave me a CAMRA discount and a fresh pint of something else whilst closing down the other pump - while she just scowled at me in the background.
Common as muck and someone who should just be sacked.
It is a good refurb but its Northfield - and an air of menace and drunken wino's already prevail. Despite only being open for about 2 weeks the place had already begun to look tatty.
The Golden Cross in Bromsgrove seems posh by contrast !
29 Dec 2010 12:03
This pub is situated in the medieval heart of Northfield (Nordfeld) opp. the church and very historic.
We had a very nice drink here in the summer though I expect it can get a bit lairy at times. It felt like we were in a country pub.
Hadn't been in since I was at school and bunking off.
29 Dec 2010 11:54
Further research finds it has been taken over and "refurbed" by the same people who own the Ewe and Lamb, which doesn't fill me with confidence..
I hope to God they haven't painted it in mushroom matt and taken all the paraphernalia down.
I will report back....
29 Dec 2010 11:27
What can I say.
This is a quintessential English pub.
It ain't cheap but well worth the expense to sit inn a real Tudor pub, drink real ale by an open fire, eat good food and even be given treats for the dog.
I took a French friend here for lunch in the summer and she nearly wet herself - she had never seen a pub like it and made her day.
I like it that much I would move to Ombersley just to have it as my local.
Shockingly, however I have just seen a website that says it is closed - bankrupt.
29 Dec 2010 11:18
Went here yesterday, after finding the Hanbury Turn closed, and didn't go in.
Massive pub but like a grave - two customers.
29 Dec 2010 11:08
Never been and the lack of comments supports my belief that no-one in Charford is literate.
29 Dec 2010 11:04
Tried it in October.
I was surprised. Its rough but I liked it.
29 Dec 2010 10:59
Tried it yesterday - 28th Dec.
Decent pint of Abbots but the pub doesn't feel like it can succeed.
Its well finished but the location, next to Charford, will kill it. I visited earlier in the year and was not happy parking my car in a car park where the broken glass indicated smashed windows and stolen valuables. I overheard the staff and customers discussing just that problem. The beer is too expensive for Charford folk on benefits and too close to Charford for anyone else. The barman said they were barely taking enough to cover his wages.
Yesterday fairly quiet but a local was fairly loudly f'ing and blinding. Not good.
I'm no prude but there were women present.
Its a shame as I can remember it as almost a country pub in the 60's where mum and dad went for cider and babycham (...not mixed!) on summer Sunday evenings.
29 Dec 2010 10:53
Twice visited this pub in the last year - 4:30pm 28th Dec 2010 the last.
Closed both times!!!
I have now discovered its a part time pub with restricted opening times.
29 Dec 2010 10:30
Visited with my wife in November for a pint.
It feels strange.
Its a lovely pub - I used to go there as a child and sit outside in the "lean to" and barns, now converted as the pub expanded. Barman sullen - no please or thank you - do they train them to be like this because Ii meet so many - despite my saying hello, please may I have..., thanks etc.
Inside, despite being nearly empty, I had to ask "locals" to allow me to get to the bar. A nearly empty pub and yet they hog the small bar. They were yuppie wannabes.
A couple sat opposite us and I got the impression that they were not happy with the food they were served.
I will try again - I hope I'm not wasting time/money.
29 Dec 2010 10:27
Nice pub. very smart and unusual interior - a lot of copper and wood.
This is a very historic pub and deserves to survive.
One point though........it's named after a dog (and the Grafton Talbots) and is the venue for the Albrighton Woodland New Year hunt.
.......so why "no dogs allowed"? It takes away some appeal and stops it qualifying as a REAL PUB.
We would make it our local but travel to Drayton, Dodford and Bournheath instead because of this.
28 Nov 2010 10:34
Bathams - Milk of Amnesia.
This is a lovely pub but very popular in the summer. Good for taking the dog. The prices are excellent.
Go there........!
28 Nov 2010 10:29
The Fox Inn, Chaddesley Corbett
Not impressed.
I visited whilst checking out the Swan and Talbot as we have moved into the area.
The barmaid eventually interrupted her conversation and deigned to serve us. No hello, please or thank you...not even a smile.
That really ticks me off as I make the effort to be polite to people - it doesn't cost and is simple politeness.
We drank up and left for the Talbot for a meal instead. The Foxes loss - now and forever..
28 Nov 2010 10:27
I can remember this when it was an (almost) country pub. It was Vimto and crisps for me back then though.
Now it has been overrun by the Rubery retards. Stay away.
28 Nov 2010 10:11
This is an excellent pub.
The staff are friendly and the beer choice good. They welcome dogs and have a real fire ........... so that makes it A PROPER PUB.
The carvery is excellent value.
28 Nov 2010 10:08
Popped in with my wife a few weeks ago and it felt a bit strange. Had a sense that the locals regard the place as their own fiefdom and looked at us as if we had just walked into their front room.
The barmaid was nice and polite and the beer fine.
Unfortunately the landlord had to send a local outside because he felt that his foul language would upset my wife (we hadn't actually been listening).
That was nice of him anyway and so we will give it another try
28 Nov 2010 10:04
Lovely pub, very dog friendly.
Real ale and quality food on sale. The Woodburner was a boon on a very cold day.
28 Nov 2010 09:55
Up for sale and filled with the same sorts as clients as the Ivy Cottage. Very pleasant and attentive barmaid though - she would be an asset to any other pub, wasted here.
If you want a nice pint in safe surroundings just avoid Catshill all together.
Even CAMRA had a recent article in Pint Taken wherein they describe Catshill as a desert for real ale and decent pubs.
24 Nov 2010 11:08
Have been recently and it hasn't changed. Its been taken over - even had an Indian Restaurant - for all of about 2 weeks!
No real ales, not happy having the locals all "inspecting" my car when they thought I wasn't looking.
Still a place for local chavs, single mums and losers - avoid it.
24 Nov 2010 11:04
Went there with some friends in October 2010 - not happily as two previous visits for a pint hadn't gone well (idle/ignorant staff mainly) - and tried the food.
I will not repeat it. The meat was cooked to a frazzle and two of us had to send back steak and chicken. Also amazed at how small the potions were.
This place has been hyped. He has the local CAMRA guys in his pocket - probably for PC reasons.
Don't fall for it.
24 Nov 2010 10:59
Well, I visited last week and this isn't a pub any longer despite the name.
Just a restaurant. If you aren't eating (and have made a booking) they don't want your business. The staff made that quite plain.
Should be taken out of the listings really
29 Sep 2010 15:10
The Queens Hotel, Belbroughton
Visited this last week and what a shock!
It has changed hands and the nice country pub interior has been ripped out - including the inglenook fire...
The wallpaper was the scary part - covered in faces with staring eyes - its like a Stephen King horror set.
It used to be great and having just returned to live in the area I was hoping to make this place a regular vebue.
Not now.
29 Sep 2010 15:07
The Old Hare and Hounds, Rednal
Well, I have had a good experience here.
I took my wife and mother out last week for the daytime meal.
Excellent fast and friendly service, good food and good beer.
It wasn't my first choice but as we had missed the lunchtime slot we didn't have much choice.
I suspect the chavs only go in on Friday after work/collecting their Giro's and in the later evening.
21 Mar 2010 07:31
Will try this again soon. it used to be labelled "don't even go there". But perhaps its changed now.
The last time I visited a guy I was with got beaten up and robbed by one of the locals in the car park.
But I have to say he had it coming....
21 Mar 2010 07:27
Something wrong about this place.
Its clean and pleasant but lacks atmosphere. Now they have dodgy immigrants washing cars in the second car park. I wouldn't risk my Merc. with them.
I have been a few times lately, just to ring the changes, but my main gripe is the bar area which seems to be taken over by the same group of locals who hog the serving area.
Each time I go to get a pint I have to tap someone on the shoulder and ask them to move.
Much better to go to Bournheath, Dodford, Rednal or Barnt Green
21 Mar 2010 07:21
The Park Gate Inn, Dodford
Now reopened as a pub again. Very nicely redecorated after the curry house tragedy.
Get down there.....real ales and cider plus great staff and customers (like me!).
23 May 2015 16:00