BITE user comments - oz_chick
Comments by oz_chick
If you are looking for a down-to-earth unpretentious bar in Reading where the music is not Top40 and the people don't care what the latest fashion is, then this is your place. Goths, metal-heads, punks, grungy students - this place appeals to all. In fact, without a nose piercing and an array of tattoos, you may feel like a bit of a freak.
Stay clear of the electric-blue pre-mixed slushy drink served out the back...
Shake off any preppy white collar attitude and head straight in!
21 Dec 2005 11:05
Attitude on the door? Check!
Inflated cover charge? Check!
Lack of bar staff when you need them? Check!
With all boxes ticked, this place is guaranteed to annoy a healthy proportion of the people who go. Having said that, if you can ignore the above, then the pumping dancefloor will sure to please those wanting to throw a few shapes out well into the night. Just don't go too early though, the empty space has all the awkwardnees of a high-school disco.
28 Nov 2005 17:57
I'd really like to say I enjoy this place, despite the fact it's probably got less to do with Australia than Peter Andre does these days.
Sadly, I must concur with fellow reviewers, the floor is sticky (seriously guys, grab a mop!) and the food is something I'm surprised they charge you money to eat.
I still call Australia home - but I hope it hasn't become anything like this place!
28 Nov 2005 17:40
With regard to the previous reviewer... where on earth CAN you barter for the price of your beverage?... I clearly need to drink with you from now on!!
As for the bar - bland, bland, bland. Not that there isn't a market for it - the place pulls in the punters with ease on a regular basis. Just don't go expecting anything special.
28 Nov 2005 17:35
Decent drinks and friendly service - what more could you ask for? Well, you could ask for there to be a little more room in which to enjoy said drink... but minor niggles aside, it's a good place to kick off an evening.
Top tip: don't have the plain pina colada, try the fruit ones instead.
28 Nov 2005 17:32
No reviews yet - I'm quietly stunned.
This is the kind of place that divides people. Half of you will undoubtedly say it's too expensive, too crowded and the music is too loud.
The other half will say it is buzzing, chic and they make a mean cocktail.
Where do I fall on the topic of Sahara? I've always believed there are horses for courses.. and I've not found anywhere else in Reading that takes their cocktails quite as seriously :)
If you want to hear yourself think, don't stay too long - it gets noisy. Be sure to sample their cocktails though, particularly in the 5-7pm happy hour slot during the week. The Strazberi is refreshing.
28 Nov 2005 17:29
Feels a little weathered inside - this 80's idea could really be done with a whole lot more style, but then, if it's aiming to truly feel around 25 years old, then it's nailed it.
If you have never been, and you really liked the 80's then you're missing a good night out. Naturally it attracts a slightly older crowd, but since many of these songs have been covered by boy and girl bands, you'll not feel out of place either way.
Perfect for a boogie. BYO air guitar and hairspray.
28 Nov 2005 17:23
The Pitcher and Piano, Reading
Had lunch there the other day, having frequented the bar many times for a drink at night. Bar it is, restaurant it is not. P&P - please stick to serving drinks... the pesto linguine I plumped for the other day was cold and poor value. Thankfully I didn't get robbed as badly as my mate who had the tomato and mozzarella salad. Two rather small bits of mozzarella doesn't justify what he paid.
Bar-wise at night it's okay. Clientele are well mannered, bar staff though not friendly are reasonably efficient. Go if you are there purely to invest your attention in anything but the bar.
28 Nov 2005 17:16
Student hangout. That's not a bad thing either - it's a genuine market, and this place satisfies it well. I only left because there was a wild-eyed vagrant drifting around the tables, shouting at himself.
28 Nov 2005 17:10
Good atmosphere, but I am compelled to note the recent change to the menu, scrapping the favoured meal and a free drink, now offered only on the crock pot dishes. Frankly - a bit of a crock in itself.
TURN THE HEATING UP, MY THUMBS HAVE GONE WEIRD!!
Actually, two quotes from 'Withnail and I' come to mind...
1. The thermostats!
What have you done to them?
I haven't touched them.
Then why has my head gone numb?
2. This place has become impossible. Nothing to eat, freezing cold and now a madman on the prowl outside with eels.
28 Nov 2005 17:05
This is a pub. A real pub. Where the staff are not pretending to be anyone else. Where a pint costs a pint and a round doesn't cost a small mortgage. Where you can hide away in a corner and down your sorrows in peace with your mates.
Long live this place.
Agree with previous reviewer - if you are after a chic, chain-type wine bar/pub - then this is not your flavour...
28 Nov 2005 16:57
Recently re-vamped, but where are all the tables and chairs? If you don't mind standing, then this place is great - nice beer, reasonable prices. Only other let down is the ventilation - seems a little smokey, and that's coming from someone who doesn't mind a cheeky puff...
28 Nov 2005 16:47
Excellent pub for an after work drink. Good brews, lively atmosphere - just don't throw your weight around too much, it's close to the cop shop, so it's probably frequented heavily by the fuzz.
28 Nov 2005 16:44
It's a chain, what can you say? Service is as un-inspired as the clientele, but then you're here because it was probably someone else's choice anyway. Right?
Just try not to pick the Noisiest Corner Ever (TM) by the entrance to the toilets and you'll be fine.
28 Nov 2005 16:42
Sweeney's are no longer offering chips with pies, but with pies like theirs - who gives a toss! Go in, make yourself comfortable while the lovely old gal comes to sit next to you and read out the specials. Don't give her any lip tho - she'll cut you down to size quicker than you can say 'steak and mushroom'.
Pies are also available take-away (�2.10 as opposed to the average �4.20 eat-in price).
You won't be sorry you've visited this place.
28 Nov 2005 16:38
Good for a cheap 'lunch and drink' special, not good for a night out. Agree with the other comment: it's a pub, not a club. Chain-pub, but decent service.
7 Aug 2005 19:31
Undeniably a massive meat market. It's Reading's answer to London's Tiger Tiger.
It's also where I met my current boyfriend. Damn!
Go: if you are middle class, shop at Kookai and like boys who play rugby.
Don't go: if you are a bit of a chav.
7 Aug 2005 19:29
As local pubs go, you can't beat this one. Recently refurbished inside and out, the owners have done a great job retaining it's charm and providing excellent facilities. Quiz night is every Thursday night - watch out for the table of boffins who take it very very seriously... otherwise the people are great and the atmosphere friendly.
7 Aug 2005 19:24
Bar 38, Reading
The fast food of bars in Reading. Populated with style-less people and dedicated to ignoring any originality, this place is so commercial it hurts. The slowly dating interior is reminiscent of a theme that lost its appeal many years ago, but somehow the people still flock.
Soulless and utterly dire, but if you're looking for an early-40s frizzy haired single mums - world is your oyster here.
19 May 2006 13:50