Grizzly Bear, Sunbury on Thamesback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Still smells of smoke, a bit grubby really. Beer ok but nothing interesting or original... Not a patch on when it was The Clare Tavern.
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not a bad pub - quite old fashioned but that is good these days..
TheGP - 16 Oct 2009 16:45 |
Went in last night to watch the rugby. Big screens. Pretty quiet. Perfect.
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Still a Cracking pub !!!
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Great Pub !!!
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Get over yourselves people, this is a site for reviewing pubs - by being so over-defensive you make yourself look stupid.
My opinion counts for no more than anyone elses so I would recommend anyone to visit the pub for themselves and make up their own mind.
TheGP - 21 Aug 2006 16:08 |
At 2220hrs RVP'd for a reccy at target site the 'Grizzly Bear' stop. Backup covered side door as I broke cover and entered the GB stop. Encountered no resistance on entry, and surprised to find local civilians (mainly young caucasian males) enjoying a quiet pint in their local! Stop. No hostilities Stop. Suggest all previous 'intelligence' reports here inferring a Hezbollah stronghold are incorrect! Stop. Request for immediate 'cease-fire' authorised.
Had a quick pint, then re-grouped awaiting further instruction Stop. No shots fired, no casualties, no hoodies, no problem! Will RVP at 'GB' again when next in mufti, for a quiet drink & mingle with Sunburian clientele Stop. No WMD here!! Disregard all previous log entries. Thats an order soldier!!
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Hey anonymous of 29Jul2006
the pub was so bad you had to try it 30 times to come to that conclusion, or do you just like punishing yourself. And the pub is not closing down, its been sold on to local people (just to annoy the likes of you)
Your comments were very very personal (customers and staff are decent but the pub and landlady are not!)you obviously know the landlady (me) quite well and obviously hate me for some reason.
Shame your a coward and never left your name, so i can tell the new owners that your one of our most loyal customers as no matter how disgusting the pub is you always come in here!! thank you
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Well, well... this Grizzly page runs and runs like a real life soap opera!! I have just got to try this pub to see if it is half as bad as some of these reviewers make out! (Why are they ALL anon..?? - Will the Sunbury Mafia, or the Staines Massif sort'em out if they declare their ID..!!)
The 'Grizzly Beer' cannot be as bad as all that!!
My mate lives v.near to the 'GB', so i'll drag him in there for a 'recon' one day soon! Looking forward to this...!! TJ
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Hey anonymous,
I am sorry to say this but I am glad your pub is closing down! It is awful. How can you have a go at that GP bloke?. I live in the area and I can say that your pub is one of the dirtiest and smelliest pubs I have drunk in - and I've been in at least 30 TIMES.
If there was one word for it it would be 'stagnant' - locals don't complain about its poor state so why change it? The only people with clarity here are the new drinkers - if you'd listened to criticism then the grizzly would have been alright - the drinkers and staff were decent enough.
Still, I hope you get another pub and that it is more successful, get a penny off everyone who says:
"Hey, your last pub, the Grizzly was utterly s*** but you've sorted your life out and started to run this one properly" - and you will be rich...
anonymous - 29 Jul 2006 12:23 |
oh and nice refurb in the mens loos about time too
anonymous - 11 Jul 2006 09:14 |
go in to watch footie only always friendly crowd
anonymous - 11 Jul 2006 09:13 |
get a few youngsters in here from time to time. never had any probs with them though
anonymous - 8 Jul 2006 14:09 |
To the "GP"
nice to see you are slagging of this pub again, shamelessly on another pub account though, namely the Phoenix.
Quote "you dont want your pub to turn into chav hell like the three fishes and the Grizzly B" unquote!!
Well for your information, you've managed to ruin both pubs reputation (continuously) as the three fishes has been sold (rumour has it), and the Grizzly Bear took yours and several other upper class people's advice and barred all the chavs 9 months ago, made every friday night over 21's, installed real cask ale for the bitter enthusiasts etc etc in order to make the pub more pleasant for all and sundry, and the pub has been empty ever since, hence the Grizzly Bear owner has had no alternative but to sell up too!! People will just not try pubs out when vindictive people like you carry on spreading bad and false rumours year in year out. If I had a penny for every unbiased �brave� person that said �Hey, this pub isn�t as rough as everyone says it is� when they come in, I would be rich!
Its a shame that most people believe what blinkered, prejudiced folk have to say, as the owner had managed to turn this pub around and cater for all sorts of people on different days & nights of the week. Its not what it used to be. Good luck to the new owners, there gonna need it.
anonymous - 7 Jul 2006 02:27 |
go in this pub every so often always friendly bar staff and have seen no trouble in there. i think people enter this pub with preconcived veiws as it is on the edge of an estate and a bit of a shabby road. but there harmless, from what ive seen the locals respect the place and people need to be a bit more open minded and not just brand it a bad pub based on its surroundings.
anonymous - 26 Mar 2006 18:54 |
harmless dross.
anonymous - 18 Mar 2006 23:28 |
OK Pub
anonymous - 26 Nov 2005 11:01 |
A Pinball Machine has recently been installed (very popular with the older generation, like me!) i really enjoy coming down here now to compete with the regulars
anonymous - 23 Nov 2005 14:38 |
To "Anonymous 6Nov05"
Hmmmmm very funny.... Of course i had to go search for The Green Man and had a look at the comments, therefore this will tell you that
1) NO i do not own that pub as well.
2) I do not know the pub or the manager Jules at all, but can obviously empathise with her.
3) We both appear to have more loyal and satisfied customers than unstatisfied ones!
and lastly, it appears
some people will complain just about anything and anyone............... All you can do is try your best, correct any mistakes and learn from them.
oooops so sorry gotta rush off now, one of my customers thinks his beer mat is too wet, so i'd better replace it! :O)
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does the owner of this pub also own the green man in feltham by chance?
anonymous - 6 Nov 2005 09:44 |
Wise words Stellad, but don't aim them at me, as none of the recent posters have been me, and there was no derogatory comments from me anyway in the first place!
people need to loosen up and see that most posters are positive about this pub rather than getting on their high horse about any implied criticism.
The whole point of this site is to express peoples opinions, good and bad.
My only criticism originally was **on that day** the miserable service and the dodgy geezers hanging outside - This is a valid criticism for that particular visit, and I am not saying it is like that all the time. Or am I meant to be happy about being served by someone looking like their dog had died?
Otherwise, full marks for a local community pub - I think it is a very good thing.
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I seem to have come into this discusion a little late. I have been a regular at the pub for about 12 years, through most of its incarnations. To The GP and all the anonymous detractors of the pub, I would suggest that they try talking to some of the customers instead of making ill-founded judgements based upon the way people look or sound. My friends up at the "old farts end" include a cartographer, a gardener, a professional driver (also a member of the T.A. who saw service in Iraq), an engineer,, a metal fabricator, a business analyst from the city and myself, an auditor with a world renowned networking company.....mmmm no louts here!. Many younger people use the the pub and, yes, like most of us they are working class - so what ?! They work hard and like a drink after work and yes they can be high spirited and loud, but there is no harm in that, plus, it serves to keep us older ones awake! The pub, the landlady and the customers are fine. May I suggest a little deeper research before making further derogatory comments.
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I am very impressed with the local custom defending themselves regarding this pub. Admittedly, a really local working class pub will put off a lot of people, but the fact that people can articulately defend themselves as they have done on here suggests it is a pub frequented by normal decent sorts and not violent chavs as you might get in some pubs in Feltham perhaps.
I know this pub had a terrible rep in it's previous guise (one older person I spoke to said it was the worst pub he had ever been in(!)) but nowadays it seems to have turned round by the sound of it..
anonymous - 29 Oct 2005 20:12 |
i was really moved after reading bbbn & Richard Tobin's comments about my pub and then only one thought came to my mind. These VERY friendly "LOUTS" are what they are, what you see is what you get, they are genuine people who will welcome and accept any other people regardless of their age, birthplace, colour or status. I dont think the same can be said about any of the anonymous or critical people who have left bad comments here.
My motto is "live and let live" and as i have NEVER had any trouble, disturbancies or loutish fights involving my locals, which is not the case for most pubs around here, my cutomers and I must be doing something right!!!
kaz14 - 11 Oct 2005 21:39 |
Dear anonymous person 29sep05,
Your comment "Maybe getting rid of some of the louts who sit outside and stop you wanting to go in would help trade!". Is a bit harsh, did anyone actually stop you or threaten you ? or did you just assume work colleagues talking and laughing loudly is the sign for do not enter public house ?. I have been using The Grizz as my local for 7yrs, i have played in the pub football team for 3yrs and at no point have i felt intimidated by anyone. I am 26 and often meet the lads "louts" for a beer after work or to watch football in the pub, i also see my next door neighbour who is in his 50's having a beer. When us "louts" attempt the crossword we can always reply on John "older gentlemen non lout" to assist us with it. Alot of the trade is from locals and yes many of us are either families friends or workmates that all live in walking distance. But that does not make us all louts.
Basically the Grizzly Bear is a friendly pub run by a nice bunch who serve young and old, family's and friends, all it takes is a smile nod or a quick "hello" or "alright mate" to introduce yourself and your be welcomed by everyone. We have a regular from Wigan who no one can understand due to the strong accent but he always says hello and cracks a joke he has been made welcome and is part of the furniture now. So next time you fancy a drink, why not pop in say hello rather than writing it off because a few young lads like to have a beer in the sun !
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I am a regular user of the Grizzly Bear and I would like to point out to the single minded person who see's everybody who is in their mid to late twenties as a "lout", that those louts are hard working people who enjoy a drink after a days graft. So what they sit outside. I am not a local but I treat this pub as my local and have never once felt intimidated by anyone there. The landlady is right when she says that on certain nights you can go there and have a quiet friendly drink without fear from the so called louts. I think the term "lout" has been used as a generalisation by whoever wrote the article. The people this has been directed at are genuine hard working locals who deserve better than that sort of comment from someone who is obviously too good for the likes of the rest of us. I'm a biker, I look like a biker but I served my country for 23 years with the Royal Navy. Does the way I look make me a lout!!!!!!!
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to the anonymous person 29sep05 - I would like to thank you for your fair and well explained criticism. I would obviously have preferred compliments rather than criticism, nevertheless different people's opinions that are well explained can be useful.
Unfortunately, public service businesses (pubs/clubs) have to accomodate local people who are in their catchment area and i agree this area has its fair share of louts, but they only frequent the pub at certain times of the week (mainly during premiership football matches shown on sky TV) and pay day (Fridays) as they do not have endless money to spend and have to work and sleep!! To (and i quote) "get rid of them" would mean losing half my trade and would incite an act of discrimination against working class people who are either rougher or louder than the average person.
However, i try and want to accomodate all different kinds of people who would like to visit this pub for whatever reason. Therefore, if all you require is a nice quiet drink down your local pub (and why should'nt you!) then can i suggest you try and visit us on a Monday, Tuesday, Saturday or Sunday evening when a handful of mature regular customers and I enjoy a nice quiet drink ourselves. You would be more than welcome.
kaz14 - 30 Sep 2005 02:12 |
I would like to say that I have visited the Grizzly and as much as I feel for the owners who are obviously trying very hard to turn it round, it still has the wrong sort of atmosphere for a quite beer. The customers seems to run it.
Maybe getting rid of some of the louts who sit outside and stop you wanting to go in would help trade!
anonymous - 29 Sep 2005 14:56 |
Although many people are very opinionated about pubs on this site, myself included, I doubt whether many people would not go in a pub because of comments on here. Especially if there is a mixture of good and bad as there is about this pub.
Personally I would always rather visit a pub myself to get the flavour if it, and if the criticism is unfounded then you have nothing to worry about hopefully. If there criticism all says similar things, then perhaps take note of it, after all this site could act as a useful source for improving your pub (not saying this applies to you by the way..)
TheGP - 18 Aug 2005 16:37 |
not touchy, just plain old upset!
If you ploughed your entire live and money into something, worked 24/7, sweated drops of blood, and had taken months and endless loads of money to transform a dive into a reasonable establishment (i'm not saying its fantastic) but reasonable.... and some one comes along and says its dreadful (for other potential people/customers to see), would you be smiling?
What you critics seem to forget is that not all establishments are owned by money spinning conglomerate breweries, they are owned by hard working families with children, who's live's depend on the reputation of their work!! I doubt that you've lost any sleep over your care less comments like i have!! Thanks very much!
kaz14 - 17 Aug 2005 00:29 |
Bit touchy on the old criticism in here.
anonymous - 16 Aug 2005 13:17 |
To the anonymous person who made his/her comments yesterday 14.8.05; WHY IS IT A DREADFUL PUB?? you never said why it was so dreadful, and why be so nasty?
Also all that is advertised on this website is that there is "outside seating" at this pub not a beer garden!!!!!
As for this pub only being able to offer a bear and a cat. It also has a jukebox, quiz & fruit machine, darts & Pool Table, free pub games, Big Screen Sky TV, weekly quiz nights with 1st, 2nd & 3rd prizes, occasional live music, free bar snacks on a sunday, weekly special low priced drinks, and we are one of the lowest priced beer/lager pubs in the area (apart from the three fishes which is brewery owned) If we could offer our community any more (within the licensing laws) WE WOULD!!
We are so sorry you did not enjoy your time spent in this pub. We try to, but can never please everybody. But please, do not leave a statement like that again against any establishment without backing it up so we can at least try to rectify it and improve our premises and service to the community within the laws and our financial ability!!!!
kaz14 - 15 Aug 2005 13:09 |
nice enough. not the best pub in Sunbury but not the worst either. quiz nights are good on a thursday
anonymous - 13 Jun 2005 19:53 |
OK, OK, This is not the place for an English Flags=Racist discussion, which I do not agree with by the way - You should be able to fly your flag with pride. Sadly, in Feltham and surrounding, this often means something else. There is a National Front problem round here. Nuff said..
But obviously this pub has no connections with anything dodgy like that! This pub does have mostly positive comments, so I will return and give it another go methinks, perhaps of an evening,
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Quite frankly, if ANY pub had "Ebony & Ivory" on the jukebox I would give it a wide berth just on the grounds of abominable musical taste - I would also take issue with the GP's comments regarding the display of the Union/St.George's flag:
I am neither a chav nor a fascist but, believe it or not, I am proud of my Country's/Kingdom's flags.
Would the GP, incidentally, also ask for a simliar "sign" proclaiming the reason for such a flag display if it was that of another country? Somehow, I doubt it.
I am in harmony with the GP however, on the noise pollution and drink/driving aspects of his post. Both of these things are, unfortunately, still far too prevalent in our society today.
At an overall rating of 6.7, however, perhaps this is another establishment that I should put on my list for the next time I wander back up to Greater London.
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Nothing wrong with pubs frequented by LOCAL people as you put it Kaz, and I never said there was. You make the pub sound a hotbed for community spirit and I congratulate you for that.
However, you have to judge by what you find. If you think a bunch of Chavs playing their dodgy boom box at earth shattering volume in a pub car park is something to be proud of.. They were also drinking, and then drove off as well - Not that you would condone that I am sure.
Therefore I recommend, not to put off first time visitors like me:
1- Discourage behaviour such as above
2- Encourage your staff to smile a little - I was met with a very unwelcoming surly look.
3- Put up signs saying "Welcome back Brother in Law from the Navy"
Forgive me for associating the flags thing with a right wing pub, it is easily done, especially if all the pubs in the area that do the same ARE right wing pubs (ever been in the Three Fishes?)
However, if as you say, all race, creeds and religions are welcome, then I will give the pub another try - Hey, they might even have "Ebony and Ivory" on the jukebox when I get there eh?
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hmm....In response to THE GP's comments on 2.5.05. I work at this pub and just happened to be sitting drinking with friends outside that same day the GP was there (although i dont know him) The CHAVS he seems to be talking about i can only assume are LOCAL people, seeing as "CHAV" is not in the english oxford dictionary. Its obviously a made up word due to the GP's lack of education and ignorance. All pubs have and NEED local people in order to survive whether they be peasants or gentry! As for the St Georges and union jack flags hanging up in the bar. These were put up over the weekend because a big party and celebration had gone on for the owners brother in law who left the Navy after 25 years service. They were not put up because the pub, owner or clientel are WHITE TRASH as the GP is trying to portray.
Anyone regardless of trashniness, age, colour, race or status will always be welcome at the Grizzly Bear as the pub prides itself on being a community place. We have young customers who meet up with friends, a pub football team who come in after training sessions and by the way WON the WEST MIDDLESEX SUNDAY LEAGUE CUP last month (Well done lads), a group of teachers from the local school who frequent our quiz nites and we have older people who come in to relax and play cribbage. We have a great mix.
The owner of the pub wishes to declare that given the choice of what category to put the pub and its clientel in between discriminatory & bigotted (like the GP) or white trash, then the latter appears to be far better!
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I'm amazed at some of the positive comments on here - I must have gone to a different pub.
Baring in mind someone I know said that the Clare tavern was "the worst pub I had ever been in", they clearly have improved this pub since it's name change though.
Many have commented on the friendly atmosphere = I disagree - The pub seemed OK on the inside, quite dark with a giant wooden bear which is a nice touch. Was served by a very disinterested looking barmaid. Went to sit outside and was treated to some "sounds" by a bunch of chavs car stereo, whilst they were supping pints.
Therein lies the problem with this pub - It is essentially a pub for chavs - I am always suspicious of pubs with lots St Georges Flags and Union Jacks, which are a complete giveaway about the white trash/chav slement likely to be inside. This pub is by no means that bad on the chav-ometer, certainly all pubs in Feltham are worse. But as Sunbury goes, this place is one of the less friendly pubs, and has a similar vibe to the similarly unwelcoming Three Fishes.
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good mix of people in this pub, nice and friendly place
anonymous - 27 Feb 2005 02:30 |
Lovely friendly family run pub.
Amazing transformation from an old mans pub to a lively, mixed age group pub.
Never a dull moment as there is always something to do with the weekly Quiz nights, Raffles, Bands and pool competitions.
They even have their own football team.
Every week something else has been improved and refurbished, very impressive.
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NICE PUB, VERY MIXED REGULARS. BRILLIANT LIVE MUSIC BUT CAN GET HOT AND STUFFY.
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I have to say, the change in The Grizzly Bear since the new landlady took over is amazing.
This used to be a very unfriendly pub. Not any more!
I go to the quiz nights which are good fun and I also love the nights when there is live music.
Overall, I feel welcomed at this pub and love the atmosphere.
Top marks for effort and carry on the good work.
Jill Grove
GROVE - 21 Jan 2005 10:04 |
Formerly The Clare Tavern until new owners cleaned up the place and changed name to The Grizzly Bear in February 2004.
Friendly family run pub with Live music most Fridays, Quiz Night on Thursdays, Jackpot Raffle on Sundays. Big Screen Sky TV. Own Football Team. Pool/Darts/Games Area with fruit & quiz Machines and Jukebox.
Adam - 21 Jan 2005 02:02 |
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