Angel, Waltham Abbeyback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
I have totally fallen in love with this pub. I have only visited on 4 occasions so far, but I liked it immediately from my first visit and have found my opinion being reinforced and strengthened on every subsequent visit.
This is an unassuming and yet delightful little neighbourhood pub on the edge of the town centre. It's a McMullen's house and serves their usual range of beers. Here they are kept well and served with a friendly welcome. It's the ambience of the place that makes it so appealing to me though. I first tried the left hand bar, which on the day I first entered had the air of a little local private members club, but in a good way. As in it was full of what I presume to be regulars just sitting there utterly relaxed and chatting away in a very cosy room, rather than there being any "you ain't from around here now are you stranger" hostility towards new customers. Like the staff the customers were relaxed, cheerful and friendly. There was football on the telly but nobody was screaming or being overly exuberant, they were just watching the game. That doesn't sound like much but sadly these days, it is hard to find a pub where people aren't taking it all waaaaay too seriously and making it a horrible place to just try and have a drink. There are a couple of booths with a long table and bench seating that also have their own smaller TV at the the end for people to still watch sports. There is also a dart board. On my second visit to the pub with my other half we were sat near the board and the darts was also on the telly, not particularly our thing, but again everyone was managing to watch and play without shouting or losing their temper and the vibe is totally relaxed and friendly.
The right hand bar, still has a TV but is much more the place people go to for a quiet chat over a few drinks and has a pleasant, convivial atmosphere again and is also very cosy and a great place to hide away from unpleasant weather outside and literally just relax and take a breather. It is the larger bar and is more spacious with a decent number of tables. Haven't eaten here yet, but the food looks and smells lovely. This pub isn't where you would head for a "big night out" but for a nice catch-up with mates, a weeknight drink with your other half or maybe even a cheeky pint on your own while you read the paper, it is a little slice of heaven.
My only two criticisms have been: 1) that at times they have on member of bar staff working both sides of the pub which can lead to a more relaxed pace of service, which didn't bother me personally as I was not in any kind of hurry, but might try the patience of some who crave instant gratification at all times. 2) Not a criticism of the pub, but of McMullen's who brew many wonderful beers but not all are available at every pub at any given time and so sometimes they don't have some of their best offerings here and worse still they did give them "Rival" which is apparently McMullen's attempt to produce an alternative cask based Stout to compete with Guinness. Not a rivalry, not even the same league. It was wretched.
Enough of that brief negativity - let's end on a positive note for a wonderful pub. If you are anywhere near here and fancy a pint - make this your first port of call!
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McMullens pub with AK and 'McMullens cask ale' (�3.10/pt), quality fine. Sky sports in Bar area...quiote busy on my visit today.
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Visited again Fri 20 May; pub unchanged since our 2008 visit - friendly, clean, comfortable and great value.
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Decent pint of AK @ �2.70. Nice beer garden. Clean toilets, friendly barstaff, job done I reckon.
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Great little pub which serves nice food....would recommend to anyone new to the area.
lou79 - 20 Dec 2008 01:58 |
Very friendly jovial barmaid last night. Well kept pint of McMullen's Cask. Took a friend here for an evening pint and meal. All our food was good value for money and served quickly. The fish and chips (hake) was enjoyable and I also liked the prawn cocktail.
The pub has been redecorated very recently, but not changed drastically. This is a pleasant pub. We did notice that it was a little quiet - Notice to locals out there - Use it or lose it.
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Good Pub, Good Beer, Good Food, mostly good staff except for a miserable barmaid. If you don�t like the job LEAVE!!!
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A friendly, wood pannelled country McMullen's pub, following the company's traditional policy of two separate bars. One bar with a tv for sports has a boisterous atmosphere, whlst the second bar is aimed more towards diners and those preferring quiet conversation. Good food Mon-Sat 12-2.30 & 5-8; Sunday lunchtimes. Quiet recorded music in the background.
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