richard
Junior Member
Hunkering down in the bilge
Posts: 20 
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Post by richard on Jun 28, 2017 7:32:38 GMT
Hi All. After joining this forum some time last year I had to temporarily abandon ship to go and do some work but now I'm back and and have set out on my summer tour. I thought it might be useful to you all if I made a note of the various pubs, shops and facilities I encounter so here goes.
Coventry Canal
Alvecote - Sam Barlow by the Marina looks a bit like a club house from the outside but houses a good pub with two or three ales and standard but good pub food. Closed Mondays. Narrowcraft boatyard opposite for all boaty needs.
Ammington - The Gate Inn is canalside at bridge 69. Open All Day serving food and good range of well kept ales and ciders, and the cheapest I have found so far (£2.95) . Landlord, Pedigree and Wainwright were among those on when I visited. Also in Ammington are a few shops with a Tesco Extra at bridge 66A.
Fazeley - The Three Tuns is a good local boozer (no food). Note that it doesn't open until 3pm on weekdays. Serving Wye Valley HPA (£3.00), Wainwright and Castle Rock Harvest ale. There is a Tesco Local near the crossroads.
Hopwas - The Red Lion is probably the quieter of the two pubs by the canal (the Tame Otter is the other). It does serve food but is more of a locals pub. Ales included Pedigree (£3.40), Bombadier and Doombar.
Whittington - The Dog Inn is at the far end of the Village a good 5 minutes walk from the moorings at bridge 80. Serves some food but it is more of a locals pub. Ales were limited to Bass or Abbot (£3.40). Also in the village is the Bell Inn which is more a food pub. There is a good sized Co-op in the village as well.
Huddlesford Junction - The Plough is a foody pub and on the pricey side and can be busy. Ales were Landlord (£3.80), Purity Pure Gold and Doombar.
Fradley Junction - The Swan Inn is well known and despite changing hands every now and again doesn't seem to be able to drag itself up from being descent to being excellent. Always struggles with service when busy but is fine at quieter times. Ales are the usual Everads selection plus a guest ale which was Charnwoods Salvation (£3.30) when I visited.
More to follow...
Richard the Bilge Rat.
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Post by phil70 on Jun 28, 2017 15:41:36 GMT
Whoops, a bit late but welcome back and nice to see you posting..
Phil
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Post by patty on Jun 28, 2017 18:49:07 GMT
Yep and its welcome back from me as well......
pubs and beers ok for those who like beers but if u happen to see nice coffee n cake shop on your travels you could rate them as well
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richard
Junior Member
Hunkering down in the bilge
Posts: 20
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Post by richard on Jul 3, 2017 6:31:09 GMT
Morning all, the tour continues
Trent and Mersey
Handsacre - Moored between the winding hole and bridge 58. The Crown Inn is canalside and is in need of some TLC, however it has just changed hands. At the moment there are only two ales, Bass (£3.25) and Doombar and no food although they are fixing the kitchen up.
Rugeley - Tesco by Bridge 66 with other shops in Town. The Vine Inn is in Sheep Fair and runs a Micro Brewery. Pub is very much an ale house with no food but three ales from its own brewery (all £2.80 - cheapest yet), a guest ale which was Blonde (£3.00) from Peakstones Rock (another Staffs brewery) and Bass.
Wolseley - The Wolseley Inn is a part of the 'Vintage' pub chain and as such is mainly a food pub with a standard and slightly pricey menu. Despite that they serve a good pint of Thwaites Wainwright (£3.55), Pedigree and Doombar. Access from the canal is across the Trent on a narrow path on a bridge carrying a busy road.
Little Haywood - The Lamb and Flag is a large local with many rooms but was not serving food on Saturday. A good selection of beer included Wadsworths 6X, Three Tuns XXX (£3.40) and Tim Taylors Golden Best. There is a small store near the pub which sells papers and a small selection of groceries. Access to the village is from bridge 72 and through a very narrow tunnel under the railway.
Great Haywood - The Clifford Arms can be busy on summer weekends and serves food at lunch and evenings. Good selection of ales include Broughton 80/-, Bombadier Burning Gold, Broadside and Old Speckled Hen (all £3.60). Randomly a man arrived and gave out free samples of his home made sorbet. No reason was given for this behavior although it was tolerated by the pub staff. Also in the village is a well stocked Spar store.
No cake shops were found...
Cheers
Richard the Bilge Rat
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Post by naughtyfox on Jul 3, 2017 7:10:07 GMT
Well done, a worthy project! The Cross Keys, East Marton, and The Mason's Arms, Gargrave, are nice pubs/restaurants with good beers; bit pointless making a list of them as there are so very few boaters up here. You can sleep 4pm-9am without the boat being rocked by passing boats.
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Post by JohnV on Jul 3, 2017 7:14:37 GMT
Wotcha bilge rat ....... was bit busy so missed your return post ..... welcome back !!!
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Post by patty on Jul 3, 2017 7:17:11 GMT
So no cake shops...mmmm must try harder
Home made sorbet....?taste....?choice flavours...
Lovely that you are enjoying your beer tastings...
Carry on...
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richard
Junior Member
Hunkering down in the bilge
Posts: 20
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Post by richard on Jul 3, 2017 16:06:14 GMT
Sorbet was Orange and Cinnamon apparently but I didn't sample it as I am slightly dubious as to the quality of ice confections given the reports of these containing unsavory additions.
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Post by naughtyfox on Jul 3, 2017 22:49:37 GMT
Sorbet was Orange and Cinnamon apparently but I didn't sample it as I am slightly dubious as to the quality of ice confections given the reports of these containing unsavory additions. There was something in the News a few days ago about human faecal bacteria found in the ice at Starbucks and two similar chain food outlets. Sabotage by disgruntled employees? |
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Post by patty on Jul 4, 2017 5:13:03 GMT
Sorbet was Orange and Cinnamon apparently but I didn't sample it as I am slightly dubious as to the quality of ice confections given the reports of these containing unsavory additions. There was something in the News a few days ago about human faecal bacteria found in the ice at Starbucks and two similar chain food outlets. Sabotage by disgruntled employees? maybe or maybe they are not as hygenic as they should be |
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richard
Junior Member
Hunkering down in the bilge
Posts: 20
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Post by richard on Jul 9, 2017 11:46:00 GMT
More from the tour..
Still on the Trent and Mersey.
Weston (Staffs) - The Saracens Head is next to the Canal by bridge 80. It is open all day for food and beer. There is a large conservatory and a couple of rooms for dining with a bar and garden. Ale is mainly from Marstons including Pedigree (£3.35) and EPA. In the village there is another large pub (the Woolpack) but no other facilities.
Sandon - The walk to the Dog and Doublet is along a busy B-road which has no footpath. Cars speed along this and walking along this is not for the faint-hearted. The Pub is on the junction of the B-road and A51 and is mainly dedicated to food with a large restaurant area. However there is also some tables near the bar for those just wanting a drink. Good selection of surprisingly well-priced ales are served including Pedigree (£3.25), Hobgoblin and Salopian Oracale (£3.10).
Stone - A busy place on the canal as boaters stop to get provisions. There is a large Morrisons north of the town and a nice High Street with many shops. Plenty of places to eat and drink with more than a couple of cake shops. There are two interesting pubs in town from a real ale point of view. The Royal Exchange is an outlet for the Titanic Brewery in Stoke and as such serves 6 of their ales pus some others. Sampled were Capt Smiths (£3.50), White Star (£3.35), Iceberg (£3.20) - all excellent. The Swan is nearer the canal and usually does several ales but I was lucky enough to turn up in time for the beer festival with over 40 ales from Manchester and Liverpool breweries to sample. Next to the Canal is the Star Inn which was busy and understaffed. Ales were from Marstons with Pedigree (£2.90) and Banks Amber Ale.
Richard the Bilge Rat
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Post by patty on Jul 9, 2017 13:34:47 GMT
Thank you...enjoy your beers
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richard
Junior Member
Hunkering down in the bilge
Posts: 20
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Post by richard on Jul 18, 2017 6:09:56 GMT
Morning All
Still here and still touring...
Trent and Mersey
Barleston - The Plume of Feathers is a canalside pub with a big emphasis on food. It was very busy on the Sunday but plenty of staff to server everyone, and has a dog friendly bar area with a lounge, restaurant and 'garden' which is really no more than a bit of the car park. They also keep a good selection of ales including Joules (£3.50) from Market Drayton, There own brand ales (not brewed on site), as well as regulars like Pedigree. On the other side of the canal is a large 'one-stop' convenience store.
Stoke, Westport Lake - There is quite a lot of mooring spots along the Stoke summit pound mostly on rings and Westport Lake is one of the more popular. Moorings do have to be shared with a gaggle of very meesy geese. Apart from the lake and visitor centre there is not much else close to the moorings and to get to other attractions you either have to walk up to Wolstanton (30 Mins) or Burslem (20 mins). In Wolstanton there are a few shops with a Co-op and Asda store. Several pubs present themselves but the most interesting to the drinker is The Archer at the far end of the High Street. This is tied to the Hop Back brewery in Wiltshire strangely, and serves a selection of their ales like Citra (£3.00) and Archer Ale (£2.80) but also many other ales from around the country. Burselm has a small town centre with a smattering of shops. Several pubs try their best to attract custom, most of them with the usual town centre fair but the Bursley Ale House stand out from the crowd from an ale point of view being a small two story pub with six or seven different micro-brewery ales from around the country.
Kidsgrove, Red Bull - Up hill to the west of the Canal is the small hamlet of Butt Lane which has nothing much but a medium sized Co-operative food store. Walking south on the canal up to Hardings Wood junction brings you to the Canal Tavern and the Bluebell, the last being a small free house with a changing roster of six ales including Mobberley Hedge Hopper (£3.00), Burton Breweries Stairway to Heaven (£3.20) and Acorn Blonde (£3.20). Also near here is a large Tesco supermarket. Nearest the Red Bull moorings is the Red Bull itself, a Robinson's pub canalside at lock 43. Serves three ales from Robinson's including Unicorn (£3.40) and food all day. Comfortable lounge full of canal memorabilia.
Rode Heath - Limited Moorings between Bridge 140 and the lock and opposite the pub car park. There is a useful local store in the village but little else apart from the pubs. The Broughton Arms is canal side and is a food and family pub but with a dog-friendly bar area. Beer includes Jennings Cocker Hoop (£3.20), Pedigree and Hobgoblin. The Royal Oak is further down the A50 and has just changed hands so some renovation is underway. The pub serves food but has a local feel to it and ales include Bombardier (£3.35) and Abbot.
Cheers
Richard the Bilge Rat
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