August 2024
The Monro Reborn
Great to see the Monro reopen—and as a real ale pub, not a Gastropub as it was in the last iteration. It was always a nice place—a nice building—and a good location; it’s on Duke Street right opposite the (in)famous Slater Street. But in its most recent times it wasn’t that welcoming (in terms of vibe) as a place to go and just drink. Of course, that may have just been how it felt to me; but it always felt a bit like drinkers were just taking up valuable real estate from people who they wanted to serve food to.
It opened to the public on Thursday 8th August after a soft opening the day befpre. And I managed to get down just after the doors opened and already it was packed with those in the know and those wanting to be in their early doors to check the place out. I was not disappointed. A ridiculous (double digits) number of cask ales on and lots of different spaces to enjoy them in. Haven’t got time to mention it all at this point, but I’d recommend getting yourself down there to check it out soon. You don’t need to drink the whole line of casks but it would be a challenge that should include a taxi home.
There's a nice looking back room for watching the footy in, which I guess will be popular. There is another small bar upstairs which does do a dew casks too.
Anyway, here are a few very average pics (I’ve an old phone). I really need to get back into photography (or at least get a better camera). Anyway a picture paints a thousand words (or maybe a few hundred with these).
It opened to the public on Thursday 8th August after a soft opening the day befpre. And I managed to get down just after the doors opened and already it was packed with those in the know and those wanting to be in their early doors to check the place out. I was not disappointed. A ridiculous (double digits) number of cask ales on and lots of different spaces to enjoy them in. Haven’t got time to mention it all at this point, but I’d recommend getting yourself down there to check it out soon. You don’t need to drink the whole line of casks but it would be a challenge that should include a taxi home.
There's a nice looking back room for watching the footy in, which I guess will be popular. There is another small bar upstairs which does do a dew casks too.
Anyway, here are a few very average pics (I’ve an old phone). I really need to get back into photography (or at least get a better camera). Anyway a picture paints a thousand words (or maybe a few hundred with these).
A Leeds Trip
I was off work this week and had a few days to get and about so on Wednesday I got myself on a train to Leeds. It’s only about 90 minutes from Liverpool (on the Newcastle train) and the train is every hour or so.
Went to Leeds over a year ago, but it felt like not long ago at all when I was first considering where to go. Time races faster than the fastest of things when you get older. Didn’t make any specific plan for the day—after all it felt like I’d gone there a week or two ago so there was no need to. I just got off the train and headed straight to the same ones (largely) as last time. Nothing’s changed much really though they do have the worlds longest and most messy road (and pavement) works still ongoing. Maybe they’ve become a visitor feature to visit, but they make getting around a bit messy and convoluted. It must be embarrassing to someone (surely) how awful these are straight from the train station and beyond (much worse than the Liverpool/Lime Street ones were and they were bad; and that is saying something (and there was Covid to blame or use as an excuse back then).
First up was the Head of Steam on Mill Lane, that would probably be the nearest to the station if it wasn’t for all the road works and pavement closures. Actually walked past three pubs I would soon been going to. But to be fair the order doesn’t matter much as they are so bloody close together and you’d end up doubling back past them in any case. It’s a small HoS compared to the Liverpool one, with a central bar. There were four or five ales on and I went for an Abbeydale ‘Splendour’ which was gorgeous for my first drop.
A few doors down, after negotiating the broken up pavements and workers coming in and out of the building getting refitted, is the beautiful ‘Scarborough Hotel’ all tiles and wood. It is a Nicholson’s pub, so you know what to expect.
Walking back on myself past the HoS it was up to the top of Mill Lane to go to the Pivovar pub, the Banker’s Cat. They had Jaipur on, but in rare event mode I didn’t go for it—well not exactly, I went for a DDH Jaipur. Same abv different drink (ish).
Across the road is Tapped, a boss large single room pub which serves a range of top ales, including a fair few brewed in-house. I went for a Tapped ‘Jericho’ (cask). Had a nice chat to a couple of people who worked there before heading on to the next place (which they recommended).
Next was back on to the road I first walked down out of the railway station (New Station Street (should be renamed ‘Barely Accessible Obstacle Street). It turned out that the Friends of Ham is largely a keg pub (over ten lines I think) and there was just one cask on (a Kirkstall). I went for a keg beer (!) as I get enough Kirkstall in Liverpool to be fair. That said the keg I chose was nowt to write home about—so I wont write it here either. Nice place though. Will be even nicer when the pavements are open. I will go back. And I do like ham too.
At this point all five of the pubs I’d been to were within around 300 metres or so from the station. Not a bad crawl without getting your steps in. So next up was all of another 300 metres north of the station. A crazy long walk. Not. I headed on up to the Turk’s Head and Whitelocks hidden on a strangely ancient alleyway behind the modern shopping area. If you don’t know it’s there you would never find it. It’s like a Diagon Alley for real ale drinkers.
Similar hidden alleys of the same street (Briggate) also hid my next two pubs which were the Angel(a Sam Smith’s pub) and the Ship Inn. And that was it. May afternoon in Leeds was done.
Favourite stomach lining: Shiraz Full English in Liverpool
Left and arrived on time.
The pubs I got to (in order) were:
Head of Steam (Mill Lane)
Scarborough Hotel
Bankers Cat
Tapped
Friends of Ham
Turk’s Head
Whitelocks
Angel
Ship Inn
And impressively the train was on time both going and returned me to Liverpool. Who knew that timetables were just fiction or aspirational? Happy days.
Went to Leeds over a year ago, but it felt like not long ago at all when I was first considering where to go. Time races faster than the fastest of things when you get older. Didn’t make any specific plan for the day—after all it felt like I’d gone there a week or two ago so there was no need to. I just got off the train and headed straight to the same ones (largely) as last time. Nothing’s changed much really though they do have the worlds longest and most messy road (and pavement) works still ongoing. Maybe they’ve become a visitor feature to visit, but they make getting around a bit messy and convoluted. It must be embarrassing to someone (surely) how awful these are straight from the train station and beyond (much worse than the Liverpool/Lime Street ones were and they were bad; and that is saying something (and there was Covid to blame or use as an excuse back then).
First up was the Head of Steam on Mill Lane, that would probably be the nearest to the station if it wasn’t for all the road works and pavement closures. Actually walked past three pubs I would soon been going to. But to be fair the order doesn’t matter much as they are so bloody close together and you’d end up doubling back past them in any case. It’s a small HoS compared to the Liverpool one, with a central bar. There were four or five ales on and I went for an Abbeydale ‘Splendour’ which was gorgeous for my first drop.
A few doors down, after negotiating the broken up pavements and workers coming in and out of the building getting refitted, is the beautiful ‘Scarborough Hotel’ all tiles and wood. It is a Nicholson’s pub, so you know what to expect.
Walking back on myself past the HoS it was up to the top of Mill Lane to go to the Pivovar pub, the Banker’s Cat. They had Jaipur on, but in rare event mode I didn’t go for it—well not exactly, I went for a DDH Jaipur. Same abv different drink (ish).
Across the road is Tapped, a boss large single room pub which serves a range of top ales, including a fair few brewed in-house. I went for a Tapped ‘Jericho’ (cask). Had a nice chat to a couple of people who worked there before heading on to the next place (which they recommended).
Next was back on to the road I first walked down out of the railway station (New Station Street (should be renamed ‘Barely Accessible Obstacle Street). It turned out that the Friends of Ham is largely a keg pub (over ten lines I think) and there was just one cask on (a Kirkstall). I went for a keg beer (!) as I get enough Kirkstall in Liverpool to be fair. That said the keg I chose was nowt to write home about—so I wont write it here either. Nice place though. Will be even nicer when the pavements are open. I will go back. And I do like ham too.
At this point all five of the pubs I’d been to were within around 300 metres or so from the station. Not a bad crawl without getting your steps in. So next up was all of another 300 metres north of the station. A crazy long walk. Not. I headed on up to the Turk’s Head and Whitelocks hidden on a strangely ancient alleyway behind the modern shopping area. If you don’t know it’s there you would never find it. It’s like a Diagon Alley for real ale drinkers.
Similar hidden alleys of the same street (Briggate) also hid my next two pubs which were the Angel(a Sam Smith’s pub) and the Ship Inn. And that was it. May afternoon in Leeds was done.
Favourite stomach lining: Shiraz Full English in Liverpool
Left and arrived on time.
The pubs I got to (in order) were:
Head of Steam (Mill Lane)
Scarborough Hotel
Bankers Cat
Tapped
Friends of Ham
Turk’s Head
Whitelocks
Angel
Ship Inn
And impressively the train was on time both going and returned me to Liverpool. Who knew that timetables were just fiction or aspirational? Happy days.