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Minster Inn

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

Recently, we at thepubsofyork.com finished reviewing all the pubs and bars inside the City Walls. Like a small boy who’s allowed to play outside his front garden for the first time, York’s premiere pub review website could not wait to spread it’s collective wings.

But despite shedding the geographical constraints that had forced us to review hideous puking dens such as Nags Head and Rumours,  we didn’t initially venture too far from the stone walls that had previously restricted us.

There was no need to, for the Minster Inn, located on Marygate just behind the Museum Gardens, was always high on our ‘to review’ list.

Quite simply, it is one of the best pubs in the city, or any other city for that matter.

Iit’s not just us who think so. The Minster reguarly appears in CAMRA’s York branch ‘Best of’ lists, including most recently as the Winter pub of year 2009.

And there’s a whole host of reasons why everyone who finds it seems to like it so much. The mighty fine selection of well kept real ale it serves is certainly a big factor, as is the friendly and convivial atmosphere which we’ve always encountered.

Thankfully, this ambiance isn’t lost amongst  noisy fruit machines or down the back of comfy leather sofas, it is lovingly enveloped in all four rooms, by the attractive interior, which for the most part, is a perfect example of an Edwardian pub and still contains many original features.

We’re not suggesting that anyone visits a pub solely to check out their lavatories, but, if If you’re needing any more reasons why the Minster Inn demands you pay it a visit, then the outdoor (in the literal sense of the word) toilets that nestle at the back of the pub, next to the small beer patio, should seal the deal. Unfortunately for all you new fathers out there, these facilities do not double as a baby-changing area.


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Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

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Posted in Bootham, Gillygate & Marygate, Highly Recommended, Location, Real Ale, Real Ale Heaven | No Comments »

Masons Arms

Monday, March 1st, 2010

Chances are, if you’ve heard of the Mason’s Arms on Fishergate, it will be probably because of the food they dish up to to hungry customers.

Whilst it may not be winning Michelin stars anytime soon (and it certainly doesn’t deserve the twunt that is Michael Winner and his ludicrous dining stars venturing within a pork sausage of the place) the chips are chunky, the pies are prodigious and the prices are p, pr, por, par … sensible. Infact, thepubsofyork.com think this place serves up the best pub grub in the city. So there.

But what’s the beer like we here you yawp?

Respectably reasonable is our answer.

On our last visit, the (somewhat surly) barman could have filled our glasses with a Brains owned Hancock’s HB, a York brewery tipple in the shape of Constantine, Theakston XB or a Ruddles County from the Greene King Stable, which, despite not being approved of by a significant proportion of discerning drinkers, is enjoyed by at least one taste bud of thepubsofyork.com’s tongue.

However, despite this solid alcoholic line-up, if you visit when other patrons are hungry the chances are your pint will have to be drunk next to couples chomping their way through vegetable lasagne and old ladies wiping profiteroles from their husbands chins with a crinkly hankerchief, which to this website’s mind at least, just isn’t cricket.

It’s a shame really because the wood panelled walls and iron fireplaces (both apparently reclaimed from a nearby prison that was demolished) would provide a very pleasant drinking environment if only there was room to sit and enjoy your drink without being showered by peas from a clumsy cut with a steak knife or being inadvertantly pricked in the ribs by a wayward fork. We may be exaggerating a little bit, but you get the idea.

We would usually mention the beer garden which takes the form of picnic bench tables that overlook the Foss and Ouse through railings, but this area tucked behind the car park and is not really worth mentioning.

Unfortunately, It just doesn’t feel quite right visiting this very nice pub for just a pint and so if you’re in this neck of the woods with a thirst  that needs slaking then the fantastic Phoenix is only a stones throw away.


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Rating: 3.0/5 (1 vote cast)

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Posted in Barbican & Fishergate, Food Available, Location, Real Ale, Within the ring road | No Comments »

Bay Horse, Marygate

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

One of the finest pleasures York has to offer, especially on a fine summers day or a crisp winter morning, is a ramble through the Museum gardens.

As you wander merrily around the potted borders, you can cast your inquisitive eye over a Roman Tower, 1800 years old, clamber over the ruins of St Mary’s Abbey (at one point the most powerful and wealthiest abbey in the the North of England) or feed the pigeons, squirrels and chavs with your left over pasty.

As nice as all these activities most certainly are (apart from feeding the chavs; they only accept White Lightning and Benson and Hedges) you would do well to carry on through the museum gardens, emerge onto Marygate and get yourselves into the Bay Horse, a smashing pub that is deserves your custom, not least because it could quite easily have been a dozen or so swanky flats.

The Bay Horse had been serving drinkers for more than a century, before closing in late 2003. It appeared the writing was on the toilet wall when the building was the subject of two planning applications to convert it into residential use, after being laid empty for five years or so.

To the delight of pub-goers, the developers failed in their bid and the premises was bought shortly afterwards by the Little Pub company, who set about a programme of renovation and re-opened as a pub in the Christmas of 2008, and thepubsofyork,com are most certainly glad it did, for it is a cracking pub.

The stylish wallpaper, comfy upholstered seats and contemporary lighting may be a bit too ‘modern’ for some purists but seeing as though it was so recently and extensively renovated, anything else would probably feel a bit contrived (and if you do want ‘traditional’ head up the road to the Minster Inn which is as traditional as they come).

Six hand pulls are readily available at all times and on our last visit, Greene King IPA and Rocking Rudolph (by the same brewery) were sampled and both were well kept and eminently drinkable.

The friendly bar staff can also serve you a packet of ‘Real Crisps’ which has been stated before on these pages, are the greatest crisps known to man and there’s even a plasma screen in the corner which shows live sport, so football fans needn’t miss out on their weekly fix of Uncle Jeff.

In fact, thinking about it, bypass the Museum Gardens and head straight here, you won’t be disappointed.


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Rating: 3.0/5 (4 votes cast)

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Posted in Bootham, Gillygate & Marygate, Food Available, Live Sport, Location, Real Ale, Real Ale Heaven, Within the ring road | 2 Comments »

York Arms

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

This pub is managed by Sam Smiths and subsequently serves up the very affordable and tasty offerings from the Tadcaster based brewery. York’s most up-to-date pub review website quite likes Sam Smiths pubs, but like the Hansom Cab, one of it’s fellow city centre siblings, the York Arms has a bit of a seedy feel to it.

Rumour has it that this place is a gay bar, and the wholly male crowd that filled the small front bar room during thepubsofyork.com’s previous visits would certainly back this up (so to speak).

There’s nothing massively awful about the pub, but the mainly brown decor feels more tired than rustic, and the crowd always seems a little rough around the edges – but like Wetherspoons, it suffers from the fact it serves cheap beer and is subsequently more likely to be frequented by those patrons who make up grade ‘E’ in the NRS social grade definitions.

It is also always hard to ignore the nagging feeling that there are many superior pubs a tiny toddle away. The Three Legged Mare and Ye Olde Starre Inne are both within a two minute walk and offer, as far as thepubsofyork.com is concerned, a more enticing ambience, a better range of beverages and an altogether superior pub experience.

One thing that the York Arms does have going for it is an extraordinary view to the left upon exiting. It sits in the shadows of York Minster, which along with Cologne Cathedral is one of the largest gothic cathedrals in Northern Europe (cheers Wikipedia) and this is one of the most stunning sights thepubsofyork.com have ever seen upon leaving a pub.

However, if your favourite part of a pub is the view it affords upon leaving then its probably not worth entering in the first place, that’d be like a football team getting itself relegated just so it can experience the euphoria of promotion.


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Rating: 2.0/5 (2 votes cast)

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Posted in Food Available, Gay Friendly, Real Ale, Sam Smiths, Within the city walls, Within the ring road | No Comments »

1331

Monday, December 28th, 2009

1331 is York’s only bar with actual digits in its name (apart from pubs such as the Three Cranes and Three Tuns etc who are refered to in the more traditional alphabetical way).

So why this numerical moniker thepubsofyork.com hear you shout?

Surely it can’t be in honour of the battle of Plowce which was fought on the 21st of September 1331 and featured the wonderfully named Wladyslaw The Elbow-high at the head of a five thousand strong Polish army? Probably not. It is almost certainly not an affectionate nod towards a centered heptagonal number either, so thepubsfoyork.com can only assume it’s a lazy and uninspiring numerical palindrome based on it’s address of 13 Grape Lane (if you should know any difference, do get in touch). Feel free to ignore thepubsofyork.com’s lack of enthusiasm towards this bars name though and don’t assume that you should be put off visiting, because its actually not that bad.

1331 Bar and Restaraunt (to give it it’s full title) is a lively and vibrant establishment spread over three floors and as it’s Sunday name suggests, it is focussed just as much on the food it cooks as the beer it dispenses.

thepubsofyork.com can’t comment on the quality of the cuisine on offer but if it’s as good as the drinks, then it shouldn’t be too bad at all. There’s a good selection of continental bottled beers and cocktails the odd Belgian beer on tap and you can enjoy your tipple in several different rooms within the walls of 13 Grape Lane.

There’s the central courtyard which is an attractive prospect in the summer and a cosy seedy snug area just off the upstairs bar. This higher bar services another two adjacent rooms which at the weekends are filled with smiling faces and music from resident DJ’s.

Of all the places in York that thepubofyork.com don’t really venture to, this place is probably the best of the bunch. A good atmosphere and quirky interior make for an interesting visit and your thirsty pub reviewers would much rather have a pint in here or Wildes next door than many of their contemporaries.

However, 1331 has far too many young/good looking/expensively dressed people in here to make it just a bit too cool for these scruffy cats. You’re a lot more likely to find your rotund pub reviewers in a hostelry named after a member of the monarchy, an inanimate object or a bird.


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Edward Balliol (c.1283 – 1367), (a.k.a. Edward de Baliol), was intermittently King of Scotland from 1332-1336
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Rating: 3.0/5 (4 votes cast)

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Cross Keys

Monday, December 21st, 2009

If you’ve read the reviews of the other pubs that reside on this road you’ll know that thepubsofyork.com has a sincere fondness for Goodramgate. The Golden Slipper, the Royal Oak, Ko Ko and the Habit are all belting boozers that sit on this ancient street and York’s premier pub review website expected, based on previous but not so recent visits, that Cross Keys would be the black sheep, the bad apple, the player that let his side down (David Beckham vs Argentina at France ‘98), but its actually not that bad. You could call it the worst of a great bunch and you’d not be far wrong.

When the most recent visit was paid on a snowy December evening thepubsofyork.com noticed that Tetley’s Cask, Stella Artois, Carling Extra Cold, Worthington’s, Fosters, Carlsberg, Guinness, Magners, Spitfire and Rudolph’s Reward (it was December remember) were all up for grabs and that is a range that whilst not entirely inspiring, is satisfying enough.

The most noticeable characteristic of this pub feels a little difficult to address, but thepubsofyork.com aims to be transparent and honest when reviewing York’s exceptional array of pubs and so it doesn’t mind saying that this place seems to attract a certain type of customer. It is doubtful that many of the customers in this place are nipping in for a quick Pimms before heading off to catch a play at the Theatre Royal, but on thepubsofyork.com’s last visit they seemed a friendly and beer loving bunch.

There’s a “beer garden” in which to soak up some summer sun, but to be fair it isn’t much to write home about and nor are the arcade machines or the cheap, microwave friendly food that this place serves.

It shouldn’t be ignored though that this pubs sits in the shadows of York Minster, has a decent selection of drinks and is a stones throw from three of four other cracking pubs. Don’t completely rule out a visit.


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Rating: 2.0/5 (2 votes cast)

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Phoenix

Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

The Phoenix is perhaps York’s most aptly named pub, and thankfully, the pub most amenable to lazy metaphors …..

Over the last few years this ale house has closed, risen from the ashes, re-opened and then always closed again shortly afterwards. This sequence was repeated more times than this website cares to remember, but now, it seems to be thriving and it is sincerely hoped that this place remains risen, for this latest re-incarnation is rather ruddy good, despite its surroundings.

Dour, miserable council properties fringe this grade II listed boozer, and despite the presence of part of York’s medieval walls within (literal) spitting distance of the pub, if you were to judge this establishment by its surroundings you would be forgiven for thinking this place would be as ropey as George Best’s first liver. Once inside however, any misgivings are quickly forgotten.

There is a small bar on your right as you enter the pub from George Street, which is both inviting and cosy. The bar in the centre of the room is well stocked with Golden Pippin (one of thepubsofyork.com’s all time favourites), Timothy Taylor Landlord and Black Sheep – which unlike the Bee Gees, is a trio this website could gladly spend a whole evening with. There was a lack of anything darker or maltier but this can be forgiven, especially when considering the high quality continental lager on sale, which is available in bottled form from a suitably chilled fridge.

At the back of the pub you will find a comfortable lounge area with a real(ish) looking fire, dartboard and numerous pictures of Jazz heroes (the Phoenix hosts regular Jazz nights) on the wall, including Miles Davis, another of thepubsofyork.com’s all time favourites.

From the lounge area, you can access the reasonably sized, walled beer garden which gets ‘Brilliant Beer Garden’ status due to the fact you have a view of the medieval walls, and after all, how many beer gardens can say that?

It is testament to the quality of the pub that at the time of writing, despite only being open a few months, and being a little out of the way, this pub has been visited numerous times and will no doubt be frequented many more times in the future. If it’s all in the name then thepubsofyork.com suggest this public house should be renamed the Macaw, as this species of tropical bird apparently live until they are at least fifty.

P.S. If you’re historically inclined, whilst visiting the Phoenix, you could take a quick detour to the grave of Dick Turpin, who is buried in St George’s churchyard, just a hop skip and a jump down the road.


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Rating: 4.3/5 (4 votes cast)

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Posted in Bar Games, Brilliant Beer Garden, Food Available, Highly Recommended, Location, Real Ale, Within the city walls, Within the ring road | No Comments »

Habit

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

thepubsofyork.com doesn’t pretend to be some sort of authority on this sort of thing (and how dare it when it was once a Boy Scout AND used to collect Warhammer models) but this place is probably one of York’s coolest bars.

It manages to give off a laid back, chilled out vibe without any of the roped off VIP areas, uniform beer fonts and zany bar staff that some drinking establishments think are conducive to coolness (you know, the thing that everybody seems to think Samuel Jackson portrayed when playing Jules the bible quoting killer in Pulp Fiction).

Some of you may have read before that thepubsofyork.com is fond of Goodramgate, and The Habit does nothing to diminish this love.

A trip along this ancient road that heads North out of the city centre takes in stunning buildings (go and have a look at Holy Trinity church) and some very fine pubs; Koko, the Golden Slipper and the Royal Oak are all brilliant watering holes, and the Habit isn’t half bad either.

According to the pubs website “Many centuries ago, the building that the Habit now occupies was owned by the Minister, housing a collection of Stone Masons and Clerics” and you can certainly appreciate this sense of history when you admire the low beamed ceilings and very slightly sloping floors.

thepubsofyork.com also appreciated the nice choice of beers on offer, which on it’s last visit included a tasty tipple from Acorn Brewery and Olde English cider.

This place has friendly laid back staff, a decent choice of drinks, a beer terrace to it’s rear, is in a building packed with character and sits close to some other brilliant pubs. There’s even art work for sale on the walls, but thepubsofyork.com will stick to a pint of Barnsley Gold please.


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Rating: 3.5/5 (4 votes cast)

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Evil Eye Lounge

Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009

thepubsofyork.com doesn’t believe all it reads and doesn’t hold grudges (apart from against Christos Michas) so subsequently won’t be elaborating on the Evil Eye’s somewhat less than complimentary recent press. Therefore, the following review will be based purely on this websites visits to said establishment, and there’s been a few.

If you didn’t know the Evil eye was there, you would be forgiven for never visiting in the first place. The entrance to the bar is via a well stocked shop accessed from Stonegate which sells an enticing collection of spirits, liquors and interesting beers.

Once you’ve negotiated your way through the beer emporium and entered the bar proper, you will instantly notice a couple of things. 1) The huge and extremely impressive selection of bottled spirits behind the bar, and 2) An even more impressive cocktail list which is, according to people who know more about this sort of thing than this website, probably the best in York. (It is on the strength of it’s cocktails that Evil Eye is placed in ‘Something for the Ladies’ category).

However, if you visit on a weekend, you will also notice just how incredibly busy this place gets.

On Friday and Saturday evenings it regularly throngs with trendier-than-thou types all jostling for position at the bar in a Rugby League type scrum. The somewhat cramped layout of the bar area (long and thin) doesn’t really help matters, although you can take your drinks to any of the other two floors, and the longer than average service times due to the aforementioned cocktails being shaken and stirred can also .

All this is absolutely fine if you like that sort of thing (and plenty do) but it doesn’t really float thepubsofyork.com boat.

Visiting on a school night or during the day however is a totally different proposition and it can be a rather nice place to have a bite to eat, sample one of the many interesting bottles of real ale or check your emails (the Evil Eye also doubles as an internet cafe).

When squinting a bit and blocking out the Yorkshire accents, the bar itself has got a bit of a Meditteanean/North African/Asian (those should just about cover it) feel to it thanks to the vibrant colours and very un-British ornaments. Which is most certainly a bonus on those cold, dark November afternoons.


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Rating: 2.7/5 (3 votes cast)

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Thomas’s

Thursday, November 26th, 2009

nullthepubsofyork.com likes this pub as much as an Irish football fan likes Thierry Henry. Unlike the Frenchman (you know the fella, he possesses impressive hand to eye co-ordination and used to drive Renault cars) this pub isn’t that good and when he isn’t cheating his opponents out of World Cup qualification Mr Henry is quite a player. He used to be even better and perhaps Thomas’s used to be half decent too, but thepubsofyork.com can’t really remember if it ever was.

On paper it has lots going for it; it’s large, has high ceilings, a room with an open fire, a jukebox and three screens that are capable of showing Sky Sports. Ridiculously though, it has a bloody huge sword and shield on the wall (no doubt acquired from www.impressgullibletourists.com) in one of the rooms and thepubsofyork.com isn’t sure it needs to say any more than that….but it will.

Like many pubs there’s more than a little something missing as far as York’s premier pub review website is concerned. It lacks a purpose, flair, a specific direction – lets say it is completely devoid of va va voom.

If you stand at the bar you’ll see that Strongbow, 1664 Premiere, Fosters, John Smiths Smooth, Carling, Guinness and Black Sheep are available, while this is a long list it is also an underwhelming one and the Sol, Budweiser, Corona, Peroni, WKD and Jacques Cider in the fridge don’t completely make up for it.

Whenever this alehouse has been visited, the lack of punters, and subsequently, a lack of an ‘atmosphere’ has been striking, and thepubsofyork.com just doesn’t think it could ever be full enough (considering the far more enticing options nearby, such as Judges Lodgings, Guy Fawkes & The Maltings) to be anything else but a convinient meeting place.

Maybe this place isn’t that bad, and whilst thepubofyork.com is never happy if a pub closes down, it just wouldn’t really notice if this boozer disappeared from York’s arsenal of pubs.


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Rating: 1.5/5 (4 votes cast)

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