Going to the pub

Ryton Village and Crawcrook

When I first started drinking (at an age a little younger than legally allowed) if we were not going into Newcastle, the local pubs of Ryton and Crawcrook were where we would go. There was a set route that we would  follow starting in the Half Moon in Ryton village before heading along to Crawcrook where we would catch last orders in the Lambs Arms. We took up this route again a few years later when we had all moved back from University.

The Half Moon

7 o clock every Friday this was the meeting point. There are (were?) three main rooms to the Half moon, a bar for "older" folk, a pool room and a bar for younger folk. (When we used to meet up we were still classed as younger folk but not anymore), we  had never arranged anything by phone or text (no such thing) it was a case of just turning up at 7 and finding out who was out that night, there was always someone you would know there if the usual group wasn't out. I can't remember the pub being a particularly good one, if anything it was just a meeting point. It had undergone a much needed facelift last time I went past and it still seems to be popular from what I can gather.

The Jolly Fellows

After a drink(or two) in the Half Moon we would make the short walk along to the Jolly Fellows. Ryton village was always going to struggle to sustain three pubs and each of the three would take turns at being the most or least popular but  "The Jollies"  would be the one to close. Its a really nice building, now either flats or an old peoples home (rumoured to be owned by John Lydon??) This was my favourite of the pubs in Ryton, not because there was anything particularly special about it but because it was in here that we had the most laughs and had the best time. The Jukebox was really good, the landlords were really friendly and there was always a good crowd and atmosphere. Memories of all the nights we had in there have all merged into one but there are a couple which still stand out; watching England Vs Argentina in the World Cup in '98 and New Years Eve 99-00.

Ye Olde Cross

We would usually walk or get a taxi to Crawcrook from The Jollies but every now and then we would pop into the Cross for a pint too. It was always a good pub but its popularity went through phases. We always made an effort to go there on Christmas Eve when you would be sure to meet up with people that we had gone to school with. "The Cross" has recently been bought by residents of the local community of Ryton after it closed down and they have done a really good job of refurbishing it, they also have regular events like film nights and food stalls and various meetings. I keep promising myself I need to pop down more often after work. I really recommend it, check out the website Here

The Lambs Arms

We would head over to the Lambs arms via a drink in the Fox (just to break the journey up). There have been some pretty legendary nights in the Lambs down the years (haven't there Spence and Tubby?!). Like many of the local pubs it had a regular (bit of a mixed) crowd and you would be guaranteed to bump into someone you know. We used to watch the match there quite a bit on a Sunday afternoon but the highlights were usually the Friday nights and the Karaoke on a Saturday. The problem with it being one of the last pubs on the run was that we were usually pretty sloshed by the time we got there but Im now thinking that may have been a good thing too. Apparently they do a good Sunday dinner there now.

The Rising Sun

We went to the Sun a lot during sixth form, I'm not sure why as it was always the most expensive of the local pubs. It might have been because it had the best beer garden of all the local pubs, although we didn't get to use it very often. It was always the best looked after though so its a real shame to see the condition that its in now. Hopefully someone will take over it and turn it around again.

Fox and Hounds (Coalburns)

Not a place I venture to very often but a fascinating place because it hasn't changed in the last 50 years, I'll pop in when I've been walking the dogs every now and then. I remember going there with Gaz and Gower when we were in our teens and drinking Best Scotch. Euughh.

Whickham

Whickham has always been a popular drinking spot and people come from miles around to drink there,  particularly on bank holidays and Sunday nights. I lived over that way for a while and it was really good to have such a quality selection of pubs on the doorstep. Like Ryton and Crawcrook , there is a route that everyone follows from The Bay Horse at the far end to The Bridle Path at the other.

The Bay Horse

The starting point for any night out in Whickham, the beer is cheap and there are always plenty of TV  screens for when the football is on. Well maintained and a  favourite of the local constabulary apparently?

The Harry Clasper (Wetherspoons)

When this (former council buildings) opened as a Wetherspoons many thought that this would see the end of the Bay Horse but as it turns out I think more people go out drinking in Whickham as a result. A typical Wetherspoons with no music (and so a lot of echoed voices which stay in your head for the rest of the night) Being the tight people we are we quite often just stay in there now when we head out to Whickham. (We won't be doing that anymore though - Wetherspoons is on the boycott list)
It was at the Harry Clasper that I met my wife for our first date, I didn't think she would want to see me again after that but here we are!

The Crown

This place has changed its name a number of times. It used to get really busy with the younger crowd and played bonkers music really loud which meant there was never any conversation when we were in there. Not my type of pub to be honest but you have to cater for everyone's tastes I suppose.

The Gibside

Once a hotel owned by the Fed brewery this place would be chocker on a Friday and Sunday but empty on a Saturday. Too expensive, I always thought it smelled of disinfectant when you walked in. Great views over to Newcastle from the main bar though.

*on the way to the Bridle path from the Gibside is the Jamdani restaurant, THE BEST  Indian restaurant in my opinion.

The Bridle Path

The best and most popular pub in Whickham at the end of the road, the Bridle path is where most people finish the night. This was my local at one point and it reached a stage where I used got go in every Wednesday and they knew what I would be drinking before I even asked. Ive watched Newcastle get beat far too many times in here. I dont know why we didn't just start here, get some seats and stay in here for the full night?

Wylam

I don't get down to Wylam for a drink often enough. We used to have a meet up there over Christmas where we would do a bit of a pub crawl from the Ship, to the Black Bull, the Fox and Hounds and then to the Boathouse. The Boathouse is the only one we would probably ever get to now, I sometimes go there after work at the end of term.

The Boathouse.

If I had to describe my perfect pub it would have to have a good selection of quality beer and a real fire. It would be busy enough that there is a bit of an atmosphere but not too busy that you can't move, dogs would be allowed. That pretty much sums up the boathouse, its an old fashioned pub that has maintained its character, has 17 hand pulls and a nice fire (that you usually can't get near). You might get some funny looks off the locals when you first go in but its worth a trip out to the boathouse and town is easily accessible via the train station next door, its also ideal for stopping off for a drink if you're doing a bike ride along the Tyne Valley.

Newcastle

The Bodega

Pre match pub of choice for a good few years now, the Bodega is in the ideal location for St James and is popular with both home and away fans, theres never any trouble, the beer is good as is the atmosphere. Also ideal for any trips to the Tyne theatre or the arena. It doesn't look much from the outside but it is a bit of a "Tardis" - it opens up when you go in and there is an impressive glass ceiling at the back. There are plenty of tv's for watching the football here. I stopped going to the match at the end of last season so haven't been in for a while.



Tilleys

This was the pre match pub before the Bodega and is just a short walk down the road. I do like Tilleys, its a bit more trendy than the Bodega which is better suited for old men like me, they have an excellent selection of beers from around the world. Can get too busy and can be a bit too pricey though.

The Bridge Hotel

The Bridge is a pub we usually tend to visit in the summer. An ideal meeting place situated in the centre of town but also handy for a walk over the High level to Gateshead, the Staropramen in here is always good, as is the view from the beer garden out the back.

Pleased to meet you

A trendy pub in High bridge this bar is best visited on a sunny afternoon rather than an evening where  it gets too busy. Good selection of (pricey) drinks it has a good atmosphere.

Lady Greys

Formerly "The Adelphi" which was a popular pre-match pub for the radgey element of the Newcastle support, Lady Greys is still a good (if overly expensive) pub located just off Grey Street. Can be a bit dark but its a place I like to pop to for a drink

The Hotspur

This was also a pre-match pub for a while when I used to live over the other side of town. I really like it in there as its got that local feel to it even though its in the city centre. Not as popular as it was since it removed the big screens for the football.

Percy Arms

Only went in for the first time a few month ago and loved it. It was a Saturday afternoon and it was really busy, again it had a local feel to it and all the punters were obviously regulars, the juke box was on and people were singing along. Went back again a few weeks later and it wasn't as busy but there was a good crowd there to watch the cricket.

Bachus

In theory The Bacchus should be a favourite of mine as it matches most of the criteria for what  I consider to be a good pub, yet for some reason its one Ive never really been impressed with. Full of old men and women farting. Handy for the Indians across the road though.

Head of Steam

A favourite of ours, it used to be a bit smelly but would attract a laid back crowd who wouldn't be bothered. Need to pop in next time near the train station.

Trent House

A quality pub but a bit out the way unless you are going to the match or live on St Thomas st. I was in a few months ago on a Friday night and it was really busy. I really like it here, it has a good vibe about it (except for the planks that were in upstairs last time I was there). As the sign says as you leave "Dont be a T***"






The Forth
One of my favourite spots in Newcastle is the window in the Forth overlooking Pink Lane. Whenever I go Christmas shopping I always make the effort to get the bus so that I can have a couple of pints and sit at the window and people watch. The beer garden is one of the best (the best is the one at the Bridge Tavern) in Newcastle and there is always a good vibe. Im starting to think that Im not to far away from being too old to drink in the Forth.

The Town Wall

This is the pub we usually go to if we're having a drink after the match. Very popular, it has a good range of beer but again can be a bit pricey. Would be a lot better if it binned the picture of the bloke with the wonky glasses which annoys me.

The Bridge Tavern

Formerly the Newcastle Arms, this is the sister pub of the Town wall but is much much better. It's directly under the Tyne bridge and has the best beer garden in the whole of Newcastle. They serve food which Ive had a couple of times and that was really nice too.


Popollos

We were regulars here every Saturday night at one point. The prices didn't bother us as we would drink old fashioned and have too much. Loved the old Alfred Hitchcock and 1960s film posters on the walls. I'll never understand why they moved to the quayside, ruined it.


Madame Koos

Not my type of place at all but had some really good times in there around 10 years ago when we were regulars on the "Diamond Strip". This is where we ended up after the Town beat Sunderland 5-1 and was home to the infamous Catwoman incident.

Perdu

I refuse to queue to get into a bar so never go in.

Baby Lynches

Linked to Mr Lynches in Jesmond this was the best bar in Newcastle on a Saturday evening at one point. The only one to cater for the indie scene it was brilliant for people like myself who are stuck in the mid to late 90s. The Roses, Pulp and other classics belting out on a Saturday night, there was nowhere better except for...

Work Headquarters (Club)

The only club in Newcastle worth going to. Need to have a night out there soon. Ran by good people it has a brilliant ethos (see website here https://www.welovewhq.com) and excellent music and atmosphere is always guaranteed. Serves red strip lager in cans.

The Central Bar (Gateshead)

When the central bar first (re)opened it was brilliant. An amazing building there were two bars downstairs and a couple others on various floors, one which overlooked the railway and the town. The main (long)  bar has loads of character and has kept the traditional features, there are always a good range of world and local real ales and lagers. At one point we used to watch all Newcastle away games here (they had the Dodgy telly links) and the lounge bar at was like a local, we'd see the same faces there each week. Unfortunately I went into The Central the other week and could not believe how shabby it has become, it was cold, smelly and needed a good clean, this place has loads of potential just needs a bit of care.

The Tyne Bar (Ouseburn)

Probably the best pub in Newcastle this is best visited on a Sunday afternoon when they have live bands on. In the summer the crowd spill outside next to the Ouseburn river. A really good atmosphere.

Free Trade Inn (Ouseburn)

The Free Trade has the best view of  any pub in the world, looking directly along the Tyne Valley. It still has a proper (free) Jukebox. It also has the funniest graffiti in the toilets. Some claim it needs a clean, I dread to think what would happen to it if some developer ever got their hands on it and wanted to polish it up a bit, it would be ruined.

The view from the Free Trade

Hull

I went to University in Hull and while we didn't venture into the city centre itself much except to go clubbing, the pubs on the avenues were frequented (far too) regularly. I imagine some of these places have changed but I still have good (but fuzzy) memories of them.

The Piper Club

"The Piper" was the most bizarre place ever, based just off Newland ave it was just round the corner from our house in the third year at Uni. I could only describe it as a cross between a working mans club and a night club, it was very popular and very very cheap. I think the best way to summarise the Piper is that when I want in one Sunday afternoon to watch the football there was still some people in there that I'm sure hadn't moved from the night before, there were some people in having Sunday dinner, there was an old man singing on the Karaoke and there was a stripper on - all at the same time. A bizarre but wonderful place.

The Resnikov Bar

I remember going to to visit Hull for the first time when I was choosing which Uni to go to, I walked in to the Resnikov (It was early afternoon midweek) and it was absolutely packed full of people having a good time, my mind was made up, this is where I would be "studying". The Resnikov always seemed busy from the time it opened, if you had a 10 o clock lecture the first thing we would do afterwards is head to the Resnikov where we would spend  75p per pint. (I remember we were furious in the second year when this was increased to £1). The Resnikov was a long narrow bar, with a wider area at the bottom where the snooker tables were based and I remember that you could often not see the end of the bar because it was so full of smoke. Like a few of the places Ive discussed here The Resnikov was one of those you could just turn up to and guarantee you would bump into someone you know, and then end up having five pints with them as we often did then. The music was always first class and I plead guilty now for playing Shed Sevens "Chasing Rainbows" every time I went in.

The John McCarthy Bar

Below the Resnikov was the main University bar now called Jonny Macs! Much bigger than the Resnikov this was where we would head on a Saturday night after a few in the Resnikov as the "club night" was in the main space just next door. Always busy at the weekend we went in during a Uni reunion recently and was shocked to find that students head there for a coffee now when they have been to the gym.

The Gardeners Arms

Another pub which is a bit like the Tardis, the Gardeners on Cottingham rd is just along form the uni and was somewhere we would spend a lot of our Saturday afternoons. As you walk in its really small and very traditional but he back is a huge space of TV screens and pool tables and the ideal place to go to watch the football scores come in.

The Mainbrace

The Beverley road pub crawl was a popular route in then mid to late 90's but unfortunately that area of Hull has been neglected even more and many of the pubs have now closed. The Mainbrace was the biggest and the best and was conveniently at the end of the street where I lived. I went back a few years ago when Newcastle played Hull and couldn't believe what had happened to it. We once got told that its here the Housemartins filmed the video for "Happy Hour" and I used to believe that but  have since found out that was a pub in London. I would love to have a drink again in the old Mainbrace.


The Tower (Club)

"Go to the Tower to pull in an hour" is what they used to say. Never happened, not for me anyway, but I did see my first live gig there when I saw Cast play in '95. The Tower was a former theatre and there used to be a deal on a Wednesday night where you paid £5 to get in and then it was 30 pence for every drink after that. I was a regular there on a Wednesday (It was the Waterfront on a Monday, Oasis on a Tuesday, LA's on a Thursday, pretty much every week for three years.)

Chester

I was based down Chester for a while in the early 00's. It's a cracking city with some really good bars, and I used to enjoy going for a night out there, "Off the Wall" brings back some happy memories and Bar Lounge was really good too. Most of the places I would go for a drink though were on the outskirts of the city.


Old Harkers Arms

Situated right next to the canal in Chester centre, "Harkers" was a regular haunt in the early 00's. The food here is really good and the beer is too, and although the beer might have been pricey even back then the good thing was that we rarely had to pay.  I used to work in the office in a renovated steam mill opposite Harkers and every Friday, if not on site we would all head down there and the company owner would often pay for all the drinks on a tab. I went back a few years ago for a stag do and it hasn't changed much but that is for the better. Had to buy my own drinks though.

The Letters (Tattenhall)

This was a like a local for a long time when I was based down in Chester. After a few free ones in Harkers we would head to the Letters where we would meet up with other people we knew. Popular with bikers, the letters got its name as it was a renovated old post office, you wouldn't have known it though as it had the feel of a really old village pub and the fire in the main bar was huge (and accessible if you got there early enough). I used to quite often get dragged  there on a Saturday morning as soon as it opened and we would then spend the whole day there (which would guaranteed a place next to the fire). The beer was of good quality, I always used to drink the Wadsworth 6X and the food was really good.

The Sportsmans Arms (Tattenhall)

If not in the Letters, we would be in the Sportsmans, more for a change of scenery than anything else. More modern than The Letters it still had a cosy country pub feel to it. It had TVs too so it was handy to get into when Match of the Day was starting. The first time I ever went there I was challenged to a "Dance Off"!

Shrewsbury

The Salopian

Currently one of my favourite pubs, I go there whenever visiting my brother-in law who lives down that way. Popular with football fans, there is always a big mix of fans of different clubs all in to watch the football scores come in. Last time I was in  Everton , Wolves, Newcastle and Leeds fans were here as well as Shrewsbury fans. It has an excellent location next to the river and has a good selection of drinks (I usually drink Holsten Pils as it is one of the few places you can get it these days). On an evening the crowd changes as the football crowd head off and they have Live music on. Recently flooded, hoping it gets sorted so can head back.

Medomsley Consett

The Oak

The is my new local and I try to get along as often as I can (when not in lockdown). A traditional village pub you always see the same faces in there as it has a solid set of regulars. The people that work there are really friendly and they even changed the menu to cater for Vegans. Looking forward to going back.