February / March 2024

The latest news from across our branch.

Latest News from across the Branch

Can you have a good night out in Nuneaton? - One Nottinghams’ couple's quest to visit all the UK’s amazing pubs, whilst finding the best beers and the best eats along the way!

1. The Chase is a lovely, large Greene King pub with classic GK menu and plenty of tv’s all across the pub... 4 hand pulls on the bar, a pool table and a decently presented pub all round... Good little place to start.

2. The Crow's Nest which is a huge, bustling Marstons house that was already pretty busy by 5:30pm. A decent pub with classic pub menu, 5 hand pulls on the bar and a good tap selection. Pub is very clean and tidy and has plenty of screens dotted about the place showing all manner of live sport.

3. On to the The Royal Oak, in Attleborough, which is a friendly little locals pub split into 2 sides. A big screen TV in the main public bar... Bass on the handpull, friendly staff and a nice welcome...

4. 25 yards up the road we discovered a very shiny, modern looking bar called Fuel Bar, that has a really good tap selection on alongside their 3 hand pulls. Definitely a much more trendy style to the place than the older pubs that surround it and it looks clean and tidy from the moment you walk in. Good mixture of age ranges using the place and a friendly atmosphere.

5. Just across the road is The Fox Inn which looks like a sleepy village pub from the outside... but once you get through the door, the place is smart, warm and vibrant. A good place to watch the sport as there are plenty of screens, a pool table in the public bar and a lovely looking separate lounge bar area. Pedigree and Hobgoblin occupy the hand pulls and the staff are friendly and welcoming...

6. The Attleborough Arms which was our second Marstons pub of the night and was one of the most suggested to us on our post... and once inside it was clear to see why... This one is just lovely... it's got a gorgeous circular bar right in the centre of the pub and feels modern and fresh inside. They offer a lot of live music throughout the month and feels like a community pub on the outskirts of town.

6. Heading into Nuneaton town centre, making a bee-line for the Lord Hop micro pub as it was one that we were told not to miss... This is a super little micropub set on two floors with great beer and cider selection... Nick opted for a Cappuccino Stout that he was very impressed with whilst I had a pale from the taps which was equally as impressive. Nice fella running the place and a quiet, relaxing place for a nice pint...

7. We quickly then nipped around the corner to the Blue Bear which was another early closer... and to be fair, the town centre is so quiet that I can totally understand why places are closing early... It's a great pub... been there since the 1930s with a friendly landlord who was only too happy to allow us in for a quick drink so we could add them to our list... they do regular live music on a Saturday, karaoke every Sunday and every other Wednesday that alternates with a keyboard player to offer something a little different in the town.

8. Wandering back, and just around the corner, we find the towns Wetherspoons pub … The Felix Holt which is definitely one of the smaller Spoons pubs we've been in... decent carpet though...

9.The Silk Mill which stays open until 1am... a bit 'all things to all men' where they are a mixture of being a late night, loud music/DJ venue, a sports bar with huge video wall and screens all over and chain style pub doing pub food... They've got a pool table, two dart boards and a smart and tidy bar that's got a decent selection of Lilley’s ciders and a couple of hand pulls on with good tap choices...

10.The Black Swan In Hand had the music at a much more acceptable volume for 9:30pm than The Silk Mill, although I wouldn't say the music was as good... Bar staff seemed to think it was Karaoke tonight... DJ disagreed... although to be honest, having a bit of a Friday night karaoke might have injected a bit more life into the place... Surely somewhere around this place should have had a bit of karaoke on somewhere... Pleasant enough pub... plenty of screens for the sport... zero real ales on... not that type of pub although they must have had some on at some point in the past...

11. A quick stop off at Piero Lounge which is, as you might have guessed... one of the 'Lounge Brand' - but its a very small one... staff are friendly and it’s got all the usual brand stuff in... garish lampshades, horrible paintings etc.

12. The Crew where we settled in for a few hours to enjoy the surroundings. We've done a lot or rock bars and clubs up and down the UK now and as a venue, this one is right up there with the best of them. They've got a separate gig venue upstairs called The Queens Hall where they bring in more well-known artists and charge an entry fee, whereas downstairs there is live music on, absolutely free... and I have to say that the downstairs covers band that were on in there last night were absolutely superb! The staff are fantastic and very vigilant at keeping the pub clear of empty glasses and nice and tidy, despite the fact that when the place is heaving, as it was when we arrived, there is very little room to manoeuvre through the crowds.

13. The Acorn which is an absolute beauty of a building with a thatched roof still on one part. Gorgeous old wooden beams and grand stone floors add to the glorious rustic charm of the place and they've got a great looking pub menu and friendly demeanour... glad we didn't just head off and miss this one altogether for sure!

14. The George & Dragon,Stoke Golding, which is run by Church End Brewery! Well, it was certainly worth the ten minute drive as the place is beautiful... a classic old school pub layout with lounge and public bar spaces either side of the pub... so fantastic looking food coming out and a great snack menu including Scotch Eggs, Pork Pies etc... a great line up of beers including their own award winning 'Goats Milk' that I opted to sample... and can understand why it won an award... a super village pub this is a gorgeous little place!!

15. We headed back into Nuneaton to finish off the final few that we'd wanted to get round and the 3rd stop of the day was Coniston Tavern which is a large community local situated in the middle of a huge housing area. Split into two sides, there's a pool table in the public bar and a pretty awesome signed David Beckham England shirt to feast your eyes on... there is a huge beer garden outside and a lovely pub dog named Connie... From speaking to the locals it sounds as though the current landlord has worked some real magic and bought this one back from the brink after the old landlord ran it into the ground... Good luck to them we say, let's hope the place continues to thrive...

16. Our next stop took us to the Weddington Social & Club where we found an absolutely wonderful little members club... now, it is open to the public, but there are certainly advantages to becoming a member because if you do, you'll get 30p off every pint you have and money off other drinks... The new operators have been in place for almost a year and you can see the hard work that is being put into the place to turn this into a real destination for families and the local people on the roads surrounding it. A top atmosphere that's friendly and appealing for people of all ages and the guys running it are just lovely... There's a pool table, Sky Sports and a large function room to the rear that is currently undergoing some renovations. They've got a good selection of ales on at great prices, alongside the tripe stacker Thatchers cider pump and even have something a bit unique as they are the only place in the area where you'll find Jeremy Clarkson's new alcoholic creations... a great club with lovely people and WELL worth a visit...

17. To round off our Nuneaton area visit we popped to The Horseshoes which is run by a lovely lad called Matt. This is an Everards Pub and you know what I always say... 'We have never found a bad Everards Pub...' and that saying still rings true today... Matt has been here for about 8 months and has come into a business that was struggling, with big ideas and enthusiasm... and it really shows! With regular live music every Saturday and plenty of other stuff going on throughout the week, including quizzes, karaoke and more... you'll always find something good happening down here... but that isn't where the fun stops... if you fancy a spicy food challenge, then the one for you has to be their Spicy Chicken Wings... you've got to eat 6 of them in 10 minutes... THEN... you have to drink a shot of 'Reaper Rum' (still within the 10 minutes) before enduring a TEN MINUTE BURN PERIOD before they will declare you as the winner... my mouth hurts just thinking about it! That's not where the fun stops with the food either as they offer an extensive bar food style offering of exotic foods... everything from Crocodile to Ostrich to Kangaroo meats served in a variety of ways from pies to kebabs... Sometimes exotic meats are a little overrated or not cooked properly, but these creations are absolutely spot on and cooked to perfection... we'll definitely be heading back to sample some more on another day. A really top place this is and I'm mega pleased that we have rounded off Nuneaton here!!

To learn more of their travels and exploits, check out their Facebook and YouTube pages “The Great British Pub Crawl”

Musical Chairs – Pub Style

Nearly all of the pubs, in our branch area, that are part of the Stonegate Group have seen changes, some minor, some more major.

Weavers Arms (Fillongley) – New Landlord
Royal Oak (Stockingford) – New Landlord
Kingswood Tavern (Grove Farm) - Vacant
Stag & Pheasant (Hartshill) – New Landlord
Anker Inn (Weddington) – New Landlord
Whitestone (Whitestone) – New Landlord
Fir Tree Inn (Arley) – New Landlord
Manor House (Fillongley) – New Landlord
Hare & Hounds – Refurbishment & New Format (Proper Pub group) – New Landlord

AGM, New Committee & Vacancies:

Chair: Barry Everitt (no change)
Secretary: Calvin Everitt (no change)
Membership Secretary: Steve Evans (no change)
Treasurer: Vacant
Social Secretary: Vacant

Magazine distributor(s) – to deliver the branch magazine to Stockingford / Bedworth / Bulkington / Attleborough areas.
Pubs Officer(s) – to liaise with ALL publicans in the branch area and update CAMRA’s Pub database.
GBG (Good Beer Guide) Co-Ordinator – to ensure CAMRA’s pub database is up to date.

If you are interested in any of the above positions, please contact: ku.gro.armac.notaenun@ofni