Bromsgrove Pubs

Back in 1840 Bromsgrove was famous for the fact there were 59 pubs. You could have had quite a pub crawl in those days... Unfortunately we've lost most of the old drinking holes over the years but there are still plenty of good pubs to visit in the town. These are my personal feelings about those that I choose to frequent. Many of these pubs have seen big changes since I created this website. Please click here if you want to go back in time.

Queens Head	Red Lion	Golden Cross
Black Cross	Hop Pole
Crabmill	Slug and Lettuce
Grove	Little Ale House
Bayleys

Queens Head

Where	The Strand
Who	Banks's
Cider
Beer Garden	More of a yard really! Sunny in the afternoon.

The Queens Head is a Victorian pub of great charm and character and is a lovely site to see when approaching the town via Stratford Road. Inside it has an interesting layout which results in what is quite a small pub feeling bigger. Only serves food at lunchtime. Probably the closest thing you'll find to a 'traditional' pub in the town centre and it should be supported for that reason! If only I could persuade Claire about that though - she is put off by the professional drinkers that seem to be in there most of the time...

Red Lion

Where	High Street
Who	Banks's
Cider
Beer Garden	A real sun-trap

Having been run by Jason since May 2010, here you'll find a traditional boozer right in the heart of the town.

Being a Marston's pub, the range of real ales is restricted to brands owned by that group. But with a constantly changing selection from Banks's, Marston's, Jennings, Brakspear, Ringwood and Wychwood, that's not really a problem! This is backed up by the fact that the pub won the Redditch and Bromsgrove CAMRA Autumn 2011 award for Pub of the Season.

Golden Cross Hotel

Where	High Street
Who	JD Wetherspoon
Cider	+ bottled Westons and more!
Beer Garden	Concreted area that is shaded in the afternoon.

There has been a Golden Cross Hotel on the current site for a long time but the current one only dates back to the 1930's. It's a handsome building and much of it's exterior charm was preserved when it became one of the first JD Wetherspoon's pubs to open in the Midlands back in 1994. However, it was at this point the Hotel part of the name ceased to apply ending its historical role as a place to stay for good.

If you've been to a Wetherspoon's pub you'll know what to expect in terms of food and drink available. And the prices! No wonder it's so popular. Where it does win over many other Wetherspoon's hostelries is that it was a pub to start with. This gives it far more character and charm internally. What I like most about it is the excellent range of real ales that are almost always available. Marvellous.

Food is served all day, every day.

The Black Cross

Where	Worcester Road
Who	Banks's
Cider
Beer Garden	Concrete slabs surrounded by car park. But a real sun trap!

Now here's an historical pub for you. Dating back to 1640 it looks every bit the old coaching house that it once was. Inside you'll find three distinct areas. At the front is the bar, down the side is the pool room and at the back is the lounge. In the lounge you'll find a glass panel in the floor exposing an old well discovered when the pub was extended.

When I first started drinking in the town this was my favourite pub in the town by a mile! The landlord and landlady - Bill & Pat - had run the place for a fair few years and had it well sorted. There were also some long term bar staff who really knew what they were doing. One of them - Ronnie - was the nicest and most streetwise old lady you are ever likely to meet in a pub. Friday nights were fantastic. Familiar faces, good music and good service. And it was during one of those Friday nights that I met Claire so this pub really does have a special place in my heart.

Since those halcyon days, the pub has had it's ups and downs and has even been completely closed several times. During a couple of visits around Christmas 2017, I was pleased to find the old place little changed, ticking over nicely and serving real ales in good condition. Fingers crossed that continues for many years to come.

The Hop Pole

Where	Birmingham Road (junction with Blackmore Lane)
Who	Punch Taverns
Cider
Beer Garden	Large grassy area with decking. Sunny in the afternoon.

Back in around 2000, The Hop Pole was a favourite pub of mine. The owners were Julie and Pradip and the pub was cosy and traditional. Claire and I liked it so much we had our wedding there! In 2003, it underwent a makeover that saw the original two rooms knocked through. Thankfully, it didn't change my opinion of the pub and it became the town's premier music venue under the ownership of Jeff (R.I.P.).

Jo has been running the pub since December 2015 and doing a great job. There are up to five well kept ales on tap, and Stowford Press is there to keep me happy. There are numerous regulars, surely the sign of a great little pub!

The Hop Pole is one of Bromgrove's premier music venues. Check out it's website for latest news.

The Crabmill

Where	Birmingham Road (junction with Burcot Lane)
Who	Enterprise Inns
Cider	+ real cider from the cellar!
Beer Garden	Slabbed and shady. Not the best...

I'm not too sure of the age of The Crabmill but looking at it's attractive exterior I would have to place my bet on 18th century. It really is a nice looking building and is in a very nice position opposite All Saints Church.

For the seven years from 2008 to 2015, the pub was run by a lovely couple, Don and Sheila, but they had to retire due to Don's ill health and he sadly passed away in the spring of 2017. By this time the pub had gone downhill so far that his wake was held in the nearby Hop Pole. Thankfully, a new team moved in - the McHale brothers - and they have done a great job on bringing the pub back to life. If you're into sport, this is the place to go to get the best atmosphere during those big matches. As someone who doesn't like sport, this sadly means Claire and I have to walk past the packed pub during those events and head to the Hop Pole instead. I'm always disappointed by this as I miss out on the real cider they serve!

Slug and Lettuce

Where	High Street
Who	Stonegate Pub Co
Cider
Beer Garden	Excellent! Despite being the wrong side of the High Street the position of the neighouring building means it gets sun in the afternoon.

This pub is a conversion of three shop units that had been empty for several years. The building itself was originally a Victorian house known as The Gables but, despite being a listed building, it had fallen into a state of disrepair (see for yourself...). The quality of refurbishment of the building is good and many original features have been preserved within - the windows at the back, the fireplaces and some decorative coving have all been kept.

For a few years, I was happy to pay the odd visit here as the place has the feel of city centre bar and made a nice change from the other pubs in town. But November 2016 saw a makeover that ruined it for me. Done up in the style of a Parisienne tart's boudoir, it is now the haunt of yummy mummies and those with a taste for overpriced lager. And all the good things about the old pub went with the refurb; Happy Mondays - GONE; Aspalls Cider - GONE; Real ale - GONE. Okay, they still do 2 for 1 cocktails but the price has increased and now you have to have two the same! Talking to other pub goers around the town, I'm not the only one to be avoiding this place now. But, hey, each to their own. Just because I don't like it doesn't mean it won't be right up your street so give it a try and make your own decision.

The Grove

Where	High Street
Who	Smith & Jones (Barracuda Group)
Cider
Beer Garden	Roof terrace on the sunny side of the High Street

This pub originally opened as The Rousler in June 2006. The Rousler didn't last long and it had a name change in an effort to try and change the image it had gained a a good place for youngsters to go for a fight at the weekend. The story in the local paper said that it hoped to become a family pub and they even got rid of the TVs (and sport had been a dig draw for the Rousler). And so it became The Grapevine with the biggest improvement being the introduction of a roof terrace that is a great place to catch the evening sun during summer.

2014 saw another name change as the pub became The Grove. The interior took on a new stripped out and modern appearance that apes bars like the Brewdog chain. I actually quite like it though I'm not sure why!

The front of the pub near the windows is nice but the rest suffers from the fact that it is basically a converted and extended shop unit. Most of the pub relies on artificial lighting and the rear section is dark and unwelcoming.

The Little Ale House

Where	21 Worcester Road (corner of Station Street)
Who	Freehouse, micro-pub
Cider	A great choice of REAL ciders!
Beer Garden	A few benches out the front when the weather is good

Bromsgrove's newest pub is a micro-pub. It opened its doors on Friday 11 October 2013 and I paid my first visit on Saturday 12.

There's no getting away from the fact that it's rather an odd place. It's basically an old shop unit and very little effort has been made in making it feel like a traditional pub. The seating is a real mish-mash with the strangest part being the long bench seat down the left hand side that is so high that you need a step to get up there and beer barrels to rest your feet on!

But this is a pub that is all about providing a great range of real ales and ciders and an atmosphere that harks back to the good old days with no music or TV. In fact, its small size and unusualness has lead to me and Claire talking to more strangers in this pub than any other pub in town - the art of conversation has returned.

Beer is served direct from the barrel and up to 6 are available (although some are usually settling). Cider has proved a big seller too so up to four real ciders and perrys can often be found.

Sensibly, the opening hours are 12 midday until 10pm Monday to Sunday. This is how the pub was promoting itself early in 2015:-

Little Ale House flyer

Terry Bacon has stuck his neck out and taken a big risk opening this place but it seems like he's hit on a winning formula. Despite the removal of a discount for CAMRA members in early 2018, the reasons to return to the Little Ale House just keep stacking up.

Bayleys

Where	6 Worcester Road
Who	Independent bottle shop, cafe and bar
Cider	Changing range of bottled and canned ciders
Beer Garden	A couple of tables out the front!

Okay, let's get this out in the open - this isn't a pub! But the drinking scene has changed dramatically in recent years and what it is could well be a model for small scale venues in the future.

After a seemingly endless period of development (about 2 years!), it finally opened late November 2017. Our first visit was for a coffee (great coffee, BTW) and to have a look around. So it's a coffee shop, an upmarket off licence and a bar. Behind the counter are 6 beer taps serving an ever changing range of interesting kegged beers. If you've been in a BrewDog bar, you'll get an idea of what you kind of thing you might get the chance to try. And if you've been to BrewDog, you'll know that you'll have to pay a premium to get it…

Run by George and Jack Bayley with a real enthusiasm for the products they sell, both are always willing to help and advise. Highly recommended if you fancy trying the kind of beers you won't find anywhere else in town.