Favorite Pubs in Birmingham, UK

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HerotBrewer

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Dunno how many Brit members we have, but here goes.

My wife is a Brummie and I got to spend 5.5 months in Birmingham before she moved to the states with me. Got to drink at some great British pubs, where the pints are 20oz, the barstaff know how to pour a Guinness, and if there's too much head on your beer you can send it back for a top-up.

Favorite pubs I went to were, in no particular order:
The Malt Shovel, great Jamaican food
The Flapper and Firkin, Cambrian Wharf, where I met some great old-school punk friends of my wife.... Rocky and Viv.
Costers, in the Birmingham City Centre, after our first real "date" seeing 300 at the Electric Cinema

Plus I had a 10 hr. layover in Dublin with nothing to do so of course I bought a bus pass, rode to the city centre and sat drinking guinness for 5 hrs. Good times.
 
Also have to say for any travelers who have time in Dublin, a very kind Irish lady recommended the White Horse. Their license is grandfathered from the Victorian days and they open at 7AM for the dock workers. Good times, meaning to go there when I have the chance.
 
There are quite a few "real ale" pubs in Birmingham. The best two are, The Anchor on Bradford St and The Wellington on Constitution Hill. Both have at least 20 cask ales and numerous bottled beers. Both operate a "try before you buy" policy and will exchange any beer that your not happy with.

I was in the Wellington one day, and after ordering and drinking most of one beer, I thought it was alright, nothing special, the owner came across and whipped my pint away from me. "What are you doing?" I said.
He replied "I dont like it, its my bar and if it doesnt come up to my standards then I wont serve it."
He then gave me a chit for 3 free pints and apologized for the previous beer.
These two pubs are "free-houses" which means they are not tied into any brewery and can sell what beer they choose. The only down side is that you dont often get the same beers twice. They also often do "specials" at £1.00 a pint when they need to get rid of a certain beer, not that its not very good, they just need to sell it quickly.

Where in Birmingham does your wife come from ?
If your ever here again let me know and Ill give you the tour.
 
She grew up in Tyseley, but moved out of there pretty darn fast. Spent her teenage years hanging out in Pidgeon Park outside the Cathedral in Birmingham City Centre, thus the Flapper and Coster's. Also used to go to Eddie's (Eddie Fewtrell) nightclub.
 
I'll bet you have a few stories from back in the day. Most people who hung out at Eddie's seem to do.
 
Still trying to figure this one out... Irish stout is a British pub? :confused:

Was this serious?
Would you like to go to a bar here in the states that served no imports?

Also, keep in mind that Britain encompasses Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. So it is not a contradiction to see an Irish beer in an British pub.

And there are loads of Irish in Britain. Since the Brits in general are, (at least in my experience) more particular about their beer, you get on average better service and the staff know the proper way to pour a pint, no matter what it is.
 
Guinness is served in just about every pub in the UK, and I mean every pub. It always tastes good and with most pubs in the UK if your not happy with it they will change it. There is not a lot taht can go wrong with Guinness.
My olny problem with Guinness is that a few yew years ago they introduced "Extra Cold". This goes against all that is held sacried (sp) that Guinness should be served at a certain temprature (10oC) but the Extra Cold is served at 4oC. Serving Guinness at this low temp. kills all the flavour. I drink in a lot of the Irish pubs in Birmingham and the true connisieurs (sp) of Guinness really do turn their noses up at cold Guinness.
 
"more particular about their beer"...this is due to the prices we have to pay. On average its about £2.50 a pint out of which I think 70% is tax.
Now, my best friend owns and runs his own small pub and he tells me that he has to charge 100% on any beer that he buys. ie. He buys a pint for £1.00 but has to sell it at £2.00 just to break even. The breweries have now put their prices up to £1.30 per pint (increase in VAT to 20%) so he has to charge £2.60 a pint.
So I asked him about selling quality micro-brewery beer. His reply just about summed it up. "I cant sell this mass produced **** at £2.60 so how the f**k am I supposed to sell quality beer"
This is the bottom line. In the UK folks just cant afford to go out for a couple of beers. Going to the pub is now a treat, something special, a night out. The local pub in the Uk used to be the backbone of society, a place where working men could go and forget their troubles for a couple of hours. Not now, going for a beer is just too expensive.


And the Government wants to know why 3 pubs every day close.
Sorry about the off topic rant.
Ive been all around the world and there is nothing like a British pub
 
Was this serious?
Would you like to go to a bar here in the states that served no imports?

Also, keep in mind that Britain encompasses Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. So it is not a contradiction to see an Irish beer in an British pub.

And there are loads of Irish in Britain. Since the Brits in general are, (at least in my experience) more particular about their beer, you get on average better service and the staff know the proper way to pour a pint, no matter what it is.

Yes, it was MOST serious.

Be very careful here-- "Great Britain" does NOT include Northern Ireland; the "United Kingdom" does.

That said, yes, I am fully aware of the availability of Guinness in Britain, and I could make a similar case for an American beer named "Budweiser". The point I was making was that I would not judge a British pub by their ability to serve Guinness. My (precious few) trips to the UK have led me to sample a large variety of British beers, and while I will enjoy a Guinness or two from time to time, I much prefer the British beers.

To each his own, I guess...
 
Be very careful here-- "Great Britain" does NOT include Northern Ireland; the "United Kingdom" does.

Thanks for the clarification. However, while semantically I was mistaken, I was pointing out the the nation-state includes Northern Ireland and includes many displaced persons of Irish descent. The topic was about favorite pubs, not favorite British beers, and so to my mind, the ability to properly pour a Guinness is not only more involved then pouring a regular ale, but also rarer to find many places here in the States, and as such is a good benchmark for the quality/knowledge of bar staff.

I tried a bunch of Wychwood's beers while I was there, and they were all scrummy.

I drink in a lot of the Irish pubs in Birmingham and the true connisieurs (sp) of Guinness really do turn their noses up at cold Guinness.

True. I once had an elderly Irish gentleman named Patrick lecture me on the bus as to how a Guinness should be poured, and at one temp. It was a fun conversation.
 
This is the standards we are now reaching in Bimingham..... Last night I went into a Irish pub in Birmingham. The place was empty (one guy in the corner).
"Ill have a Guinness please"
"No... Im afraid the Guinness is off. Ive had to send it back to the brewery. Why the feck do you think do you think the bar is empty?"
"Ill have a Ansells Mild then"
"No problem, Sir"
"How much do I owe you?"
"Thats ones on the house. Im sorry that I couldnt serve you a Guinness, but its not right so I wont serve it"
"How about a free short then"
"No, Feck off you cheeky Brummie b*****d"

Where else in the world do you get service like that?
 
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