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Detail Pages
The Farmers Boy, St Albans Central, St. Albans
St. Albans
AL1 1PQ
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Farmers Boy
This is a cosy little traditional pub just a few minutes’ walk from St Albans City station. Entering directly to the main bar area, you find yourself in a room with modern floorboards, part panelled walls with plain uppers and some good-sized seating areas to either side. Low benches fill the front window bays, serving small tables with some comfy chairs in support. The space immediately to the left had been cordoned off for some reason, presumably related to the pandemic, but this was no great problem, as there are a good deal of settles and chairs down the right-hand side of the pub and even more further to the rear, past a dark fireplace with an attractive tile surround and small oval mirror above. The servery has an unattractive tongue and groove panelled counter front, but this is offset somewhat by the inclusion of nice chunky brass foot and hand rails and a characterful, cluttered old bar back. The walls throughout have been decorated with plain mirrors, old maps and black and white photos, which enhance the traditional feel of the pub and help you overlook a couple of the more questionable modern encroachments to the décor. Out to the rear right there is a sizable beer garden with loads of basic garden furniture and a fair amount of cover, but this was so popular on a Thursday evening, that it was no longer possible to get a seat out there when I arrived. A few more seats can also be found in a small fenced off pavement space to the front of the pub. Dance tunes played quietly in the background throughout my visit and I was a little surprised to see at least one child in the pub, with my visit being after 9pm.
The pub has a pretty good reputation for its cask ale and puts on a number of beer festivals over the course of the year. The options were limited to just the three when I arrived – Woodford Wherry, Rat White Rat and something from the New Bristol Brewery – and a very polite and chatty barman poured and delivered a fine pint of the White Rat, which I enjoyed whilst watching the world go by from one of the bay window seats.
I liked a lot of what I saw of this pub, in particular the friendly service and well-kept beer, but thought I probably wasn’t seeing it at its best, with most of the customers sat outside which diminished the atmosphere inside. I’d definitely give this one another chance though and have the feeling it could be one of the best St Albans has to offer, but on this particular occasion, it didn’t quite reach those heights.
On 19th August 2021
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Alan Winfield left this review about The Farmers Boy
The Farmers Boy is situated on the busy London Road.
I quite liked the look of this pub from the outside.
Once inside the bar faces in a single room,there are normal tables and chairs on the left side and bench seating and chairs on the right side,the right side extends to the rear and is down one step.
There were five real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Bath Ales Jem,which went down very well,the other real ales were Thornebridge Brother Rabbit,Adnams Mosaic,Magic Rock Hire Wire and one more i failed to read my notes of.
Background music was playing and the pub was quite busy on my Saturday afternoon visit.
I quite liked this pub.
Pub visited 24/6/2017
On 30th September 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 6113 recommendations about 6113 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Farmers Boy
Basic pub with a timber floor, red and white painted walls, quite bare looking. Their advantage here is the microbrewery out the back, serving Verulam beers. We decided on the Farmers Delight, which had just run out. Nevertheless, the brewer came back from the brewhouse with the Verulam Citra Hit, which was refreshing and priced reasonably. Never got any smell of cooking fat on this visit, which was a bonus.
On 23rd July 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Farmers Boy
Bit of a shabby pub and still has the cooking fat smell on my visit.Regulars were have a game of darts but overall a bit quiet.lots of seating outside in the yard.Six beers on 3 Verulam,an Alecraft.an Oakham and Hobgoblin gold.The 2 I tried were a bit tired.
On 28th February 2015
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Farmers Boy
There were six hand pumps on here at the time of my visit, with two beers each from Verulam, Blue Monkey and Oakham. They all seemed to be pale and hoppy, so as this was my last pub of half a dozen I went for the lowest strength, which happened to be Verulam Half Centennial 2.8%. With a name like that, I should have known it would taste like lemon barley water. (Sigh) This was another pub on my brief circuit with a smell of cooking fat about it, but it was not as strong here as in the White Lion. The presence of a real fire helped to compensate somewhat, but this pub would not be top of my list for a revisit (fans of pale hoppy beers may beg to differ).
On 26th February 2015
- rating: 5
[User has posted 3752 recommendations about 3487 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john mcgraw left this review about Farmers Boy
This pub was a bit of a disappointment because as stated in the previous review there was only one Verulam beer on tap.The Oakham Scarlett Macaw was in fine form and the barman was very friendly but the pub lacked atmosphere but this was more than likely because it was about 3.30pm.
On 22nd July 2012
- rating: 5
[User has posted 2044 recommendations about 2025 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about Farmers Boy
Odd little pub, featuring traditional decor and furniture in the 'J'-shaped bar. Probably as much seating again outside in the patio beer garden, but all a bit tatty. Given that it has a micro-brewery (just visible through an open side door in a rear outbuilding), it was a surprise that it only offered one of its own products from the five handpumps. As this was the 2.8% Half Nelson, I opted for the Musashi (£3.10) which was one of three Oakham beers on offer. The fifth real ale was Pride. Overall, not bad, but I'll admit to being a bit disappointed with my visit (although had a different Verulam beer beer been on offer then things might have been different).
On 3rd October 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about Farmers Boy
The Farmers Boy was fairly quiet when I visited early on a recent Saturday afternoon and the lack of any background music made the atmosphere very flat. Maybe it gets livelier on Thursday nights when there is live music. There were a few people in the paved beer garden where there is a serving hut that probably kicks into life during the summer months. One of the five hand pumps on the bar was unused, but Pride, Veralum Simcoe King, Farmers Joy and Oakham Ales White Dwarf were all available. There is also a standard draught selection along with Tuborg, Peroni and Scrumpy Jack cider.
The service was friendly and I wasn’t made to feel unwelcome, but I feel that there are better pubs in the area.
On 20th May 2011
- rating: 5
[User has posted 5268 recommendations about 5236 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
John Bonser left this review about Farmers Boy
Visited in May 2010
Noteworthy for being the home of the Verulam micro brewery, The Farmers Boy is otherwise a rather unremarkable cottage style pub on the main London Road and reasonably close to the station.
The single bar interior is bare boarded and, apart from a fine old framed photo of the pub showing it advertising "Wickhams Pure Beer", my main memory is of hard wooden floors and uncomfortable seats and a slight smell of cleaning fluid. The pub was decidedly quiet with probably fewer than half a dozen or so customers.
On the real ale front, on my recent early Saturday evening visit, the usual suspects - Landlord, Pride, Bombardier and Greene King IPA - were all present, but, disappointingly, the only beer from the microbrewery that was on was the Clipper IPA - £ 2.90p. This was however in splendid form and, looking back in retrospect, was probably the best pint of the day.
On that basis alone, I think that I'd probably include this pub in the crawl next time
On 21st October 2010
- rating: 6
[User has posted 560 recommendations about 560 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about Farmers Boy
I noted yesterday that the TFB pub sign which caused a certain furore has now gone and has been replaced with what looks to be similar to the original and is more in keeping with tradition.
On 15th August 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 1708 recommendations about 1681 pubs]