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The Carpenters Arms, Windsor

Pub added by Philip Carter
4 Market Street
Windsor
SL4 1PB

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Pub Type

Nicholsons (Mitchells & Butlers)
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Reviews (Current Rating Average: of 10) Add Review see review guidelines


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


john gray left this review about The Carpenters Arms

Nicely done up for xmas i found this a lot better than i had on previous visits .Very busy with lunches.6 cask beers on and my Brewyork -x panda was good.

On 17th December 2022 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]


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Blackthorn _ left this review about The Carpenters Arms

An attractive looking Nicholson’s pub tucked away down a pedestrianised alleyway but virtually opposite the castle, it has front and rear entrances and is split across a couple of levels, with both an upper and lower section at the rear.

Internally it doesn’t have quite the character of many of their outlets, but is nonetheless pleasant enough in a slightly bland sort of way. The lower part of the walls were clad with dark blue wood panelling with either cream or dark green plasterwork above, although in some areas this extended to almost the whole wall, giving the place an almost elegant feel. Flooring was mostly parquet wood whilst the seating was mostly regular tables and chairs with fitted Chesterfield style padded bench seating in the windows at the front. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling and there were various old black and white photos and portrait drawings on the walls as well as a small section of stained glass in a skylight. A display case at the rear housed a number of beer related books and wood working implements. An interesting feature on the lower level was an exposed section of old tunnel which had been dressed with a couple of nights in armour and stacks of old beer crates and barrels. A reference to some sort of former smuggling perhaps?

Beers on tap included Bedlam’s East Coast Pale Ale, Dark Star Hophead, Rev James and their own Nicholson’s Pale Ale, although I think there were one or two others that I neglected to note. Ciders meanwhile were Mortimer’s Orchard, Rosie’s Pig and Old Rosie. All in all, not a bad spot, but it had a little too much of a corporate feel for me.

On 6th July 2022 - rating: 6
[User has posted 1937 recommendations about 1850 pubs]


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Quinno _ left this review about The Carpenters Arms

Seemingly run by Eastern European staff at present. Just two (!?) ales on the go – Pride and a decent Timothy Taylor Landlord (NBSS 3.5). Very quiet on my Saturday night visit, maybe the lack of beer range explains why? Whilst I can understand the need to cut back on ale range post-COVID, maybe have at least one genuinely interesting beer on rather than just two national bitters? 7.5

December 2017
In full swing at Xmas, and the Thornbridge Xmas ale was the beer of the day here. Pleased to see it doing well, I do have a soft spot for it. Rated 8.5

December 2015
An overdue revisit here - eight pumps with seven on; Pedigree, Pride, Doom Bar, Adnams Broadside & Ghost Ship, Truman's 3 Wise Hops and Loch Lomand Silkie Stout. Halves from the latter two were in very good shape. Still a default choice in the town centre. Rated 8

June 2013
The last 18 months has seen a definite upswing here again. My latest couple of visits have found a fully-stocked row of handpumps (now expanded to eight) with a laudable range of ale styles and sensible prices for Windsor, with the Pride currently coming in at £2.90pp. My group worked their way through most and the quality was consistently good. Perhaps the service can be a little bit perfunctory at times but certainly no worse than many other nearby outlets. Worth seeking out, especially as the courtyard is a bit of a sun-trap on a summer’s afternoon. The toilets have also been done-up too! Rated 8

May 2011
Well I've been in a couple of times recently and whilst the ale range of six is laudable, the quality control is lacking - on both occasions the first pint I've purchased has had to go straight back. A hard earned reputation is easily to lose - buck up. Point docked. Rating 7

January 2010
This is without doubt the best place I've been to in Windsor. Located on a cobbled street behind the crooked tea house next to the Guild Hall, the pub boasts four ever-changing real ales served from a curved mahogany bar that are well kept and are surprisingly cheap given what a tourist trap Windsor is (under £3). Some of the 'guests' are quite mainstream though, don't necessarily expect to see four ales you can't get within a 30 minute drive. There's a good atmosphere inside, is well-decorated, and good quality food is offered (the risotto is especially good) that's cheap too. I think that this place is owned by the Nicholsons chain nowadays, who specialize in 'Olde Worlde' pubs - check out the Ashby's Ale mosaic on the rear entrance step and gated subterranean cellar. Drawbacks? It's a bit small and finding a table can be a bit of a chore sometimes. The toilets also need an overhaul. Rating 8

On 16th September 2021 - rating: 7
[User has posted 5050 recommendations about 5033 pubs]


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Ian Mapp left this review about The Carpenters Arms

Another 2019 Good Beer Guide Entry.

A nicholsons pub over three floors. Classic Nicholsons decor - with the Ashbys Ales tiling on the front step pointing to a different history.

Friendly regulars amongst the tourists and friendly bar staff. London Pride was best pint of 3 in the town.

On 2nd December 2018 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1329 recommendations about 1315 pubs]


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Moby Duck left this review about The Carpenters Arms

A typical but not bad Nicholsons, the usual dark ornate wood fixtures and fittings, eight handpumps with a line up of Gales Seafarers, Trumans Zephyr,hogsback TEA, Al Murray Dependance Day?,Black Wolf Big Red, Nicholsons Pale, Doom Bar and London Pride.Its actually quite a decent pub and worth a look.

On 8th November 2016 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1868 recommendations about 1841 pubs]


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hondo . left this review about The Carpenters Arms

Nicholson's pub tucked away on a side street close to Windsor castle. Quirky multilevel interior with a front and back entrance. 8 real ales available on my visit. Food served.

On 12th October 2015 - no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]


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Steve of N21 left this review about Carpenters Arms

A fine Nicholsons pub on three distinct levels that sits with its front door on Queen Charlotte Street, reputedly Britain’s shortest street, and the back door opens onto Church Street.
The bar is located down at Queen Charlotte Street level and now supports 8 handpumps. Then there are several seating areas with the biggest of these being up at Church street level.
The Ales available included Launchester Engine Oil, Lancaster Blond and Brains Reverend James on my recent visit, and all the ones we tried were spot on. As others have mentioned, to their credit Nicholsons do not try to milk the tourist dollar, unlike other businesses this close to the Castle, and at £3 to £3.20 a pint of fine English Ale is cheaper than a pot of tea in the Crooked Tea House opposite.

On 27th March 2013 - rating: 8
[User has posted 2094 recommendations about 1985 pubs]


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. Wittenden left this review about Carpenters Arms

A lovely late summer’s day, our first free weekend in months, and we spent the afternoon in the pub. A multi levelled building, the bar centrally positioned with an array of handpumps. Not very spacious in front,more room further back, in the varying levels. Most tables seem to seat two, difficult if you are a party of three.
A pleasant mix of customers; a few tourists, at one time parts of a couple of rugby teams mingled with a bunch of functionaries from The Castle, resplendent in pinstripes and chains of office.
A Nicholson’s house-I didn’t realise their empire stretched beyond inner London. The pumps featured a good range from their current beer list:I particularily enjoyed Orkney’s Dark Island, a lovely dark, autumnal beer, complex with hints of exoticism. Mordue Newcastle Coffee Porter,played as a wild card , was a pleasant and intriguing surprise. We weren’t particularily struck with the food: my sausages were travelling under fake Cumberland papers.The staff seemed a mixture of the distant and the friendly, but on the whole we liked the pub, and would go again.

On 3rd October 2011 - no rating submitted
[User has posted 283 recommendations about 282 pubs]


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Danny O'Revey left this review about Carpenters Arms

Large pub backing onto two of the old cobbled streets in Windsor, very close to the castle entrance. Therefore its in the heart of the tourist area, but not particularly playing to that trade.

Its a Georgian style Nicholsons house with a central bar and stools opposite by the window, with more comfortable leather seating to the sides where there is more room. Overall its a nice friendly place and well worth a visit.

8 real ales, and the quality was superb.

On 1st October 2011 - rating: 8
[User has posted 1456 recommendations about 1434 pubs]


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John Bonser left this review about Carpenters Arms

Situated in a cobbled, pedestrianised side street close to Windsor Castle ( which is, in this case, a Royal Residence and not a pub ) is The Carpenters Arms, a Nicholson's pub that is split over three floors.

We learn that the pub was built in 1518 and that the pub cellars, which are now bricked up, apparently lead to Windsor Castle. The downstairs drinking area contains evidence of this, in the form of a gated brick cellar. Note also the etched windows which feature tools, reflecting the fact that tradesmen used to frequent the pub and the Ashby Ales ( of Staines ) floor mosaic in the right hand entrance. It's a comfortable well appointed pub with a number of different interconnecting areas. There's some rather rickety wobbly chairs on the cobblestones outside.

On my recent early morning visit, the 6 pumps were serving 5 beers - Fraoch Heather Ale, Brew Dog Alpha, Davenports Heatwave, Black Sheep plus gcb ( good cheer beer ) from Roosters. A mini beer festival was being held and 3 barrels on stillage were due to come on stream shortly. The Heather Ale - £ 2.95p - was disappointing, but the Alpha Dog - £ 3.15p - was much better. The pub has been a CAMRA Good Beer Guide regular in recent years and proudly displays the yearly stickers in the front windows.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the pub makes a big play for the passing tourist food trade, but this is a fine pub. You should try and get to this one when you're next in Windsor.

On 6th October 2010 - rating: 7
[User has posted 560 recommendations about 560 pubs]

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