The Star & Garter, Bedford

A well-regarded village pub which retains a two-bar layout and offers pub grub cuisine with offers such as curry nights and burger night (2 burgers and a bottle of wine for £20). Moseying in from the front, a bar counter is located against the back wall with a dartboard to the left and a flatscreen TV which was showing BBC News 24 on my visit. A fireplace stack is to the right with a small walkway leading to a larger area where a second bar counter is set at a right-angle. This room is higher-ceilinged and is slightly more contemporary than its counterpart yet remaining cosy. A dining area is located towards the rear. Ale time: GK IPA, Adnam's Ghost Ship, Beartown Bear Ass and a super B&T Shefford Bitter. They even do a meat raffle. All in all, a traditional British boozer which has modernised, but without trading this off against tradition.