Ye Olde Red Lion, Newbury

Official site of Ye Olde Red Lion - www.yeolderedlion.com

Official site of Ye Olde Red Lion - www.yeolderedlion.com

A typical Home Counties village pub, modernised from the original building and leading on food, though they also do B&B. There is a small carpark at the front and a small but pleasant garden at the rear. It’s still run by Arkells. The single large bar is a knock-through, the servery in the centre. There are various tables and seating arrangements including bench seats and dining chairs. It didn’t have much of a local feel to it, and the staff weren’t that engaging, especially the foreign barmaid who was seemed to have forgotten how to smile. Ales on draft were 3B, Wiltshire Gold, Hoperation IPA and Kingsdown Special Ale, all in good condition. Food is pub standards, but expensive and average quality, not particularly good value. I’d be happy to stay here or drop in for a beer but probably wouldn’t eat here again given the choice.

Timber-framed Arkells house with quite a bit of character inside despite looking like it has been opened-out at some point. Very homely with a traditional pub feel; carpeted, some exposed brick wall and wood ceiling beams. The impressive fireplace was lit which added to the atmosphere. Friendly locals and staff in situ, who helped clarify the status of a few nearby outlets we’d struggled to locate in the dark. Three Arkells ales on and my Kingsdown was in extremely good form. Nice backlit ‘Ye Olde Red Lion’ sign in the bar back (Courage lineage?). One major downer was that the toilets reeked of piss which leeched into part of the bar (just where we were sat, too). A selection of papers available, always a good sign. Probably my favourite pub of the day’s crawling but the smell of urine in my nostrils lasted into the car park, which means I have to knock a point off.