The Marble Arch, Manchester

Official site of The Marble Arch - www.marblebeers.com

Official site of The Marble Arch - www.marblebeers.com

Visited on Saturday evening. This place is always busy (no dry January being observed here, it would seem) and was standing room only initially, but a table did become free shortly after our arrival. Which is great, because there is nowhere really to stand in here without being in someone's way, whether it be other customers trying to get past to the bar or toilet, or staff coming out to bring meals to the tables. Six hand pulls offering their own (Marble) beers, with prices ranging from £3.30 to £5.75 a pint. Eight keg taps offering a range of beers varying from £3.95 a pint to £4.70 for 1/3 of a pint (admittedly that was for a 12% barley wine). My Marble Stout was served with a generous head, and needed to be topped up, which was done without fuss on asking. However, you shouldn't really have to ask. For the cider drinkers there are three further hand pulls to the side of the bar, along with some keg cider options. This pub is one of Manchester's classic institutions but you do need to pay attention to the chalk board above the bar listing the prices if you don't want to end up ordering something surprisingly expensive. Always worth a visit but the experience is much improved if you can get a seat.

Lovely building happily survived the adjoining redevelopments and very traditional, even ornate inside. Well worth a visit and not too far from Victoria station. A bit pricey though but seems popular.

this is possibly the best beer pub in Manchester but it still somehow feels a touch overrated. it’s somewhere to visit as an occasional destination rather than a ‘pub’ to be a regular or spend a whole evening. I didn’t look at the price board - my fault admittedly- and got stung by a £5.25 pint of ale which immediately put me in a bad mood. the pub is nice inside but it had the atmosphere of a cafe and a young hipster clientele. I didn’t really like it that much but it may just be my taste.

This is an iconic Manchester pub and worth the walk up the Rochdale Road to search it out. It’s an impressive building from the outside but it’s even more impressive internally. Well described by others, even without the extensive beer offering its worth visiting just for the fine barrel-vaulted ceiling and decorative frieze, the glazed tiles wall and the sloping mosaic floor that leads you inexorably to the bar. The room behind the bar, where the brewery used to be, is much plainer and more aligned to dining and then there’s a very pleasant small outside courtyard area at the back. The Marble beers available were Pale, Bitter, Pint, Left Handed Marble, Uppe Helle Natten Petite and Export, with the guest beer, Neptune Bolska IPA as reported below. I went for the Pint (has to be done really) and also tried the Uppe Helle Nattenm, which was an excellent macchiato porter. As mentioned below this is not a cheap pub by Manchester standards and the pricing levels were a bit strange. But £3.90 for the 5.1% Porter was well worth it.

As mentioned previously, an iconic pub and it was top of my to do list while in Manchester. Upon entering the sloping floor is quite evident, then of course the ornate wall and ceiling tiling really catches the eye. Most of the nine handpumps were occupied by Marble beers as you would expect. There was one guest beer, Neptune Bolska IPA plus Seacider on another, I noted quite a price disparity between the different beer strengths, Marble Pint at 3.9 % was £3.30 and Left Handed Marble a 6.2 % collaboration was £5.60, I had the 5.4 % Pale at £4.75, lovely despite the price. I made a couple of visits to this pub while in town, both worthy ones.

Another one of Manchester's iconic pubs, and is where Marble used to brew their beers. I am pretty sure that on my first visit (many years ago) you used to be able to see the brewing equipment on your way to the toilets towards the back room. But no longer; brewing is done elsewhere. Naturally, Marble beers dominate but a few guests are usually available too and some real ciders. If you are lucky enough to get a seat you can take your time and marvel at the tiled interior and admire the famous sloping floor. It does, however, get very busy on a Saturday night and as it is a popular place for dining tables are often either reserved or in use by the same party taking their time over a meal. This can make it uncomfortably busy for the casual drinker as there is not much left in the way of standing room so you are always shuffling around trying to find a spot where you are not in the way (and usually failing). Pricing used to be a bit steep in here, but I can't say I noticed on my past few visits, so either I have got used to it or other places in Manchester have caught up. The beer is always spot on and it's great to try some Marble beers that you don't always see in other places.