The Marble Arch, Manchester

It shows on reflection how this place has priced out the ordinary Joe public, when regular 'Posties' are supping in the nearby Angel. It must be well over 12 months since I last frequented the Marble. Not that I'm disrespecting the Angel- in fact it has become a firm favourite of mine in recent months. The standard of the real ales being in top notch condition with friendly staff. The Marble Arch along with the Brewdog outlet in central Manchester, exceeds in being totally pretentious and out of touch considering the current economic climate, in my humble opinion!

If you only visit one pub in Manchester, then ensure that it's the Marble Arch. The interior alone is worth a visit and is well described below but the food and beer are also of the highest quality. The extensive cheese menu is a great idea as it allows a nibble without using up too much valuable space. Unlike Mr Bonser, I found the welcome to be warm and friendly from both staff and locals. In fact no sooner had we expressed an interest in the Chocolate Reserve than a fellow drinker was describing it's provenance and recommending it and there was a taster in front of us from the barman. Class. The ale range is predominantly Marble but so confident are they in the quality of their beers that guests are also from top quality breweries. On our visit the delights available were: Marble Ginger, Dobber, Chocolate Reserve, Draft, Lagonda IPA, Pint, Summer and Northern Quarter with guests Black Jack New Deck and Fyne Rune. Black Jack is brewed by a former Marble brewer close by. Marble brew the finest beer I've ever had and everything we went for was excellent, refused to stay in the glass and was very well kept. An outstanding pub. Heaven.

On the Rochdale Road, on the edge of Manchester’s Northern Quarter is The Marble Arch, a Victorian street corner pub that will be of interests to beer enthusiasts as the original home of the Masrble Brewery, although I understand that brewing no longer takes place on the premises. Outside, high up in the brickwork, we see the date 1888 A D, this date now being remembered in the name of one of the brewery’s bottled beers. An attractive looking dark polished granite exterior leads into a long single room with a fine mosaic floor and superb glazed tiled walls advertising, high up, just below the join with the ceiling, various drinks such as Gins, Brandies, Cordials and Wines. On the right hand wall a display cabinet proudly displays a collection of CAMRA award certificates ( some from specific beer festivals ) together with bottles of various Marble beers that have been brewed over the years. Seating consists of pew seating and banquettes down both sides of the room. The bar counter is at the far end of the long room and, as we walk down the notably sloping floor to this counter, we see an impressive large old mirror advertising B & J McKenna Harpurhey Brewery Ales and Stouts. The pub is listed in CAMRA’s National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors. Walking past the side of the bar, we reach a more modern restaurant area behind with an open canteen style kitchen counter. Here, on the wall, are several framed collections of old brewery items – widgets, taps etc. There’s a rather scruffy garden outside at the back with the usual picnic style tables and parasols. Food is evidently taken seriously here with menus and condiments on all tables in the long bar room. Probably reflecting the regeneration of the area, the menu might perhaps best be described as ambitious and pricey ( eg – Marble style lamb hot pot with our pickled red cabbage - £ 15.50p). Mains generally appeared to start at around £ 11, an indication, clearly, that the pub sees its target clientele as those living in the expensive newly built apartments nearby, and not the average typical local pub goer. Staff were friendly and helpful enough, but the impersonal un–Northern like atmosphere here is something of a disappointment. The principal attraction here of course is the Marble beers with tasting notes thoughtfully provided in the drinks menu. The bar counter has 10 pumps in total. On my recent late lunchtime visit, 6 Marble beers were on – Dobber, Chocolate Marble, Lagonda IPA, Stouter Stout, Spring and Ginger. Notably, Ginger appeared to be the weakest beer at 4.5% ABV, with three of the six beers ( Dobber, Chocolate Marble and Lagonda IPA) weighing in at ABV’s of 5% +. Also on was Marble Moonshine Cider at 7.5%. Two guest beers from Pictish Brewery – Columbus and Sauvin Blanc – were also on. Of the Marble beers sampled, both the Lagonda IPA and the Stouter Stout ( £ 3.25p and £ 3.05p respectively ) were in fine form, but I struggled a bit with the rather harsh taste of the Ginger. There’s also a good selection of bottled German and Belgian beers. The pub is a CAMRA Good Beer Guide regular. It’s not a long walk from the City Centre to get here, and, overall, it’s still well worth the effort.

what a cracking little pub full life and character good beer the pub was full to the brim on a very windy day my pint of marble ginger was spot on form i also tried marble bitter which was also in good form will definitely come again next time i`m in manchester