Alfie's, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Facebook page of Alfie's - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of Alfie's - www.facebook.com

Official site of Alfie's - www.alfiesbar.com

Official site of Alfie's - www.alfiesbar.com

Just a short walk from the city centre, on the wrong side of the A167(M), this is a classy little pub that is part of the ever reliable Fitzgerald chain. The interior is set out in an L-shape with the bar running along the longer side. The servery has some nice traditional touches including the decorative dark wood counter and bar back and smart integral lamps. The long side is carpeted and has a padded banquette opposite the bar and short, padded bench booths further along the same wall. At the far end is a single upholstered bench as well as high tables and stools to the side of a nice tiled fireplace with a fantastic painting of the city hung above it. The booths each have dark wood panels and shelves above them where ancient looking books have been stacked alongside ceramic whiskey and brandy barrels and other oddities such as a phrenology head. On the other side of the pub there is a smaller front section dominated by a large screen showing live football, although seating around here was considerably more limited. A structural wall screens this side from a cosy rear seating space with good bench and standard seating, another TV screen and some interesting bits on the walls such as a large map of the Tyne region. Some notably good music played throughout my stay, but this wasn't so loud as to be a distraction. The pub was considerably quieter than any other pub I visited on my Saturday evening crawl and I wondered if the slightly 'no man's land' location played a part in this. The lack of custom certainly can't be put down to a lack of decent beer. The hand pumps had Credence Red, Anarchy Brew Co Blonde Star, Rat After Rat Mint and Fyne Vital Spark available and if the Vital Spark is anything to go by, they certainly know how to keep their beer. I believe there was also a real cider on and the pub does food, but only at lunchtimes. I found this pub a very useful stopping point on my way back to the city after a brief crawl along the Ouseburn Valley. The pub has a comfy and welcoming feel to it and served up some good beer in smart, clean surroundings. Whilst the place might not be an essential port of call, it was nonetheless a good solid addition to my crawl and I hope the lack of customers was a bit of a blip, as they deserve to succeed.

Comfy pub by the thundering A193/A167M. Mid-80s plush throwback interior with some comfy booth seating to left. Attractive feature fireplace sadly for decoration only. Nice stained glass door inlays and some large etched glass inlaid in mahogany(?) surround. Larger opened-out area beyond with drop-down TV screen showing cycling. A lesser-spotted Newcastle dart board off to the right as well as two old boys playing dominoes. Five ales on, my Fernandes Mulberry Mild was OK but lacked condition. Westons cider available. Decent place but not as inspiring as I’d hoped.