Rose Tavern, Birmingham

Despite the repainted exterior, this remains a basic single-bar locals pub catering for the nearby Irish community. Sparsely furnished and plainly decorated, there is little to note apart from the pool table at one end of the central counter and the sports TV at the other. No real ale of course, so it had to be the Worthington's (£3.00)...

A detached corner pub. The date on the pub cites 1880 as the date of its building. The pub, now Irish themed, has the squareness of the Georgian look, with narrow pilasters on the doors and windows. It is in the pale green, with some white and darker green paintwork, as the above photo, but it now looks a little tired, with missing sills. The interior has a couple of rooms, although the smaller lounge had its lights out, so I didn't see it. The main bar is in green and white split wall, with wood floor. At one end there is a dart board and a pool table, at the other, bench seating near a TV that was silent, showing a soap. The Jukebox pumped out the occasional track at a decent level. The interior is decorated with irish flags and sporting shirts, as well as having shamrocks hanging from the ceiling. A few old local photos are mounted nicely too. It actually looks a tidy pub. The service was friendly and a few mature locals were in. Beer; no real ale, just the basic keg drinks - not even a MILD. I had a shandy. Another locals pub, which seemed nice enough, it just lacked anything to drink for my personal taste.