The Bird in Hand, Stourbridge

A trad two-room Bathams house (main bar and rear snug) with all three of their ales on. Absolutely heaving due to a wake, so we had to make do with a seat outside which was a shame but you can’t knock the place for doing a roaring trade. Probably the best Bathams of the trip, my pints of Bitter (NBSS 4) and Mild (4.5) were nectar despite the biting cold. Surprised to discover this only opened as a Bathams pub in 2019 – it was a Marstons pub flogged off to New River Retail who wanted to demolish it! I’d love to pop back in when it’s quieter. Doesn’t make the GBG’23, which I find very strange, have the local branch fallen-out with Bathams or are they just a Pump Guide bunch? 8.5

My first visit since the takeover. An excellent pint of Bathams, friendly service, great looking pub. What's not to like? Well worth a visit!

A fantastic looking pub with a traditional interior. Another busy and bustling Batham's pub on our Friday evening visit. The interior had a good sized front lounge with the bar facing you as you enter. There was also a small rear snug with its own access with a door to the left after vacating the front room. The Batham etched glass front windows was a fitting feature, to the age and style of the building.

This pub is a great example (if it were needed) of how far Marston's have lost the plot. They sold this pub to a property company called New River Retail who wanted to demolish it to build a supermarket but they were denied permission. Batham's took it over in late 2019 and I really hope it was cheap as chips. The planned refurbishment closure in January was changed as they are now going to do a bit at a time. Quite honestly, it didn't seem to need a lot doing maybe some decoration in the main Public bar. The pub has two front entrances. The right one leads into the main Public bar and the left to a tiny carpeted Lounge which is more like a snug. The main bar has a mix of carpeted and wooden flooring with a couple of Batham's rugs. There were a couple of TVs turned off and a music soundtrack. There's a tarmac area and car park at the rear that includes a smoking shelter. The bar has four hand pumps but sadly the Mild went off when I arrived. The Best (£2.95) was excellent. While not being a classic Batham's pub it's still pretty good and well worth a visit.