The Swan, Walsall

I'd been looking forward to trying The Swan ever since it reopened last year and on a visit back home last week I finally made it. Well worth the wait. It was a Thursday afternoon and a mate and I were there for the 4pm opening. Soup Dragon's review tells you what you need to know about the interior. I'll just add that the pool table and dart board are indeed in a side area, but it's really a separate room beyond an archway, still with with bar access. You don't feel at all cut off in there, yet it's independent enough to have its own sporting atmosphere, as it were. The Sharp's Doom Bar was excellent (on offer at £2.50/pint), as was the Holden's Golden Glow and Satisfaction. The two main rooms each had a plate of black pudding and polony slices on the bar to pick at, which went down a treat. It turned into a mini session, such was the good atmosphere and friendly service, and it was much appreciated that when I finished off with a whisky and asked for a dash of water I was handed a jug, rather than having to shout 'when' at someone wielding a hose-fed gun. A proper pub that deserves to flourish.

A new review rather than an update, as this pub has re-opened recently under new ownership and has been completely refurbished. The pub is a small cottage-styled detached Victorian building with a central entrance flanked by bay windows and has a moulded string course. It is cream rendered with white paintwork and has etched glass windows. There is a rear patio area. The interior has two rooms, to the left and right of an entrance lobby, both served by a central serving bar. The decor of the rooms is a cream patterned wallpaper, with cream ceiling and a carpet floor, with predominantly blue seating. The more bar room is to the right, though both rooms really are comfortable lounges in many ways. The bar has a brick chimney fireplace and just a couple of prints/mirrors on the walls. There is a TV which had the footy on. The lounge had a private function on, but this room has a side area where there is a pool table and a dart board. A few Laurel & Hardy figurines decorate and there was a TV here too. There was no background music. The service was really friendly (made Mrs Soup a cup of tea - which she has rated on Tea Galore), as were the locals that were in the bar room. They don't do food, just cobs at a £1 a time. Beer; usual tap stuff with Banks's MILD. There are two handpulls; Holden's Golden Glow and Backyard Hoard, both were very good. It appears that a third pull may be added in the near future. A really good experience, so much better than my last visit. More than worth popping into and i intend to return. Good luck to you.

Geoff & Jane Taylor, formerly of The Prince of Wales PH (2003-2007) are the new owners of The Swan Inn. We shall be opening mid July 2011. Now a 'true' freehouse we shall be serving a good variety of both draught and cask ales. We shall be looking for dart, pool,cribbage & dominoes teams so come along and see us. We shall also be showing live football matches. No food, just traditional cobs, crisps, scratchings & nuts etc. A PROPER PUB!!! We shall be undertaking improvements to the pub over the next couple of years. Our initial consideration shall be to serve good quality beer in a nice clean pub. See our facebook page for upto date news or email us on theswanbrownhills@hotmail.co.uk