The Red Lion, Llangynidr, Crickhowell

Facebook page of The Red Lion - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of The Red Lion - www.facebook.com

A basic local pub on a small estate between the Mon and Brec Canal and the main road, visible from neither, but accessible from both. It didn’t look very inviting from outside, but once in we were warmly welcomed and looked after by the staff, and with good humour from the locals. Apparently there have been new owners and a renovation since previous reviews, hopefully for the better. Food was standard pub grub plus some local specialities at a reasonable price, well cooked and nicely presented. The ales were very good indeed – Butty Bach and Hopfather from Wye Valley, plus a guest, Grey Trees’s Mosaic. CAMRA awards around the walls bore this out. There was a limited range of keg, nothing really worth a mention. Worth seeking out if passing.

Well signed from the B4558 which bypasses the village, the Red Lion is built slightly skewiff to the road, with a few bench tables and a children's play area in front, and a small car park across the road. Once inside there's a decent sized bar with stools; there's another room to the right but I didn't look into it. On the bar were three hand pumps (see photo); numerous pump clips adorn the ceiling. The pub is in the Good Beer Guide. Locals were friendly and chatty, and one proposed a route change for the final stretch of my cycle ride to Talybont reservoir which saw me unexpectedly cycling along the canal towpath instead of the B4558; up to that point I hadn't even known there was a canal hereabouts. My pint of Rhymney Hobby Horse was just what I needed after the long ride through to Brynmawr and over the moors. Date of visit: 1st August 2017