Mardale Inn, Penrith

I recall reading the previous review before planning a visit here and can concur that it is easier to arrive at this pub by bike than by car. Signs have been put up in the windows of houses and around various other premises requesting pub customers not to park their cars in certain spots. Luckily, the pub does organise 2 or 3 different places to park around the village. I managed to get a space just a little way up the lane, which meant just a 4-5 minute walk back to the pub. On arrival at this community-run, I found just two other customers and the barmaid. The barmaid was stood behind the bar with her back to me. Despite a mirror behind the bar, it was a couple of minutes before she noticed my presence. I didn't want to startle here, but did manage a little fake cough to get her attention! The wait did at least give me time to decide which of the cask ales I would choose. Being listed in the 2024 Good Beer Guide, I was hoping for a selection of different ales and sure enough the regular beer of Cumbrian Ales Loweswater Gold was accompanied by a couple of guests - Bowness Bay Raven Red & Fell Explorer. The cider is Inch's. According to WhatPub, a discount of 40p/pint is offered to CAMRA members. However, this is not actively promoted. The interior is a single room, with a cosy sub-section to the right-hand side. There is a stone floor and a modern wooden bar. The cellar area looked a bit untidy with casks spilling out into the main room. Walls are lined with pictures of red squirrels and local views. Some of the pictures were for sale. There is also a small seating area to the front of the pub. The pub appears to cater for both drinkers and diners. All tables had food condiments on them and there was a specials board in the fireplace. Dogs are also welcome in the pub. Quite a decent pub in a lovely rural location and with nice beers to boot.

My first visit for almost 12 years and there seem to have been some changes inside the Mardale Inn at St Patrick's Well, as it is also known. The main change is that it looks spruce and professional, and the hatchet and nails mentioned in my previous review seem to have bitten the dust. On a hot day for cycling this was a haven of peace and cool quiet, with a very good beer: Loweswater Gold (NBSS 4). Just two hand pumps on the bar these days, but the quality of this beer really shone. It's hard to believe a small, out of the way place like this (ok, it's a tourist area but off the beaten track) ever offered as many as six beers! Worth making the effort to get here, but please note that parking is very limited, with notices throughout the village asking drivers not to park; there's a dedicated parking place at the road junction near Bampton Grange, but it's a 10 minute walk from the pub.

Facebook page of the Mardale Inn - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of the Mardale Inn - www.facebook.com

Official site of the Mardale Inn - www.themardaleinn.com

Official site of the Mardale Inn - www.themardaleinn.com

This is a very quiet village on the northeastern edge of the Lake District. The pub is a typical whitewashed building in the local vernacular, with a couple of benches out front, though the afternoon sun does not reach them. Inside the low ceilinged room there are rows of pine tables set out in front of the bar to the left, while a less formal area can be found to the right where a wood-burning stove has been placed in the large stone fireplace. A large tree trunk has been set up near the bar with a jar of five-inch nails and a hatchet, which is evidently used as a hammer for knocking nails into the wood. An unusual device for relieving stress, I guess. The tiny bar counter features six hand pumps serving five real ales and a cider. The beers are all local or from other independent breweries. The pub's own Bampton Emergency Ale takes pride of place, and there were also beers from Dent, Ennerdale and Hesket Newmarket (all Cumbria) and Cleveland (from Stillington near Stockton-on-Tees). There is food available, though I was just pausing to slake my thirst so didn't try any. The vegetarian option was asparagus and pecan pizza, which sounds interesting.