The Ring O'Bells, Shipley

A slightly bizarre start to our day out in Shipley and Saltaire, with the lass behind the bar having brought a hostile attitude to work with her. Service was abrupt rather than welcoming, and when I asked for the wifi code she said that someone had given it to a customer who didn’t bring it back, and now they didn’t know the code so no one could use wifi. She said this in a way that made it clear that it was my fault, because it certainly wasn’t hers. As one of my drinking companions pointed out, surely it's there on the router? The beer offering was good, though five cask beers and most customers drinking lager suggests that perhaps not all that much of it is being drunk. I went for Leeds Pale and Kirkstall Pale, the latter in slightly better condition than the former (NBSS 3.25 on average). Taking a photo of the one remaining unaltered room earned another glare from behind the bar, and most of the other interesting features were hidden by national flags, presumably prompted by the Euro football tournament. We managed to enjoy ourselves here, being amused, rather than threatened, by the behaviour of the person behind the bar, but if I'd experienced it as a regular it would have been a cue to find a different local.

Official site of the Ring O'Bells - ringobellsshipley.co.uk

Official site of the Ring O'Bells - ringobellsshipley.co.uk

Tidy roadside boozer

Listed on Camra's regional inventory of historic interiors, mostly for its window decoration (some of it reproduction), ceilings and fitted seating, the pub has admittedly been opened up quite a bit, with only the Smoke Room having any close relationship to the original. Nevertheless, it's a very nice pub and one that it is easy to feel comfortable and welcome in. There are seven hand pumps, with a cider, a house bitter and Tetleys Cask seemingly regulars - for other beers at the time of my visit see my photos. This seems like a popular local and is well worth the short walk from the town centre. Date of visit: 20th October 2017