O'Neill's, Cardiff

Formerly one of two city centre O'Neill's Irish pubs, this M&B venue has recently been converted into their much more appealing Nicholson's brand. The pub dates back to the 1840's and was originally known as the New Market Tavern, in reference to the neighbouring market building. Today we find a jumbled maze of a pub, with a vast amount of partitioning walls and structural supports creating something of a labyrinth around which the pub has been awkwardly laid out. You enter into a small front bar area with a few seats under the front windows and a short stretch of servery with enough space for just three handpulls. The seating area opens out a fair bit over to the right with a lot of high tables and stools in particular, before you move further into the pub where the main servery area appears to the left. There is a decent amount of seating here opposite the bar underneath a painted depiction of the brewing process. As you move further to the rear, the place becomes even more of a rabbit warren, with a series of spaces offering different seating options with differing degrees of privacy. Some button backed banquettes give way to standard tables and chairs in areas that might be better suited to diners wanting a bit of peace from the bustle of the bar area. The pub is decorated in fairly dark shades with lots of half panelled walls and pictures arranged by theme, covering subjects as diverse as rugby and the circus. A dismal pop music soundtrack played throughout my stay, although this can be avoided by making use of the few tables outside at the front which offer the chance to indulge in some good people watching. On the bar, two banks of handpulls offered St Austell Proper Job, Sharps Doom Bar, Nicholson's Pale Ale, Brains Reverend James, Castle Rock Harvest Pale, Daleside Old Leg Over and Conwy Beachcomber. The latter was a new brewery to me, so I gave it a try but found it to be a pretty unpleasant beer, not in the best of condition. I normally enjoy visiting Nicholson's pubs, especially when they are in historic buildings, but this place has been knocked around so much in the past, it's lost just about all the character it might have once had. I'd hoped this was going to prove to be another good addition to the city's drinking scene, but ultimately it just feels like an O'Neill's pub with more handpulls.