The Malt Shovel, Lichfield

Facebook page of The Malt Shovel - www.facebook.com

Official site of The Malt Shovel - maltshovel.co.uk

Facebook page of The Malt Shovel - www.facebook.com

Official site of The Malt Shovel - maltshovel.co.uk

A detached country pub and restaurant, which has patio areas, a caravan park and a shop - they hold bonfires in the grounds etc. The pub building looks a mix of Georgian and Victorian in style; a former farmhouse extended and converted at some date. The frontage is a three gabled cottage-style in white render, with olive green paintwork and a central entrance. The interior has two rooms served by a central wood serving bar. You enter a lobby, ironically with a clocking-machine, where the lounge/restaurant is through a door to the left and the bar room to the right. The bar room has white, dark red and part olive green wood panel walls, with a white ceiling and a wood floor. There are two fireplaces (one blocked, the other with a nice fire) at either end of the room. There are traditinal stools and bench seating and the room is rammed with Victoriana, pub photos, jugs and pots, brasses, trophies and even a gun. There is a dart board and a TV, which wasn't on. The background music was general and subdued. The lounge is incoffee, white and red walls, with some olive green wood panel, a white ceiling with coffee cornice and carpet floor. There are three exposed brick fireplaces and the room is near bisected by a wall. Dinig tables populate, with lots of prints on the walls - as well as a deer head. The service was great, both foody and at the bar, apart from that they over-ran, so we waited for our table some time. The food was decent. The bar was empty, then filled within minutes with a good mixed clientele, the restaurant part was packed. Beer; usual tap stuff with Banks's MILD and four handpulls, Abbots, Tetley Bitter, a decent enough Wadsworth 6X and A Timothy Taylor that improved after changing the barrel. A really good pub element, complimented by a good lounge/restuarant serving decent food, sadly, like most places, it is too crammed with Xmas diners this time of year - stretching the staff, room and table faclities to their limit.

Lovely, traditional pub with a fire burning - made it really comfortable and welcoming. Went for lunch and had home made faggots which were delicious! Mr Agent P's pint of Black Sheep was spot on and there was a good choice of ales. Staff were really pleasant. I really liked the fact that it also serves as the village shop - there is a farm shope type affair in the car park. You can also order fish and chips to take away. I will be going again soon! Only downside was that I banged my head on the mounted deer head as I stood up!

We went for food on a busy Saturday night and it was packed, very popular. Bar one side and lounge/diner the other. The choice of ales on handpull included Youngs Bitter, Black Sheep, Tetley Bitter, Banks's Original, GK Abbott and there was more in the cellar. It was a nice enough place and sufficiently staffed to cope with demand. I prefer quieter places but that's just my personal preference rather than a criticism.

An excellent country pub. Unspoilt. Bar has A1 range of well-kept real ales. Very popular with diners. Beer garden.