The Running Horse, Nottingham

More a comment than a review - only open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. A Country and Western pub that looks good from the outside. As I was there on a Wednesday I can add no more!

Main room with a stage to the left before the steps down to the bar on the left side. Two weak real ales, the rest keg offerings. Very much a country and western music pub, by the looks and sounds.

The Running Horse is a bit of a Nottingham institution sitting at the top of Alfreton road where there used to be an abundance of pubs. For years this was the “THE” go to place to see live music from talented up and coming bands. Unfortunately it was closed and boarded up for a lot of years but began to open sporadically over the last few years. Thankfully the manager of the now sadly closed Guitar bar Deux has bought the pub band has set about investing in a complete refurbishment. The classic Green tiles have been retained that give this pub such a bice distinctive traditional look but the inside has seen a complete transformation. Set on two levels you now enter the stage room with the performance area up a level on the left with a raised seating area to the right and a selection of tables and chairs dotted around in front of the stage. Down a couple of stereo the back of the pub is where the bar now sits. The bar to my sup price was actually stocked with a fairly good selection of not so often seen keg products and had a good selection of bottled and canned beers and ciders. What was more delightful was the presence of two hand pulls both of which had beers on. These were Welbeck Abbey Red Feather and one from dancing duck. The decor reminds me of a Texas style saloon with lots of sanded wood and has a real cowboy feel about it. Although extremely modern it captures a bit of a rustic look which is different but one that works rather well and give a very dark but comfy ambience to the pub =an one that makes it great for sitting quietly and enjoying a good performance. Music ids still at the heart of the pub with performances every Frida – Sunday and most of the time free of charge which is a bargain for some of the grata shows I have seen over the last couple of months. For such a good place to have opened it kills me to see it empty most times I have been inn. The new owner is very enthusiastic but is doing a terrible job of spreading the word around on this place that rightfully deserves to be a lot busier than it has been on some of my visits. He did mention that he would be cranking things up in the New Year so hopefully he has pulled his finder out because I believe if people were aware of it a bit more it would be rammed. This is showcased in the fact he told me that he is throwing half a barrel of each of his cask ales away a week at the moment because people are not drinking it yet. This is such a shame because as a last comment we had one of each and he lets them condition for a good few days before serving and keeps them in perfect condition and all for only £3.00 a pint!! This makes it a great addition to the canning circus crawl but I doubt many people realise this place is either A, Open or B, selling anything remotely worth drinking. I can confirm it is both and really hope people start going as I believe it is a little gem that with a bit of support could take off. We need to use it or lose it and it would be a great shame to see this place go again after all the hard work that has gone into it and the fact that he is selling tip notch real ale. I urge you to give it a go and see what you make of it, probably on a weekend as Thursdays are really dead. Great new addition to this side of town.

Official site of The Running Horse - www.facebook.com

Official site of The Running Horse - www.facebook.com