The Royal Oak, Nottingham

The Royal oak is now the last pub remaining in East Bridgeford after the closure of the reindeer a few years ago. It is situated i the heart of the small village near the church and the corner shop and is a vital part of this small community. Access unless by car is restricted but it is only a 20 minute walk from nearby Gunthorpe and is serviced by the occasional local bus service the Ruschliffe Villager. The pub has large car park but beware closes 3-5 in the week. Inside there have obviously been several big renovations since its Home Ales days with what would have been several different rooms that have now been knocked through to create one open plan space. The decor is less traditional than similar village pubs as it have a lot of cream walls and hard wooden floors but isn’t quite the horrible modern aluminium/exposed brick layout that some have adopted. As you enter the bar is facing you and bends round the side in an L shape. There are four hand pulls that on my visit included Harvest Pale, London Pride, Deuchars (of on my visit) and one unclipped. The London Pride came it at what consider a pretty hefty £3.80 for a village pub but this is a wealthy hamlet. The pride was actually in a very nice condition which softened the blow somewhat but did get a head that most would deem “overly excessive” and I’m firmly in the large creamy sparkled head camp. . Overall this is a pleasant pub to sit and enjoy a a competently kept pint. The price might make some think twice but if you lived here and used this as you local you’re probably not short of a few quid. If I’m ever around the Gunthorpe area again I would make the 20 minute commute to come here and it has a fairly good following judging by mid afternoon visit last month.

The Royal Oak is a decent looking pub that used to be an Home Ales tied house. I got here just after 3.00 in the afternoon but was told they had stopped serving so i dont know what beers were on the bar.