King Richard III, Leicester

This is a nice, traditional pub sat between the historic buildings around the Cathedral and the modern shopping centre complex. You enter into the front bar - a rather spartan space with vinyl flooring and dominated by a pool table. The room has half panelled walls and part obscured front windows plus a juke box, but its most striking feature is its vast array of football memorabilia, including countless pennants from clubs across the globe, the shields of every Premier League football club from several seasons ago, a signed England shirt and of course, a TV screen showing the afternoon's early kick off. Seating here is limited to a few standard chairs and low stools down the right hand side and some bar stools along a ledge to the left. A wide, glass topped archway leads through to the main bar which is partly carpeted and has a simple tongue and groove panelled servery along the left hand wall. The low stools and fixed bench seating opposite seemed to be the place of choice for locals to congregate when I arrived early on a Saturday afternoon. The bar back has a bank note collection on display, a TV screen showing the same televised match and was adorned with a truly remarkable amount of Christmas decorations. A large portrait of Richard III hangs on the back wall near a nice tiled fireplace, with a lot of information boards on hand to provide a bit of history. A door leads into a rear room which is as sparingly furnished as the front bar, with virtually no seating but a number of dartboards and a large collection of trophies in a cabinet, which suggests the game is played competitively here. There is another tiled fireplace here - much smaller than the one in the other room and partly obscured by a dartboard on the hearth. The TV in here was switched off as no customers frequented the room, but music was playing quietly, which was a bit strange. There are stairs leading up to a function room which apparently has a counter-less bar with a Victorian 'dresser' servery sporting two disused hand pumps on the bar back, but sadly I was not aware of this at the time of my visit, so I missed the chance to see this unusual survivor. The servery I did see had two ales on, both from Everards - Tiger and Sleighbell - with a third handpull unclipped. The friendly barman gave me a warm welcome and poured a very enjoyable pint of Tiger. A visit to Leicester isn't really complete without a well kept pint of this excellent beer. This is a fairly basic pub perhaps best suited to football fans and those wishing to play pool or darts. The place can't really be described as cosy, but there was a warmth of sorts whether it be from the friendly barman or the amiable Leicester City fans who slowly filled the place prior to a home fixture. I wouldn't rule this place out in the future and would definitely try to sneak a look upstairs if I ever found myself back here.